06.08.2016 – Vento de leste
August 11, 2016
08.08.2016 – Chilling Bottlenose and trusting Beaked Whales
August 13, 2016
The guests who got up early this Sunday morning were rewarded for sailing out with us. There were almost no boats outside, and the water was flat like a mirror. Soon we saw in the distance splashes of dolphins… Bottlenose dolphins! And not an ordinary sighting! The animals stayed very close with us, playing in our bow wave. They were so close we could hear their breathing, smell them, and see the tiniest scratches on their skins. We are used to having the much smaller Atlantic Spotted Dolphins next to our boat, who grow up to 2 meter. Having the bottlenoses of twice that size next to our bow was impressive – to say the least!
After our Bottlenose sighting, we saw a huge group of Atlantic Spotted dolphins. There were around 50 animals around our boat… They were everywhere! Jumping, splashing, swimming, surfing. We just didn’t know where to look anymore!
The weather was not just perfect for the dolphins, but also for the turtles who visit Madeira. On cloudless hot days they like to rest on the water surface and heat up their bodies. We saw not one, not two, not five, but TWELVE turtles on our afternoon trip! Wow! An amazing day!
by Judith Kok
Todays sightings:
Ribeira Brava:
09.00: Bottlenose Dolphins
13.30: Bottlenose Dolphins, Atlantic Spotted Dolphins
17.00: Common Dolphins
1 Comment
We had the most amazing experience with Judith as our guide. Thank you, too, from Ellie aged 7.