Whales and Puffins

A few months ago, Jordan and I went with some friends from work on a trip to go see whales and puffins off the coast. We were lucky enough to get to see some humpback whales and really cute fluffy puffins! So, here is our adventure...

It had been raining all day, and the sun was just coming out when we got on the boat. The boat held about 50 people or so, and there were two decks. Everyone started off at the top deck of the boat to listen to the guide as we made our way out of the bay and into the ocean.

After about 30 minutes of riding on the boat, we were greeted by two humpback whales, who were playing in the wake of our boat. They were HUGE! I have never seen such a large animal, and it was definitely scary to think about what would happen if one of them decided to come up for air under the boat. Below is a picture of the other boat that was near the whales to give you an idea of how big they were.

Here are a couple more of the good shots Jordan took during the 30 minutes or so that the whales hung around for us...
The light color next to them is actually their fin. It's white, but the water makes it look greenish bluish. We could see them coming up for air because their fins would get brighter and brighter as they got closer to the surface.
Here is a shot of both of the whales. We all thought they were going to run into each other, but it never happened. That would have really made for a good picture...

The elusive tail shot! The whales would only put their tales up if they were going to greater depths, so it only happened once every five or six times they surfaced, then they wouldn't surface again for a while.

There were a couple things that I didn't anticipate as we started out that afternoon. Those two things were the waves and the putrid smell of whale snot. The waves were pretty intense, and we were on a pretty small boat, so we got rocked pretty good. Also, when the whales came up for air, they would spew out the old air before they took in more. A few times, the whale came up right next to the boat, spit out it's old air, and the wind kindly carried that column of snot and spit and old breath across the boat. Probably the most disgusting smell in the world. Think of the worst breath you've ever smelled, then add some saltwater, some snot, and then cover yourself in it - head to toe. I will never forget that smell. So, after being spewed on by both whales, I spent the rest of the time on the lower deck (less rocking), trying as hard as I could to tell myself to not think about how nauseous I felt which (it just so happens) has the opposite effect. Here is a picture of the offending column of whale snot. The funny thing about this is that once it happens the first time, you become much more aware of the wind direction, the whale location, whether it might happen again, and what you will do to dodge it. Ugh.

After spending some time with the humpbacks, we went over to the most densely populated (by birds) island in Newfoundland. We saw all kinds of birds there, but the cutest and most popular were the puffin birds. The island is completely off limits to anyone but scientific researchers, and it is really a sight to see. Here are a few pictures of the puffins, some other birds, and their poop-covered island. Once again, the smell was prevalent, but only about half as bad as the whale snot. The building at the top left corner of the screen is where the researchers stayed when they would take samples of the bird poop and observe the birds.
The puffins lived in these little holes that they dug out of the side of the rock. You can see them in the long grass above the puffins. Guess what they filled their nests with? Their own poop! Apparently it hardens and acts as an insulator for their babies. I'm glad my parents bought a house to raise their children and didn't make it out of their own... you know... Puffin Glamour Shot! So cute! They are only about a foot from tail to beak.

So, that was our adventure to see the whales and puffins of Newfoundland. It was really fun to see them and get an up close and personal encounter even if they didn't smell very nice.

In case you are wondering about how we are doing, things are going really well up here. It is starting to get chilly and foggy, but the leaves on the trees are starting to turn and it is getting more beautiful up here. Jordan and I are Young Men's and Young Women's presidents in our little branch up here, and we love it. There are 5 young women and 1 young man, so we get a chance to know each of them more than we would if there were lots. We went back to the States a few weeks ago, and it definitely made us miss home to see all the American stores and restaurants, and especially to see my family. It's great how comfortable it is to be in your home country, even if it is pretty similar where we are. But, we are trying (unsuccessfully) to learn the Newfie accent and we love the people we have been privileged to get to know here so far. Until next post, hope things are going well for all of you!