Humpbacks, island tours, and a minke whale!
The shrill calls of hundreds of gulls and seabirds filled the air as we watched them repeatedly dive into a large bait ball, which is essentially a school of small fish such as herring. We watched as a humpback whale nonchalantly surfaced in the middle of the action, taking a mighty gulp of sea water and all the creatures in it. Humpback whales are baleen whales, and are able to eat 1-2 tons of food a day when they are feeding in our waters.
Other highlights from the tour included touring through the Plumper, Stephenson, and Pearse Islands where we saw a beautiful displays of wildlife ranging from majestic bald eagles, both at rest and in flight, to harbour seals enjoying a rest in the warmth of the air. We also so a Stellar sea lion swimming along a kelp forest, and looking into the water, we could see the long fronds moving in the swift current.
While this morning started out with thick fog, by the afternoon, the sun was shining. As we made our way back toward Alder Bay, we stopped between the Pearse Islands and Cormorant Island because a black dorsal fin had been sighted by several people. As we quietly waited and watched, suddenly a minke whale surfaced right beside us on its way past Cormorant Island toward Malcolm Island.
With the wind in our faces and the sun shining down on the water, we headed back for shore having thoroughly enjoyed all that nature had to offer today.
