[CINC] CX 1/11

[Mary Bucholtz]

7 gray whales
~ 300 common dolphins
6 Risso's dolphins
1 released sea lion pup

Yesterday was a gloriously warm and sunny day on the water. Ginny  
Fischer and I welcomed 31 passengers, including visitors from Russia,  
Italy, England, and Northridge, and a rescue team from the Channel  
Islands Marine and Wildlife Institute that was releasing a  
rehabilitated CA sea lion pup back into the wild. (The pup had been  
abandoned by its mother during the weaning process and was  
undernourished when it was rescued before Christmas.)

Things got off to a good start with a pod of around 200 common  
dolphins before we had even hit mid-channel. Near the gap between SRI  
and SCI we encountered two grays who were rather shy. Then Captain Mat  
spotted another group of 3 not far off on the north side of SCI, and  
we spent a long time enjoying them. Mat said it was likely a mating  
pod, and we got some great views of the whales, including lots of nice  
flukes as well as some glimpses of pectoral fins and balleen as they  
rolled around. A playful sea lion hung out with the group and added to  
the excitement with some spectacular jumps.

After a brief visit to Painted Cave (which we couldn't approach as  
closely as usual due to a large clump of kelp at the mouth of the  
cave), it was on to Sea Lions Cove to drop off our smallest passenger.  
He jumped into the water without hesitation but then seemed a little  
unsure what to do next. Luckily, there were several other sea lions  
around to welcome him to the neighborhood and show him the ropes. We  
then paid a visit to another pair of grays nearby.

Heading back to the gap, we encountered a small pod of Risso's  
intermingled with some sea lions. At the gap we spotted several blows  
but when we approached the whales made themselves scarce, so we headed  
for home. On the return to the harbor, we came across a smaller and  
more spread-out group of common dolphins, which rounded things out  
nicely. All in all, a great day!

Mary Bucholtz