Whale Watching [Passamaquoddy Bay, Bay of Fundy]

Minke Whale

The Tarquin viewed by kayak the morning before our trip

Every summer whales come to the Bay of Fundy to feed, give birth to young, and play.  They feed on krill, squid and schools of young herring, pollock and mackerel found in the Bay.  The abundant food and the protection that the Bay gives them, makes it an ideal spot to "summer" as a whale, and consequently for whale watching for humans.

Eagle to the left -- nest to the right!

Every day, we spoke to someone who had seen whales, usually in the same spot that we had just been that day, without seeing a whale.  So, we decided if the whales were not going to come to us, we would go to them.

We took the boat named Tarquin on a scheduled whale watching tour.  There were no other passengers, so it was just the two of us and Captain Milton looking for whales.  We headed down Passamaquoddy Bay along Campobello Island, New Brunswick.  We looked for places where there were lots of gulls, because they feed on the same food as whales, and we went to places where Captain Milton had seen whales before.

Salmon Farm

On the way out, we passed an island with an enormous eagles nest AND an eagle, too.  That was a treat.  We also passed several Salmon farms.

We soon joined another whale watching boat (this one loaded with passengers) and saw our whale.  A lovely Minke whale arching in and out of the water.  The Minke whales are baleen whales and grow to about 30 feet long and weigh 10 tons.  Baleen whales don't have teeth, they strain krill and small fish through a series of plates with hair fibers that grow from their upper jaws and which is called baleen.  Our Minke whale was just marvelous, feeding and showing its back and fin periodically (and occasionally it's head) as it moved along the water.  The Minke's dorsal fin is located very far down it's back.

The Captain's radio buzzed and popped with news of the sighting and we were soon joined by more whale watching tour boats.  One boat was low to the water and required everyone to wear  cold water survival suits.  One boat had two stories and was so loaded with tourists that it listed heavily as everyone crowded to one side of the boat to see the Minke.

Though we were told that the boat engine noise doesn't bother the whales, our whale dove deep and disappeared when 6 tour boats were circling it.  After the whale left, so did most of the boats.  We circled around looking for the whale, who eventually reappeared.  Perhaps it was because there were only 2 boats left in the area?

We felt honored to have seen this marvelous animal.

There are lots of photos, so keep scrolling down!

Many watchers - just one whale

Minke Whale: A typical minke whale is only in the neighborhood of 30 feet long and weighs 10 tons. One of the smallest of the baleen whales, you can identify the minke by watching it surface, where most of the back, dorsal fin and blowholes are visible. Deep dives of 2-20 minutes, are preceded by a pronounced arching of the back. - See more at: http://www.goeastport.com/whale-watching-is-a-must-when-exploring-downeast-and-eastport/#sthash.aQhY4VBk.dpufMin

Minke Whale: A typical minke whale is only in the neighborhood of 30 feet long and weighs 10 tons. One of the smallest of the baleen whales, you can identify the minke by watching it surface, where most of the back, dorsal fin and blowholes are visible. Deep dives of 2-20 minutes, are preceded by a pronounced arching of the back. - See more at: http://www.goeastport.com/whale-watching-is-a-must-when-exploring-downeast-and-eastport/#sthash.aQhY4VBk.dpuf

Minke Whale: A typical minke whale is only in the neighborhood of 30 feet long and weighs 10 tons. One of the smallest of the baleen whales, you can identify the minke by watching it surface, where most of the back, dorsal fin and blowholes are visible. Deep dives of 2-20 minutes, are preceded by a pronounced arching of the back. - See more at: http://www.goeastport.com/whale-watching-is-a-must-when-exploring-downeast-and-eastport/#sthash.aQhY4VBk.dpuf