Thar She Blows!

Courtesy of a Christmas gift from Breanne and Garrett, hubby and I went whale watching today. Technically, I suppose we should call it dolphin watching - or wave watching - or lots of pelican watching - since we saw nary a whale. One of our fellow passengers said they saw a tail fin, but I think that was a fluke of their imagination. (That's a whale of a joke. Are you blubbering with laughter? I just krill myself sometimes.)

We took the Islander out of Ventura Harbor at 9:30 this morning. Having been whaling before, we grabbed seats inside where it was warm and out of the wind while everyone else headed for the open decks upstairs and on the bow. Thanks to the windows all around the cabin, we had great wind-free views while our captain motored out to the islands and we sipped our hot chocolate.
It's blue whale season and several have been spotted near the Channel Islands over the past few days, but today was either a whale holiday or they were sleeping in. We didn't see a single spout or fluke.

But the weather was great, with blue skies and lots of wispy white clouds; perfect for viewing the Anacapa Light Station, Arch Rock, and the sea lion rookery on Santa Barbara Island. (Sorry for the distance shot; when the boat pulled in closer, everyone crowded to that side of the boat and it was impossible to get close enough to the rail to get pictures.)

Hubby and I agree that the best part of the day was the dolphins.

click on any picture to make it bigger

Literally hundreds of Common Dolphin surrounded the boat as we rounded Santa Barbara Island, jumping, chasing, and surfing the boat's wake. The water was roiling with dolphins everywhere you looked. Our captain said that for every one you see on the surface, there are 7 - 10 more dolphins underwater. It was a fantastic show that just went on and on.
Even though we didn't see the whales we went for, it was still a great day. Very peaceful, beautiful and relaxing. Thanks very much, Bre and G!