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Humpbacks are amazing animals. I live in southeast Alaska, and humpbacks pass through here every spring and fall. They spend their winters in Hawaii where they
by japhyr 10y ago
Humpbacks are amazing animals. I live in southeast Alaska, and humpbacks pass through here every spring and fall. They spend their winters in Hawaii where they mate, and they come back here to feed in the spring and summer.
When they first arrive in the spring you can see their vertebrae as they arch their back for a dive. After eating all summer, you can see how much they've filled out by the time they pass through on their way south in the fall. When they arch for a dive they've fattened up enough that you can't see individual vertebrae anymore.
It's an amazing experience to paddle a kayak out into a calm bay and sit for an hour surrounded by a dozen humpbacks, or to sit in a calm stretch of ocean with whales surfacing as far as you can see in every direction. They'll come within ten feet of a kayak, and you know they'll never bother you. They just seem curious about what's out in the water with them.
They engage in bubble-net feeding. A group of humpbacks circle underwater beneath a school of herring. They let out bubbles and build a wall of bubbles around the herring. The whales then swim up inside the bubbles and break the surface with their mouths open, feasting on the trapped herring. It's wild to see a ring of bubbles appear near you on the surface, and then see half a dozen whales rise up out of the water with their mouths open.
My favorite part of being close to whales is listening to them breathe. You can hear the size of their lungs from the sound of their breaths.
If you've never been close to whales, try to get on a whale watching tour. They're just incredible to see in person.
- electic 10y agoI just went to Alaska. It was my first time and I couldn't believe the amazing beauty I've seen. I would love to go back. You mentioned kayaking, any suggestions on where to go?
- japhyr 10y agoI live in Sitka, and it's a pretty cool place for kayaking. We face the open Pacific, but there are a bunch of small islands just offshore that protect most of our immediate coastline. So the water right next to town is relatively calm. Then there's a larger volcanic island about 7 miles out, which protects us from open ocean swells. The sound in between has moderate seas. If you want big seas, you can head southwest and be on big open ocean swells. But there's amazing kayaking throughout coastal Alaska. The panhandle has the inside passage, with miles of relatively protected waters. You can kayak in Glacier Bay, or up near Homer, or the Aleutians if you're badass. If you go with a tour, be careful who you book with. There are operations that take care to bring people to places that are good for beginners to kayak. For example one company here brings their clients to a secluded cove where people won't face big swells or wind or boat wakes. But another company launches people right from downtown, where they immediately face big boat wakes, and the wind can pick up uncomfortably for beginners.
- peterwwillis 10y agoFor Gray Whales, Bahia Magdalena, Puerto Vallarta and Laguna Ojo de Liebre all have great whale watching, and in Bahia Magdalena you can pet them from a boat; don't know about restrictions on kayaks there but it should be open in Puerto Vallarta (just don't get in the water, too much bacteria/jellies). There's also Depoe Bay in Oregon and Monterey Bay in California, and Lime Kiln State Park in Washington for Orca watching.
- nkoren 10y agoPetting a whale from a boat is an amazing experience -- I did this 23 years ago in Ojo de Liebre. The mother Gray Whales would push their calves up to the boats so that they could receive some petting on the nose. There was no material reward for doing so -- they didn't get food or anything. I got the distinct impression that they understood that having an emotional bond with humans was important, and that they were doing it for that reason. Gotta say that it worked.
- asmdb 10y agoA 2 hour drive south of Anchorage is Seward, where there are several kayaking companies which will take you out into Resurrection Bay. People often see a variety of wildlife on these excursions, such as humpbacks, orcas, sea lions, jellyfish, etc. A cool kayaking trip from Seward is to Caines Head recreation area, where you can hike through boreal forest up to an old abandoned World War 2 fort with beautiful views of the bay. Homer is about 3 hours south of Anchorage and is also a good place for sea kayaking. I personally have more experience with packrafting, which I highly recommend. High quality lightweight packrafts can easily be carried on/in a day pack. A recent packrafting trip I did: drive 1 hour south of Anchorage to Portage railroad stop, take the train 20 minutes south to the Spencer Glacier stop, paddle around the lagoon adjacent to the glacier (don't get too close, it calves frequently and can be quite dangerous), then paddle all the way back to the car on the Placer River (not a technical river)... about 8 hours total trip time.
- marg0t 10y agoWhere did you go? I would recommend checking out Seward and Cordova.
- electic 10y agoThank you everyone for your suggestions.
- camelNotation 10y agoMy priest was just in Sitka for several weeks on sabbatical. There's a significant Eastern Orthodox population there and I may be visiting myself next year. If I do, I will be sure to find time for whales.
- whamlastxmas 10y agoWorth noting that whale watching tours are considered harmful by some studies: http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-14107381 http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-14107381
- anotherdev 10y agoAnd they give dolphins rides on their backs for fun. They're just good all around! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lC3AkGSigrA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lC3AkGSigrA