Wed August 6 – Whale Watching

What a wildlife spectacle we witnessed off Montauk yesterday! We always tell passengers how each trip
is different and every outing brings with it a special uniqueness, but yesterday’s trip was both familiar
and outstanding. Familiar in the sense that we’ve had days at sea like this before, yet exceptional and
above and beyond what we ever hope to experience. The trip began with a small pod of Tamanend’s
bottlenose dolphins, not far from the lighthouse. As we watched, multiple small pods joined together,
first into a group of about twenty, before gaining more individuals into what ultimately became a pod of
at least 120 dolphins. It was beautiful to watch their synchronicity and to witness how responsible whale
watching pays dividends to all involved; it was as if the dolphins returned their respect for keeping our
distance and passively observing by swimming and surfacing together alongside the vessel for much of
our encounter. We eventually headed east and after about an hour of transit, we saw our first blow.
Then another, and another, and another, and another, and so on, like the Bellagio fountains at Vegas! At
first, the blows belonged to at least 6-8 fin whales, including a mom and calf pair. Four of the whales
were surfacing and moving together, likely feeding on dense patches of sand eels about fifty feet
beneath the surface. But then splashes in the distance caught our eye and eventually after moving safely
away from the fins, we encountered the first of 8-12 humpback whales. These whales demonstrated
nearly every surface activity possible: bubble, kick-, and open mouth feeding, flipper slapping, spy
hopping, and partial and full breaches! The group consisted of at least two mom/calf pairs, one of which
we encountered earlier this season (Pickle and her 2025 calf). As the surface behaviors ensued, fin
whales remained in the area and one humpback breached right next to them! Then the dolphins arrived;
these were the fast and acrobatic short-beaked common dolphins, who charged towards the bait as well
as our vessel, giving everyone excellent and memorable views. Some passengers at the bow heard their
vocalizations as well! It was chaotic in the most beautiful sense: fin whales to the left, humpbacks to the
right (and left), dolphins at the bow, and then as you finally fix your gaze, a breach to interrupt whatever
it was you decided to focus on. The breaches were numerous and exhilarating, and not to be ‘outdone’,
a minke whale surprised us all at the bow with a close approach on both sides giving everyone great
views of four cetacean species at once. It was a five cetacean species day and we returned full of happy
memories and humbled by the grandeur of our special time at sea.