After quite a few trips over the years, our preferred
viewing location is on the side of the boat on Deck 6. Although the top deck
gives a better all-round view, the lower decks give better opportunities for
photography, particularly of Fin Whales and Dolphins. We started off on the
Starboard side and ended up on the Port side coming into Santander as the Sun
moved around. Starting off in the Northern Bay, south of the Brest Peninsula,
we spend all day on deck from around 7am until we arrived in Santander at 5pm
British time.
Bird wise it was extremely slow, with only 7 seabirds of 4 species seen. But it was quality rather than quantity, and we did have good views of both Great Shearwater and Sabine’s Gull. A pair of Common Swifts following the boat for an hour or two, were a great example of migration in action and with bird numbers so low, most of the time was spent looking for Whale blows and Dolphin splashes. We had regular blows as we headed south through the Bay, and several great views of Fin Whales that surfaced along the boat. Dolphin numbers were low, but we did manage both Common and Striped, although disappointingly, no Pilot Whales or Beaked Whales.
Bird wise it was extremely slow, with only 7 seabirds of 4 species seen. But it was quality rather than quantity, and we did have good views of both Great Shearwater and Sabine’s Gull. A pair of Common Swifts following the boat for an hour or two, were a great example of migration in action and with bird numbers so low, most of the time was spent looking for Whale blows and Dolphin splashes. We had regular blows as we headed south through the Bay, and several great views of Fin Whales that surfaced along the boat. Dolphin numbers were low, but we did manage both Common and Striped, although disappointingly, no Pilot Whales or Beaked Whales.
Mini-cruise passengers have to disembark in Santander and after checking
in and collecting our boarding cards for the return trip, we headed straight
over to our favourite Bar/Restaurant, in the square next to the Cathedral. With
the Ferry in Santander for only around 3 hours, you get just about enough time
for a quick meal and a beer or two and at 5 Euros, our Burger and Chips was
great value.Heading back out of
Santander, it was dark, so no more birding for us and straight to the bar for
the evening Cabaret.
Species - Great Shearwater 1, Sabine’s Gull 2, Yellow-legged
Gull 3, Kittiwake 1, Common Swift 2, Fin Whale 7, Rorqual sp 19, Common Dolphin
5, Striped Dolphin 5, Dolphin sp 20+
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