Lots of whales, 24 northbound Gray whales, including a dozen calves; 2 Humpback whales; an Unidentified Large Whale; a group of Lags; and 2 groups of Bottlenose dolphins. Our Sea otter was nestled in the IV kelp for a time in the morning; however, we could not find a Harbor seal.

We usually start at nine, but when we were setting up, three mother/calf pairs were tapping their feet, waiting to be counted: so we did.

The wind was already a 3 Beaufort, which is not particularly strong (7 to 10 knots), but if it is a 3 that early in the morning, we are usually going to have a short day. Ultimately, it was shortened. We were pounded by very strong winds, but conditions were actually quite nice until about one-thirty; before two-thirty we had to close for the day.

Even so, it was terrific. A lot of the pairs were bunched together and kept us guessing “how many?” and “where are they going?”. Calves are unpredictable; multiple mother/calf pairs are an adventure for them and for Counters as well as astounded community members who walked out to Counter Point this Saturday.

Gray whales northbound (all) 24 | Calves 12 — 2016 Count 1017 | 100

Time Counting: 5h 39m

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