Capturing the Moment

Orcas from Water Level     Today was our morning to cruise for charismatic megafauna, aka really cool big animals, in the whale rich waters of Frederick Sound, Southeast Alaska. We were nearing a group of islands called the Brothers Islands which are well known for having a stellar sea lion haul out. I often like to take the small groups aboard the Safari Quest to these islands and then get a more intimate experience by loading into our small skiffs. As we neared the islands this morning however, I knew it was going to be a skiff ride to remember.    As we slowed down the Quest to load the skiffs the captain and I were both looking in the opposite direction from our destination islands. Sure enough there they were again, surfacing and heading our way. It was a pod of transient orcas, or killer whales. I can count the number of times I’ve seen orca from a skiff on one hand, so I was anxious to load everyone up. We quickly got all the guests ...

The Five Fingers Lighthouse Bubble Net Feeding Humpback Whales   The summer season is starting to fade here in Southeast Alaska. The days are getting shorter and a cool, crisp, nip can be felt on the air. However some vestiges of summer can still be seen, such as the vast groupings of Humpback Whales in Frederick Sound. The food source must still be plentiful because we are seeing large groups of humpbacks using all kinds of feeding strategies to get their fill. The group we had onboard this week brought some nature luck with them as they got to witness the holy grail of whale watching here in Alaska, humpback whales bubble net feeding.  Synchronized Diving tipped us off to come in for a closer look   The cooperative teamwork of humpbacks to corral their prey using coordinated movements was first seen here in Southeast Alaska. However we had not seen it on the Wilderness Explorer all season. I was starting to wonder if we would see it with only four ...

The Whales are Back     Cruising through Alaska's Inside Passage on a small cruise ship gives me a wonderful opportunity to photograph whales. The usual suspects of the whale watching world up here at Humpbacks, Orca, and Dall's porpoise. Every once in a while a minke whale joins in the feeding frenzy but they are quite rare to see. We are coming into the thick of whale season here in the Northern feeding grounds. Nearly 22 hours of light provide almost unlimited growing potential to the phytoplankton that start the marine food web. As the phytoplankton photosynthesizes and grows in number, the zooplankton (like krill) are able to sustain a huge population, which in turns feeds the humpbacks. They have to eat enough to sustain themselves only off of their food stores in their blubber once they head back south to the tropical breeding grounds.    Orca Tail Slap    The orca and porpoise rely less on the season, and are able to stay here...