Went down to the beach, not to look at the surf but to see if any Humpbacks are around feeding. There are TONS of bunker out there right now and the, sharks, fish and birds that feed on them are in numbers also, so why not Humpbacks. I have been seeing blows, off shore, all week but you can't say you have seen a whale until you actually...SEE THE WHALE! I had my 70-200 at the ready, not my lens of choice for whale photography. The lens can work in certain situations whale watching but not in this situation. That's why these pictures suck but they do serve a purpose, documentation. At the beach, looking out and I saw a very faint blow. I focused on that area and a moment later a humpback jumped out, lunge feeding 300+ feet off shore. The humpback was in the shallows and stayed there for hours lunge feeding. I had to leave but that whale was feeding like crazy, back and forth picking off bunker at hundreds at a clip! I went back hours later and the humpback was still out there gobbling down Bunker.
I have been saying that how this 15-16 winter was so mild, compared to the 14-15 winter, the Bunker will be in numbers. That means we will have a very active Shark, Fishing and Whale Watching season! FYI, there will be a Groupon for discount trips on the American Princess Cruises with Gotham Whale so get on that early.
© Artie Raslich Photography
