Seafood and the Sea

July 15, 2010
Newburyport, MA

Today was an absolutely beautiful day, and we took advantage of it in several ways.

We were up early (for us) and ready to roll by mid-morning. We took the pups for a good walk, since we knew we'd be leaving them on their own to guard the coach for most of the day.

Our first stop was Park Lunch in nearby Newburyport, just south of where we're staying on the south side of the Merrimack River. This restaurant was recommended by the couple next to us (work campers here who have their winter home in Sun City - small world) as a "where the locals eat" place. We had a great brunch to get us started: Fried Clams for Geri and Chicken Salad for me. Fortunately, she ordered the "appetizer size" plate of clams, which was plenty (and left no prisoners). The chicken was quite tasty, with lots of scallions and served on an open-top hot dog roll (a New England thing).

 

After lunch, we drove a few blocks to the Newburyport Whale Watch offices. We had plenty of time to park and make our way to the "Prince of Whales", a 100', all-aluminum sightseeing boat. We headed out to Jeffries Ledge, a 30+ mile long glacial deposit in the Gulf of Maine, about 20 miles offshore. Traveling through 600'+ deep waters, we soon came to the relatively shallow (around 150') ledge, which is home to all sorts of aquatic life. Out here, "life" = "food", and we were treated to what the on-board naturalist called a "Grand Slam" of whale sightings (four different species). Our first encounter was with a Minke whale, a small and relatively populous species. We headed for a Humpback in the distance and were treated to a show of Atlantic White-sided Dolphins (a member of the whale family). Finally, we saw an elusive Fin Whale, second largest (after the Blue Whale) species and quite endangered.

In addition to the whales, we saw some Coast Guard activity and had a good view of Salisbury Beach. Click here for pictures from today's cruise.

We learned and re-learned some things about whales on the tour.

• Whales are "toothed" or "baleen" (filter feeders). 
• Only toothed whales use "sonar-like" sounds to "see" underwater. 
• Humpbacks, while smaller than Fin Whales, have much more blubber and are therefore more buoyant. 
• Humpbacks raise their tail out of the water when they dive because they need the extra momentum to propel themselves downward; most other whales have less fat, are less buoyant, and don't need to raise their tails. 
• Fin Whales weren't hunted until recently because they sink when they die, causing "predictable results" if harpooned by a small vessel.

When we got back home, we walked the pups and decided to shift our dinner schedule around. Rather than leave them again and go out for lobster, we shifted that to tomorrow. Since it was nice out, I made a quick trip to the store for burgers and hot dogs, we grilled, and we ate outside. We chatted with some of the neighbors after dinner until the bugs drove us inside.

Links to related info:
Blog posting from the on-board naturalist
Blue Ocean Society
Newburyport Whale Watch
Jeffries Ledge info