Whales in the Open Ocean

August 28, 1992

As we headed out into open water from the fjord where we saw Holgate Glacier, the captain alerted us to the presence of a black dorsal fin out in the bay. He told us that killer whales are very curious and would often come to investigate a boat and even swim under it. Sure enough, the two adults and one baby orca swam straight toward us and went under the boat! We saw them playing around on the other side of the boat.

There was another male orca in the bay with a dorsal fin that reached about six feet above the water. An impressive sight.

We were also privileged to see a humpback whale mother and baby. Above left, the baby has its head out of the water while the mother blows. I believe that above is the fluke of the baby and the back of the mother. At left the big fluke of the mother shows.