My name is Fraser Carpenter and I will be your skipper for the summer! I spend my days exploring the waters off Bay Bulls, Newfoundland observing marine life in all its glory - and I look forward to sharing my experiences with you through this blog. Check back here often throughout the summer for photos and videos of the creatures I meet every day at sea. Here's some recent footage of one humpback whale who decided to grace the tour boat with its presence!
In my opinion, there aren't many encounters in the ocean that surpass hanging out with one of the world's largest creatures as they go about their business. Humpback whales, the forth largest creature on the planet, measure 40 to 48 feet and weigh in at 25 to 40 tons. In short, they take up quite a bit of space! Humpbacks are found in all the world's oceans, generally following a set migration route. The humpback whales spotted in the waters around Newfoundland and Labrador have spent most of the winter on the Silver and Navidad banks just north of the Dominican Republic mating and calving. They return to the rich waters off Bay Bulls, Newfoundland to feed. The humpback in the video was busy feeding when we happened upon it, so we hung out with it for a while keeping our distance. Sometimes it appeared alongside of us, and other times it meandered ahead of the boat. It was just lovely.
Till next time!
About the Skipper... Satisfying her keen interest in natural history, Fraser Carpenter has spent most of her adult life outdoors or on the water. She has run tour boats and sailing charter boats - and even built a sailing boat and spent 13 years sailing around the world, hiking, climbing and photographing nature. Fraser has spent four summers sailing and hiking in the arctic and two years in sub antarctica working as a field scientist. In the summer time she skippers a passenger boat for O'Brien's Whale and Bird Tours in Bay Bulls, Newfoundland.
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