After a long hiatus, I finally got back out on the water with the folks at Modern Sailing School. They lead sailing trips out the the Farallon Islands (any beyond) – definitely check them out if you’re looking for outdoor activities! We set off from Sausalito around 8am in hazy, foggy conditions. Despite some challenges with visibility, we spotted several humpback whales on our way offshore.
Eventually, the Farallon Islands appeared out of the mist. Even though it was difficult to see the islands at first, we could certainly hear and smell the animals living on them. We began our circumnavigation of the islands near Saddle Rock, spotting California sea lions lying on the rocks and porpoising in the water. There were also groups of Steller sea lions and northern fur seals on the rocks. We made our way to the windward side of the island. The conditions were very calm and the fog was starting to dissipate a little bit. As we came to the north side of Sugarloaf, we spotted the spout of another humpback whale sticking close to the rocks.
As we rounded back to the lee side of the island, we spotted more puffins, one of whom came within a few feet of the boat. The journey home offered about a dozen humpbacks scattered throughout the shipping lane, including at least one mother-calf pair. We also saw lots of birds including common murres and brown pelicans, as well as a few sunfish on our way back.
-Allison
This post was adapted from a blog, read the original here
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