Fluking Around with Humpbacks class: Some days, you just run out of superlatives...

Some days, you just run out of superlatives. Such was the case yesterday when conditions allowed us to go west - way west - on our second of two all day trips with Maya's Legacy Whale Watching for our Fluking Around with Humpbacks class.

Southeast of Sombrio in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, about 20 miles from the open Pacific Ocean, we encountered what local naturalists refer to as "the herd" - a huge congregation of humpback whales that forms here in the early fall to feed prior to migrating to their respective breeding grounds. We estimated there were at least 300 humpback whales within 5 miles of us, but it becomes impossible to count when you can see a wall of blows in every direction. One student looked through binoculars in one direction for 30 seconds and counted 16 whales just within her field of view.

Another student had a wish to see BCZ0366 Caspian, a particularly unique looking whale with unusual patterning on his body and one of the more unusual looking flukes. Amazingly, shortly before departing, we found him: the whale in this photograph. You might not think of an animal weighing over 50,000 pounds as being hard to find, but it very much felt like finding a needle in a haystack!

Jason will be putting together a video of the experience that we will share as well. We ended the day with a feeling of pure gratitude that such incredible sights are out there to be seen anywhere, let alone right here in the Salish Sea.