Svalbard - Ortelius Basecamp Summer Solstice

[shazdwn]

Beautiful diver - now what species was it again??? 

[kittykat23uk]

2 hours ago, shazdwn said:

Beautiful diver - now what species was it again??? 

[kittykat23uk]

Here's  a video of the walruses. 

 

 

[Kitsafari]

the scenery is still so out of this world, even without those blankets of icej. 

 

awesome to see the walruses and the fox. 

[janzin]

10 hours ago, shazdwn said:

Beautiful diver - now what species was it again??? 

Well to us here in the USA it's a Common Loon

[kittykat23uk]

You always have odd names for birds, like murres! What even is a murre? Its a guillemot!! 😂😂

Edited July 15, 2022 by kittykat23uk

[kittykat23uk]

Sure enough, during the afternoon briefing our expedition leader entered with a wry smile on his face and quickly explained that there was a minke whale carcass that had reportedly attracted the interest of polar bears and we would be searching for that. The excitement was palpable as we rapidly got into our cold weather gear and life jackets and then made our way to the gangways.

 

We arrived at Indre Norskoya at 1600. Passing a smaller expedition ship, the MS Freya if memory serves,  we hugged the shore as we drove to the northern side of Indre Norskoya. We almost missed the carcass as it initially looked just like another pile of rocks on the shore. But we could see no bears nearby, and so we carried on.

 

P6221207 Whale Carcass by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

But then, Babara, one of the other expedition guides called over the radio ‘I can see two, potentially three bears above on the snow field!!’ All our boats rapidly converged back on the carcass. I quickly grabbed my binoculars and scanned the area, easily picking up the mother with two cubs sleeping 400 metres on the hill above us in a patch of snow. 

 

P6220227 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Switching to my camera I start to snap away, easier said than done from a zodiac! The mother popped her head up occasionally and sniffed the air to check for other bears in the area. My hope was that the bears would wake up and head towards us to feed on the carcass. For a while they didn’t seem interested in moving much at all, and some of the crew and passengers in other zodiacs started to get restless, especially those without binoculars or long lenses. There were even suggestions of moving on to look for arctic foxes! 

 

P6220245 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

I was not shy in offering my own opinion that we should remain on the sighting as long as we possibly could. These beautiful, majestic animals were the whole reason I had travelled to the arctic and I didn’t want to miss this opportunity to enjoy the sighting. Thankfully some of the other passengers in our zodiac were of the same disposition and we remained on site. 

 

P6220318 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220339 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

We were rewarded when the cubs stood up and started nursing. It was a beautiful and intimate sight to watch the mother being so gentle with them.

 

P6220589 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220651 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220668 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220670 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220693 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220793 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220836 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

 

But this moment of wonder was sullied, literally, when one of the young cubs decided to relieve himself in spectacular fashion! 

 

P6220883 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220891 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6220904 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Alas while we were there the bears did not get hungry so remained at a considerable distance from us. Thankfully I was still able to salvage some reasonable shots using my EM1 MK2 and 100-400 Panasonic lens, I did have to make use of the in camera crop though. 

 

When the young cubs had their fill, they settled back down with their mum, one cutely resting his head on his mothers foot. 

 

P6221094 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6221095 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6221138 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6221181 Polar Bear mum and two cubs by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Sadly it was soon time to leave. I would have happily skipped dinner and stayed out there all evening in the hope of the bears coming closer but unfortunately this was the only time we were granted with the bears. This is obviously another drawback of being on this kind of trip. No options are offered to enable a return to the bears after dinner and we continue on our sailing towards the sea ice. 

 

On the way back we saw some puffins.

 

P6221241 Puffins by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220622_105343 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

With nothing better to do, we celebrated the sighting with a bottle of wine at dinner followed by a few rum punch cocktails in the bar afterwards. Everyone was in the party spirit and I actually don’t remember much of what happened after that..

[kittykat23uk]

4 hours ago, Kitsafari said:

the scenery is still so out of this world, even without those blankets of icej. 

 

awesome to see the walruses and the fox. 

 

yes the scenery was breathtaking, especially when there was less low cloud.. 

[Galana]

Great sighting of the bears. Worth the trip or are there more to come?

 

I am not going to be drawn on US Nomenclature  on Murres and Robins being Thrushes other than to comment that Arthur Ransome's lovely book is called "Great Northern" and I doubt it would have done as well it he had called it "Common Loon". Lets be honest. It's a Diver (not an awkward or crazy person) and it's second only in size to the  Yellow-billed and it inhabits the Northern Arctic. What else can it be but "Great Northern Diver?"

 

[kittykat23uk]

So true.. Unfortunately this was our one and only polar bear sighting. More wildlife and breathtaking scenery to come though. 

[TonyQ]

Well done with the bears!

Camera and photographer coped very well. Lovely photos.

 

I can understand people not taking a long lens, and I can (just) understand not taking binoculars. But it seems strange not to take either on such a trip

 

[kittykat23uk]

Thanks @TonyQ I did the best I could under the circumstances.

 

Day 4: In the pack ice

Date:    23.06.2022
Position:    74°40.8’N, 007°30.6’E
Wind:    NE 6
Weather:    clear
Air Temperature:    +4.9

 

The initial plan was to sail north in the area of the seven islands into the pack ice to search for polar bears and other wildlife. Unfortunately, we were told that the wind and the rough seas would not be very favourable there, and the ice had apparently melted considerably, which made the ice edge much further away than expected. So instead we sailed to the west of Spitsbergen where the ice edge was closer and in the lee of the archipelago, which Rinie advised should make it easier to navigate through the ice.

 

P6230009 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230041 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230042 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

 

After a hearty breakfast we all moved to the outer decks and the bridge to scan the ice for traces of seals, ivory gulls and of course the king of the Arctic. The landscape was breathtaking but the amount of broken ice piled up on the ice floes made it hard to find polar bears. 

 

Early on I spotted a single seal, probably a harp seal, swimming along the edge of the pack ice. Unfortunately it didnt stay long enough for a picture. But aside from that all we see are more seabirds, not even an ivory gull saw fit to grace us with it’s presence. 

 

P6230043 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230044_01 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230047 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230052 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

To keep us entertained, Barbara offered a lecture on sea ice ecology, where she explained to us the different types of ice we encountered, how it is formed and how it plays a significant role in this ecosystem. To be honest after the heavy night I’d had I decided to forgo the lecture and take a nap. In the afternoon I spent a bit more time up on deck, trying to get some scenic shots of fulmars against the icy backdrop. Later Rinie gave us a fantastic lecture about polar bears. He provided us with a wealth of information and entertaining anecdotes about his decades spent in the Arctic observing polar bears and it really stoked my desires for a better sighting. I began to think I might have to make a return trip at some point, that, or seek out polar bears elsewhere, perhaps Churchill…

 

P6230061 Fulmar by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230082_01 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230088 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230121_01 Pack Ice by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

We continued our journey through the sea ice throughout the day, but we did not find a polar bear. The lack of seals probably explained why there were no bears. Rinie also explained that this sea ice was over deeper water and had been drifting for some time, so wasn’t the best habitat for the seals (or bears).

 

Of course, for most of the passengers the day ploughing through the sea ice was its own reward, but perhaps I had just been spoiled by my time in the sea ice in Rausu, Japan, where every single sheet of ice had several Steller’s and White-tailed Sea Eagles perched on them, wheeling around, or bickering with each other. Not much can really compare to that natural spectacle! That said it was quite fascinating to see the ship carve its way through the ice sheet, ocasionally having to reverse and then ram into a particularly stubborn section to break it up. 

 

P6230155_01 Fulmar by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230158_01_01 Fulmar by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6230161_01_01 Fulmar by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220623_121922 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Overall though, despite the breathtaking scenery, I couldn’t help feeling disappointed as I felt for sure that day would have been our best chance for polar bears on this sailing. I was pretty glad that we’d managed to see the mum and cubs the day before!  At the end of the day the captain navigated us out of the sea ice into a wavy sea and we made our way back towards Spitsbergen for the next day’s activities.

 

IMG_20220623_121929 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220623_121932 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220623_134554 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220623_174904 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220623_174923 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

[kittykat23uk]

Day 5: Woodfjorden & Liefdefjorden

Date:    24.06.2022
Position:    74°36.9’ N, 014°10.8’ E
Wind:    NNW 2
Weather:    sunny
Air Temperature:    +14

 

IMG_20220624_122406 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

We awoke to a beautiful morning as we entered Woodfjorden, Andrée Land. This fjord cuts about 65 kilometres into the north coast and has two side branches on the west side and two minor bays on the east side. The name Woodfjorden is referring to the large amounts of driftwood that cover some of the beaches. Whilst eating breakfast, we repositioned to Jakobsenbukta. As usual there were three different hikes on offer; short, medium and long. I opted for the medium as we were told that there was a chance of arctic foxes. The beautiful landscape, the view over the fjord and flowers like mountain avens, purple saxifrage, moss campion, mountain sorrels and arctic bell-heather were a sight to behold. We even found a blooming Svalbard poppy, the national flower of Svalbard! Several flocks of pink-footed geese were flying over our heads.

 

It was a pretty long hike, across streams, scree and at times foot deep snow! 

 

IMG_20220624_104039 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_105059 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_110114 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_102446 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_102211 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_102426 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_100516 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_100505 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_100409 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_100407 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_100405 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_094532 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220624_092106 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240281 Woodfjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240278 Woodfjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240267 Woodfjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240243 Woodfjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240206 Woodfjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240107 Woodfjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240099 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240082 Woodfjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240081 Woodfjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240078 Arctic Bell Heather by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240065 Svalbard poppy by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240061 Svalbard Poppy by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240012 Purple saxifrage by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

Edited July 17, 2022 by kittykat23uk

[shazdwn]

On 7/15/2022 at 11:41 PM, janzin said:

Well to us here in the USA it's a Common Loon

 

That's hilarious - in Australia a loon is a crazy person (as in lunatic) - an they are far too common 

[Galana]

Beautiful flowers and scenery but I have to say I do prefer my ice in small cubes covered 40/60 with Tanqueray and Schweppes Tonic. Lemon or Lime to taste optional.

[kittykat23uk]

8 minutes ago, Galana said:

Beautiful flowers and scenery but I have to say I do prefer my ice in small cubes covered 40/60 with Tanqueray and Schweppes Tonic. Lemon or Lime to taste optional.

Ah, well then you would have enjoyed the glacier ice cocktails that we had one night. Certainly went down well with the rum punch!! 

[kittykat23uk]

Back on board, the crew again had an amazing lunch ready for us to enjoy before we arrived in the Liefdefjorden, Haakon VII Land. In the “Fjord of love“ we had the choice between a zodiac cruise in front of the magnificent Monacobreen, a hike at Idabukta or a kayak trip.

 

P6240048 Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240165 Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

I decided to opt for the zodiac cruise and I’m really glad that I did (even though it meant giving up my place on the kayak trip). The Monacobreen, named after prince Albert I of Monaco, is a more than 4,5 km long glacier. The deck and expedition team launched all of the zodiacs to go on a cruise in the fantastic sunny weather, calm waters and peaceful surroundings.

 

Some of the most beautifully sculptured icebergs were to be found as we cruised along, one of which had me wondering if it was in fact an iceberg or some kind of immense sea monster or kaiju disguised as one! 

 

P6240195 Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240206 Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240228 Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240256 Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240398 Glaucous Gull by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240453 Glaucous Gull by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240499 Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240528 Monacobreen by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240661Iceberg or is it a Kaiju?  in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240669  Iceberg or is it a Kaiju?  in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240686 Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240718  Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240782  Iceberg in Liefdefjorden by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

 

The highlight though was a beautiful bearded seal on ice. He was so accommodating posing every which way for photographs! 

 

P6240972 Bearded Seal by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241117 Bearded Seal by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241187_01 Bearded Seal by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241240 Bearded Seal by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241248  Bearded Seal by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

 

We also encountered a flock of king eider making their way across the fjord.

 

P6241367 king eider in front of  Monacobreen by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241387 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241390 King Eider by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

We discovered many kittiwakes and arctic terns feeding in front of the glacier.

 

P6241431 Liefdefjorden and  Monacobreen by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241448  Monacobreen by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241459  Monacobreen by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241555 Black Guillimot by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241621  Monacobreen by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241673_01 Black Guillimot by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241740 Arctic Terns by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241785 Black-legged Kittiwakes by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241810 Black-legged Kittiwakes by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241839 Black-legged Kittiwakes by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241916 Harbour (common) seal by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6241920_01 Harbour (common) seal by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

Back on board, a nice surprise was waiting for us! Carlos and his team were waiting for us with a great Arctic Barbecue on the top deck, it turned into a big Arctic dancing PARTY! 
 

[janzin]

I have to say that while it's a bummer that you didn't see more bears, you certainly saw a lot more on your trip than we did on ours...so many seals! Wildflowers! Arctic Foxes! More birds, and nesting birds! And just to be able to get out ice-level on the zodiacs, and do hiking...I'm quite envious.  It seems like an entirely different journey in so many ways...I guess I really need to return in a later time frame.

 

Lovely photos in this last batch especially.

 

[kittykat23uk]

Thank you @janzin yes I definitely think that my trip, when including the time in Lyr, had a nice variety of wildlife sightings and it's definitely a lovely time to go if you want to see more diversity. Perhaps even a week or two later to maybe increase chances of more different whales. 

[kittykat23uk]

Day 6: Ny London - Blomstrandhalvoya

Date:    25.06.2022
Position:    78°57.4’ N, 012°02.2’ E
Wind:    NW1
Weather:    sunny
Air Temperature:    +17

 

The party carried on into the wee hours as we passed about 80 degrees at midnight! Those who hadn’t retired early celebrated the achievement with a toast. 

 

P6240008 View above the 80 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6240027 View above the 80 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

In the morning we were greeted with glorious blue skies as we began the day with our landing at Ny London. The hikers headed up the hill, to be rewarded with glorious views of the glacier over the ridge. The medium group enjoyed a leisurely walk around the plateau, exploring the remains of the mining operation which was begun by Mansfield in 1905, but abandoned shortly afterwards, in 1910. They also enjoyed the wildlife, such as a solitary reindeer, a brief and distant view of an arctic fox, as well as bird species including a long-tailed skua. 

 

IMG_20220625_095803 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220625_100532 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220625_100535 Rinie our guide by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220625_104026 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220625_104137 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220625_104116 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220625_104150 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220625_115140 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

IMG_20220625_115623_1 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

P6250117  Long-tailed Skua by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

I had decided to join the leisurely group and after a short walk to see the long-tailed skuas we took a zodiac cruise around the bay. We sighted a couple of long-tailed ducks, more common eider and other regular birds. 

 

P6250164 Arctic Tern by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6250184 Long-tailed Duck by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6250456 Long-tailed Skua nesting by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6250476 Long-tailed Skua nesting by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6250611 Long-tailed Duck by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6250640 Long-tailed Duck by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

We watched Rinie fish for copepods and motored along another beautiful glacier. We brought our catch back to the Ortelius so that others could appreciate the complexity of the arctic food chain. 

 

P6250662 Eiders at Ny London by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6250728 Iceberg in front of the Glacier near Ny London by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6250739 Glacier near Ny London by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

 

P6250751 by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Edited July 18, 2022 by kittykat23uk

[kittykat23uk]

After lunch, as we sailed towards our afternoon destination, Rinie came on the tannoy to say, “ at reception you can see some of the tiniest creatures in the arctic, but from the deck right now you can see the largest! There are Blue Whales!" We raced up on deck to try and catch a glimpse of the biggest animals that have ever existed on planet Earth! 

Indeed we were lucky enough to encounter a group of three blue whales. These magnificent animals had come up to Spitsbergen to feed, and they were feasting on plankton while we watched in awe from the ship. 

 

P6250985 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Initially two whales could be seen a fair way off their massive vertical blows unmistakeable. They seemed to be travelling together and there was some speculation that they may have been a mother and a calf.  Another whale was feeding off to our starboard side. The captain deftly manoeuvred the Ortelius slowly and steadily to keep the whales in view and they slowly began to approach the boat. 

 

P6251017 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251083 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251247 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Hearing the exhalations of those blue whales as they come up to the surface to breathe is an unforgettable experience. They came closer and closer until one friendly individual surfaced right in front of the bow. It was incredible to be so close to such amazing animals! 

 

P6251229 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251262 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251369 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251416 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251571 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251574 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251604 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251609 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251642 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251646 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

We even got to witness one of the whales showing the tail fluke as it dived, which is a very rare event for this species. Everyone gave off a collective cheer when that happened! The whales were in no hurry to move on and neither were we, so with our second landing forgotten we settled in to enjoy the show. 

 

P6251706 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251732 Blue Whale by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Once everyone was happy we slowly left the whales behind. There were also bonus puffins! 

 

P6251218 Puffin by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251756  Puffin by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

P6251780 Puffin by Jo Dale, on Flickr

 

Some brave souls took part in the polar plunge in the afternoon, while the remaining passengers joined the fun by cheering them on from the upper decks. We had all styles: dives, leaps and somersaults; bikinis, a wetsuit and even a skinny dipper! A big cheer and a warm towel welcomed the polar plungers back on board.

 

 

[Galana]

More amazing sequences. The shot of the Bearded Seal with its refection is beautiful. The Blue Whales have to be the icing on the cake. Bigger than big and beautiful with it.

What a great cruise you had.

I think even Hilda Ogden would yearn for that passing shot of those King Eiders. I know I do.

[Zim Girl]

Despite just the one Polar bear sighting, I think this trip looks to have been a great success.  Plenty of wildlife, lots of birds and your scenery pictures are really beautiful.  How fantastic to see a Blue whale so close too!

[kittykat23uk]

Thanks both, yes I was delighted to see the blue whales and I think when I booked the original trip that seeing whales was one of the main reasons for booking a sailing in June. I'm also delighted with those king eider shots - they were one of my most wanted birds and the backdrop is just spectacular. I'm also quite fond of the bearded seal shot with his flipper stretched out and some of the flowers with the mountains in the background. Well whilst we wait for my video of the blue whales to process on Youtube heres a screen grab from the video of the moment he (or she) dived! 

 

Blue Whale tail! by Jo Dale, on Flickr

Edited July 19, 2022 by kittykat23uk

[kittykat23uk]

Here's the much-anticipated video of the Blue Whales!