Mon July 14 – Whale Watching

This was a tremendous and memorable trip! We started out toward an area with heavy bait and
numerous reports of cetacean activity. En route, we encountered a juvenile humpback whale that was
spending brief intervals at the surface, just enough to give everyone a quick look, before we decided to
move on. Within a few miles, we saw numerous spouts ahead of us, the first belonging to a finback (fin)
whale, the second largest animal on Earth. While observing this endangered species, a minke whale
popped up near the vessel, followed by a second blow belonging to the tiniest of minke whales, about
one third the size of the adults we typically see. From there, we spent time with a group of 60-100 short-
beaked common dolphins which approached our vessel and swam all around us affording everyone
onboard incredible views, as well as a second fin whale in the area. Then, it was time to meet our
second humpback of the day, a tail-throwing individual exhibiting long dive times (likely feeding on the
incredible density of bait detected beneath us) so we continued toward a third humpback observed
bubble cloud feeding ahead of us. This whale continuously produced bubble clouds (about every two
minutes) around our vessel, confusing and trapping the sand eels that are in abundance here. A minke
whale was seen here as well, completing an exciting spectacle of wildlife just eight miles off Montauk. A
small group of Tamanend’s bottlenose dolphins were spotted on our return transit, wrapping up an
incredible five-species cetacean day.
We never know what we will see, but it seems like this season is heating up, and these trips are truly a
dream come true. Come on out with us and experience this splendor for yourself!

3 humpback whales
2 fin whales
3-4 minke whales
60-100 short-beaked common dolphins
12-20 Tamanend’s bottlenose dolphins
60-80 great shearwaters
20-30 Cory’s shearwaters
40-60 Wilson’s storm petrels