Monthly Archives: August 2009
There be Whales here…
Today we took a whale watching tour boat out of Barnstable Harbor and unlike our whale watching tour in San Diego in February 2008, this time we actually saw whales… lots of whales… humpback whales everywhere.
We headed out to sea about 2:30 pm on the Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises boat ‘Whale Watcher’.
Whale Watcher
It’s a 130 foot jet boat that can carry almost 400 people.
It was specially built for whale watching, and the fact that it’s a jet boat means two things. It gets out to the whale area, the Stellwagen Banks, a lot faster, and once there, the fact that it has jet nozzles and not propellers, means that it can get in closer to the whales without worrying about them getting hit with the props.
And we did get close, like right along side.
Stellwagen Banks is a National Marine Sanctuary about 40 miles off Barnstable, MA harbor. It covers about 800 square miles and is basically an underwater mountain ridge that comes to about 120 feet of the surface.
The surrounding seabed is almost 400 feet deep. This means that ocean currents upwell along the steep sides of the ridge, bringing with them nutrients and minerals from the bottom, feeding the local ecosystem and attracting larger animals to the area.
On our way out to the banks, we past by Sandy Neck, an isolated but picturesque vacation area. And by isolated, I mean it can only be reached by boat or ATV and has absolutely no utilities. I guess if you really want to get away from it all, this is the place for you.
Sandy Neck 1
Sandy Neck 2
The lighthouse dates from 1852 and is still in use, but now it’s solar powered.
It took us about an hour to get out to the whales, but when we got there, they were everywhere.
At first we just saw tails…
Whale 1
Whale 11
and fins !!
Whale 2
Everyone crowded to the sides of the boat trying to get the best view.
Whale Boat 1
And then there they were…
Whale Breaching 1
Whale Breaching 2
And then they were all around us…
Whale 3
Whale 4
Whale 5
Whale 6
Whale 7
Whale 8
Whale 9
Whale 10
We saw several different pods, or groups of whales, and about 15 or 16 individuals.
The whales are identified by their tail markings and the naturalist on board said they have a catalog that lists over 1000 whales that have been spotted in this area since 1972 when they started counting.
Jan and I had a great time as you can see from the smiles on our faces in this pic.
Jan And Greg Go A Whaling
It was almost 7 pm by the time we got back to the dock with more scenic views of the small fishing village.
Docking
Whaling Dock 2
Whaling Dock
On our way back to the rig, we stopped for supper at a really good chinese buffet place called Cape Cod Super Buffet. By the time we got home was almost 9pm and time to call it a day. A great day!
Tomorrow is our last full day here on Cape Cod. Friday we will head out for Woonsocket, RI.
More later…
Martha’s Vineyard…
Today we took the ferry over to Martha’s Vineyard to check out this famous island.
MV Island Home
We sailed on the MV Island Home, a ferry that can carry up to 76 vehicles, including semi tractor trailers and big RV’s. But we didn’t take our rig, or our truck over. We just took ourselves.
The Island Home can also carry up to 1200 passengers, although we were probably only about half full. The trip takes about 45 minutes and was very comfortable. We even had a breakfast sandwich and coffee during the trip.
Our port on Martha’s Vineyard is called Vineyard Haven, and is one the two large ports on the island, the other being Oak Bluffs where a ferry also docks.
Vineyard Haven
Vineyard Haven Port
Getting off the ship we saw an Island Sightseeing bus so decided to jump on. Our tour lasted almost 3 hours and took us all around the island.
Our guide pointed out the many houses of the rich and famous. Ted Danson, Michael J. Fox, Doris Day, Diane Sawyer, and many others.
Our first stop was at a Aquinnah Indian area at Gay Head Cliffs. There were several small restaurants, gift shops, a lighthouse, and most importantly, restrooms.
Aquinnah
GayHead Lighthouse
The Gay Head Cliffs are one of the many beautiful areas on Martha’s Vineyard, and supposedly, one of the best beaches.
Gay Head Cliffs
We didn’t get to visit the cliff area, but here’s a pretty pic from the Internet.
Moving on down the road, we passed The Field Gallery, an outside art gallery with some very strange art work.
Field Gallery
We ended our tour at Oak Bluffs, the other harbor on the Island.
Oak Bluffs Harbor
The town is very quaint, with many cute little houses left over from a 19th century Methodists camp meeting area.
Oak Bluffs Houses
These houses originally cost $400.00, but now can go for over $400,000.
After a VERY good meal of Mexican food at a place called Zapotec,
Zapotec
we checked out the Flying Horses arcade.
Flying Horses
As the sign says, it houses the America’s oldest carousel.
Carousel
It was built in 1876 and spent the first 20 years of its life at Coney Island in New York. Then in 1896 it was moved here to Oak Bluffs where it’s been ever since.
While we were waiting for the VTA bus to take us back to Vineyard Haven and our ferry home, I caught a shot of this beautiful stay-rigged schooner sailing offshore.
Schooner
It’s amazing to think that ships like this once sailed around the world.
We got back to our rig about 6:30 pm, tired, but having really enjoyed our day.
Tomorrow, a whale watching boat trip, we hope…
