The last of the whales

....for now at least, as other commitments take priority and sea / weather conditions deteriorate here at Filey (there are still odd Minkes out there, but optimum conditions have passed, at least for the time being). An amazing week or so, to be fully summarised here and elsewhere soon; for now though, photos from, and of, my preferred watchpoint on the end of Carr Naze on the Brigg. There were few places I'd rather have been.

A juvenile Minke in the bay (and our whale-watcher comrade Chris, from Leeds, on the right)

Looking east along the Brigg from the watchpoint

Looking out to sea (Scarborough and Long Nab in the distance)

Savour The Whale

Or, rather, whales, once again.... another unforgettable day here at Filey, the third in a row that's involved being in the company of multiple Minke Whales just beyond our particularly beautiful stretch of the North Yorkshire coast.



Events over these last few days have been remarkable, and it's hard to believe we're actually getting used to having whales knocking about right on our doorstep. A more detailed summary of our cetacean stars to follow soon, but for now, a few shots of a particularly accommodating individual from this afternoon.

Having disappeared underwater for a good while, the whale approached the feeding frenzy from below, and suddenly created a giant air pocket, disturbing the seabirds.....

....surfacing away from the air pocket (note the Gannets above right, only just avoiding becoming collateral)...

...... and taking them (and presumably its prey) entirely by surprise

More direct tactics were used at a slightly more distant feeding flock a few moments later....

......the straightforward lunge proving just as effective

Minke Magic

It's turning out to be quite a summer for whales here on the Yorkshire coast, and today's cetacean spectacle was one to remember for a long time. Sightings of one or two Minke Whales have been pleasingly regular over the last ten days or so, stretching back to the ones just off Whitby harbour we were lucky enough to have the company of on the 6th; since then, we've had singles off the Brigg here at Filey on most days since, and other watchpoints to the north of us have also registered odd sightings.




A couple of days ago, one was sadly found dead on the beach at South Bay, Scarborough, prompting fears that 'our' whale had tragically succumbed to entanglement in crab and lobster pot lines. Tragic indeed, but we'd a strong suspicion there were actually various individuals patrolling our stretch of the coast.



Come this morning, and with a calm North Sea bathed in warm sunshine, we watched, and steadily picked up whales in different directions and at different distances.... half an hour's co-ordinated effort by four of us, scanning together from the top of Carr Naze, produced a minimum of six Minkes simultaneously gracing Filey's inshore waters, and I don't think any of us would be too surprised if there turned out to be a dozen out there. Magical.