Friday, October 18, 2013

Minke whales and some October fog

Good morning everyone,

We had 2 wonderful trips out yesterday into the West Isles of the Bay of Fundy.  On our morning departure we spent time with 3 minke whales (one got quite curious of the boat and came up very close and went right underneath us and we could all see the minke mittens) and we saw 2 minke whales.  We also saw many bald eagles on both trips, both mature and immature and harbour porpoise and seals as well.  And on our afternoon trip we had some incredible looks at blue fin tuna.

I wanted to share some photos I took of seals on the reefs off Casco Bay Island yesterday

2 male grey seals 

male grey seal on the left and female harbour seal on the right

male grey seal

male grey seal on left and female harbour seal on right 

male grey seal on left and female harbour seal on right 

Thank you to everyone who joined us yesterday and everyone at Quoddy Link wants to wish the Bride and Groom and wonderful wedding day tomorrow, we hope your family and friends enjoyed their time our on the Bay of Fundy with us!

Cheers,
Danielle

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Still whales to be seen!

Hello everyone, sorry it's been a few days since my last post.  We are still seeing whales and here is a quick update about the last little bit.

On October the 12th we had 2 departures and we did see both minke and finbacks on both trips.



Yesterday we had one trip and they saw 2 minkes whales and today we had 2 departures and we saw minkes on both trips as well.  Also seeing lots of porpoise, bald eagles and blue fin tuna too!






Thanks to everyone who joined us today and over the past few days,

Cheers,
Danielle

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Feeding whales and porpoise all day

Good evening everyone!

It was so great to get back on the water today after three days on shore.  We had 2 trips today with so much life in and around Head Harbour Passage in was amazing.  This morning we had 2 fin whales and three minkes and this afternoon we found three fins and at least 5 minkes in and just off the Passage.  We also so lots and lots of feeding harbour porpoise and birds, mostly gulls and cormorants, and blue fin tuna too.



Yep, a minke and a porpoise!






Thanks so much to everyone who joined,

Cheers,
Danielle 

Sunday, October 06, 2013

Sunny Sunday with Finbacks

Hello everyone, we had 2 charters today with some international students and both trips were great as we spent time with fins and minkes in and around Head Harbour Passage.

minke




Watching a fin whale approach the boat from the upper deck of the Quoddy Link

Photographing a fin whale from the upper deck of the Quoddy Link 




We also saw lots of porpoise and this afternoon we saw schools of feeding blue fin tuna!

A great day on the water and thank you to everyone who joined,

Cheers,
Danielle

Friday, October 04, 2013

Lunge Feeding Finners!!

Good evening everyone, the past 2 days have been amazing on the water, filled with lots of feeding whales close to Campobello Island.

Yesterday afternoon we saw 5 finbacks and a few minkes, we saw lots of feeding right at the surface from both species....amazing to see!




Today was exceptional, we had so much feeding all around the boat, and not just from the finbacks, although the lunge feeding did steal the show.  There were also minke whales, lots of porpoise and LOTS of very large blue fin tuna all feeding close by too.

Check out this series of photos I got of a lunge feeding finback, you can see the asymmetrical colouring of the lower jaw and the ventral pleats all extended, and in a few photos you can even see the eye!!











I also got this video, 2 finners feeding just under the surface and then a close approach to the Quoddy Link.



Thanks so much to everyone who joined us today,

Cheers,
Danielle

Wednesday, October 02, 2013

Feeding Finners

Hello everyone,

We had a fantastic day whale watching out of St. Andrews.  On both trips we spent time with three fin whales and multiple minke whales.  This afternoon there was so much life at the mouth of Head Harbour Passage it was wonderful....100's and 100's of feeding gulls and lots of porpoise feeding right along side with the whales.  We saw lunge feeding from both fins and minkes.

Here are some photos from this morning as well as a video with a close encounter.






Here are some photos from this afternoon.




Thanks so much to everyone who joined us today,

Cheers,
Danielle

Monday, September 30, 2013

Breaching minke in Head Harbour Passage!

Good evening everyone!

We have been spending time with minke whales on our last four trips of the past 2 days in and around Head Harbour Passage.  This afternoon we had some fog to deal with but we got word of some minkes in a clear spot in Head Harbour Passage off Wilsons Beach, Campobello Island.  Well, to the delight and awe of our passengers one of the minke whales decided to breach a number of times, once quite close to the boat!  It is always a special sight to see any whale breach but to see a minke whale jump out of the water is a very rare sight!







We have been seeing a number of harbour seals hauling out again around Splitting Knife.



Thanks again for checking in and for everyone who joined us aboard the Quoddy Link,

Cheers,
Danielle