| Whale watching from Tadoussac at the mouth of the | | | | humpback whales. They had just arrived three days |
| Saguenay fjord out into the Gulf of St. Lawrence is | | | | before us and only stay in the region for 6 weeks! This |
| some experience! Due to extremely high tides from | | | | was the middle of August. They are the only whales |
| the Atlantic Ocean all the way inland through the Gulf | | | | that raise their mighty tail as they dive. What a show! |
| of the St. Lawrence to the mouth of the Saguenay | | | | They are the size of 3 elephants. |
| fjord, the water is 97% salt. | | | | One humpback dove right underneath the boat. It can |
| As the salt water pushes down the full 100+ km. length | | | | take up to ten minutes for them to resurface, so it's |
| of the Saguenay, and is topped with the inflowing | | | | always a waiting game, wondering when and where |
| water from Lac St. Jean, the resulting 50% saline | | | | they will do so. This time I chose to run to the opposite |
| water gives birth to myriads of small fish and plankton. | | | | side of the ship and sure enough, there it was, |
| Whales feast on those, consuming from 2 to 5 tons | | | | surfacing right in front of me just as I got there! It made |
| average per day, depending on size and species. | | | | a couple of shallow plunges as if to entertain us before |
| Immediately as we took off from Tadoussac Bay on | | | | taking a sudden steep dive and showing off its |
| our whale watching expedition, several pure white | | | | massive tail in the process. |
| beluga whales gamboled around the boat. Then, on the | | | | There were a number of other species we saw as |
| way back three hours later, we were treated to half a | | | | well, including several Minkes, one of the smallest |
| dozen mother belugas together with their | | | | variety, and one fin whale in the distance. The fin |
| brown-colored newborns! What an awesome sight! | | | | whale is the second largest whale in the world, after |
| Even the tour animator was so excited, repeating over | | | | the blue whale, and is the size of 10 elephants standing |
| and over again: they were just born; they have just | | | | in a row! |
| given birth! | | | | Several groups of seals also frolicked around us. They |
| St. Marguerite's bay is a protected inlet a few | | | | had good reason to be happy. Their only predator, |
| kilometers inside the fjord, where the belugas give birth. | | | | Orca the killer whale, does not come in these waters. |
| Then the mothers escort their babies immediately | | | | The scenic shoreline, combined with the beauty of |
| back out to sea. What a privilege to witness this | | | | North America's only fjord, the invigorating salt air, and |
| phenomenon! Belugas are the only whales that stay in | | | | seeing such a diverse array of marine mammals so |
| the area year round. | | | | close at hand made this trip one of my most |
| Another case of being at the right place at the right | | | | memorable experiences ever! |
| time was our close encounter with a number of | | | | |