Capturing the Moment

  Whale watching can be pretty spectacular in Southeast Alaska during the summer months. North pacific humpback whales, who spent the majority of winter breeding and calving in Hawaii, are now here in Alaska for a feeding frenzy. Bubble netting humpbacks in front of the Safari Explorer Close up! I could see the ring of bubbles hit the surface just before the whales burst up from below with mouths wide open. Tiny herring leapt out of the whales' mouths Depending on the prey that the whales are feeding on, their strategies can be vastly different. If they are feeding on krill they can simply swim through the water with their mouth open, using their baleen-filled mouths to filter out the food. Things really spice up when the whales are hunting herring, a small schooling fish. When hunting herring, humpbacks will occasionally work together in a group, herding the fish into a tight ball, using a cooperative method called bubble net feeding. This is what we were lucky enough to stumble u...

daimarsphotos.com  It is time to say goodbye to Alaska for another season, and it said goodbye to us in epic fashion. The weather was beautiful, the seas were calm, there was a plethora of wildlife, and the adventures ran thick. Our guests were excited and eager to answer the call of the wilderness that only Alaska can provide.      On Baranof Island along a tranquil rocky stream we watched as 15 different bears spent time chasing salmon, or each other, trying to get their fill. A few times some of the younger bears looked like they were heading out way, but we remained safe and sound ontop of the river bank. www.daimartamarack.com   Back out on the water we had multiple encounters with feeding humpback whales. We watched from the bow of the Quest as the fading light of day backlit the blows of one group. Then the next day we sped off on our small zodiac skiffs to get a closer look at bubble net feeding humpbacks.    After the bubb...

Breach of massive proportions   The humpback whales are here in force right now in Southeast Alaska. Frederick Sound seems to be the place to find them. These past two weeks have seen us skiffing with the giants, as well as getting breaches and bubble net feeding encounters as well.    It is so much fun to think that I may have seen these 40+ft whales back when they were tiny newborn babies in Hawaii. And by 'tiny' I of course mean the size of a pickup truck. If you like whale watching then August in SE Alaska is a great time and place to do it.  Bubble Net Feeding Close encounter on the skiff

www.daimartamarack.com   It has been a year since I have seen bubble net feeding in Alaska. But this show took us all by surprise. Last week we barely saw any humpback whales at all. We had a few far off tails from whales on the move. So when I spotted a group of several blows all together I made sure we altered course to give the guests a better look. Turns out it was a good thing that we turned because right after everyone walked out to the bow to see them we saw the circle of bubbles forming.   What followed next was awe-inspiring. The entire group of whales erupted from the center of the bubble ring, mouths wide open, tiny fish jumping everywhere trying to get away. This was bubble net feeding, and it was happening right in front of us. Not a bad start for day 1 of the cruise.    We stayed with the whales as they continued to bubble net feed 11 more times. I was also able to deploy our hydrophone so we could hear the bubble net feeding as well. The ...