Monday, August 13, 2007

Summer Whale Watching


While most of you are sweltering in the summer heat, Little Boy and I donned winter coats and went whale watching in the Bay of Fundy. Now, while it was in the high 60's on dock, as soon as we pulled out of the harbor on a small lobster boat, Little Boy wanted his winter hat and fleece jacket. A little bit further and he was bundled up in his winter coat. After about an hour at sea, the engine noise, rocking of the boat and fresh air lulled him to sleep. So, he got a good nap in before we got out to the whales - they were about 2 hours off-shore, which is a bit further out than normal this time of year. But the ride out was definately worth it, and a boat ride on a nice day is part of the fun! When we got very close to the whales, I woke him up.
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These are photos of endangered RIGHT WHALES! We were very close - actually one came right up along side the boat. Little Boy liked it when they laid on their sides and slapped their flippers. We got a good show of blows, head, tails (everyone loves a good tail shot, but once you see that tale in the air - it will be a good 10-12 minutes before the whale comes back up again - not a big deal for us because there were several whales in this group so even when 1 was diving there was still another whale to see). We were so close that we could even see their 2 blow holes and smell their stinky breath!!!!
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If you ever get a chance to go whale watching - remember.... sunscreen, sunglasses (my son almost always wears sunglasses outside, and my own glasses get dark outside), winter coats, hats, drinks (plus sippy cup), snacks... I even had changes of clothing in case Little Boy got seasick, oh, and the ever present Elmo, of course, plus a small toy, and yes - my camera. Next time around I will definately bring foam ear buds though because after awhile, with the noise of the boat engine, you start to wish you had some with you. No wonder I always go everywhere totting a duffle bag!

8 comments:

Mary Johnson said...

I haven't managed a whale watching trip on my travels yet but its on the list. Looks like you had a good time and being prepared always helps. I've just gotten in the habit of carrying a backpack now. I used to try to see how little I could carry with me but now I prefer to just carry everything I need in comfort.

Laurie said...

Those are great pictures Evelyn! I went Whale Watching once on the East coast. The whales sure didn't get that close and we only saw a few. it was still fun!
Hugs
Laurie

Mrs. Goodneedle said...

Fabulous, what incredible memories for this little boy!

Laura said...

My husband and son went kayaking with the whales a couple of years ago. They said it was just the most awesome thing ever.

Susan said...

What a great thing to do! Cold or not, seeing any kind of whale that close has to be a little scary and a lot awesome!

Quilts And Pieces said...

Oh way, way cool! I guess you always just saw the whales far away and just come up and go down. I didn't know they would lay on their sides and do that with their flippers!

The Calico Cat said...

I loved when we went Whale Watching off of New England. (Well except for the kids from the fancy schmancy private school that were also on our boat - the were too spopiled to even toss out their boxed lunch boxes...)

Hedgehog said...

What a great outing - you were so lucky to get so close!! Nice to see what you've been up to this summer. How much longer are you on that side of the Atlantic? Really looking forward to getting to Maine in December - strange to have my first summer without a visit there in probably 20 year!