{"id":1767,"date":"2012-09-09T11:35:06","date_gmt":"2012-09-09T10:35:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/?p=1767"},"modified":"2012-09-09T11:35:06","modified_gmt":"2012-09-09T10:35:06","slug":"a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/northumberland\/a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond","title":{"rendered":"A Whale of a time on a millpond"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Our &#8216;Whale and Dolphin Cruise&#8217; has become an integral part of the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/tours.php?id=15\" target=\"_blank\">Northern Experience Pelagics<\/a> annual itinerary, and with an excellent weather forecast for yesterday&#8217;s sailing (and some detailed discussions between Martin and our skipper, John) optimism was running high.<\/p>\n<p>As we boarded Glad Tidings 5 with 50 clients, there was a really sociable atmosphere.\u00a0 Plenty of returning clients, and lots of new faces, were soon scanning the sea all around the boat.\u00a0 Martin started in the wheelhouse with John and they soon spotted a distant whale surfacing.\u00a0 The quite young animal surfaced again as we passed, another could be seen away to the north near the <strong>Farne Islands<\/strong>, and we headed in the direction of a feeding frenzy of <em><strong>Gannets<\/strong><\/em>.\u00a0 Another whale appeared, then another, and another.\u00a0 All told, in 4 hours we had 5 or 6 different <em><strong>Minke Whales<\/strong><\/em> \ud83d\ude42\u00a0 <em><strong>Gannets<\/strong> <\/em>provided a spectacular wildlife experience as vast flocks plunged into the sea in search of <em><strong>Herring<\/strong><\/em>, 3 <em><strong>Sooty Shearwaters<\/strong><\/em> soared effortlessly past the boat, a single <em><strong>Great Skua<\/strong><\/em> carved a path through the circling mass of <em><strong>Gannets<\/strong><\/em>, <em><strong>Fulmars<\/strong><\/em> glided by on stiff outstretched wings, a small flock of <em><strong>Kittiwakes<\/strong> <\/em>lifted from the water as the boat approached, and one of the largest cheers of the day came when a small pod of <em><strong>Harbour Porpoises<\/strong><\/em> surfaced just ahead of us.\u00a0 Martin was kept busy, answering lots of questions from our very enthusiastic clients about <em><strong>whales<\/strong> <\/em>and <em><strong>dolphins<\/strong> <\/em>in the North Sea, and managed to grab a few images as well \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<p><figure id=\"attachment_1769\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1769\" style=\"width: 399px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/northumberland\/a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond\/attachment\/20120908-_dsc4150\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1769\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1769\" title=\"Sooty Shearwater [Puffinus griseus], North Sea, Northumberland 08\/09\/12 (c)Martin Kitching\/www.northernexperienceimages.co.uk\" src=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4150.jpg\" alt=\"Sooty Shearwater,Northumberland,North Sea,pelagics,bird photography\" width=\"399\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4150.jpg 399w, https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4150-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1769\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sooty Shearwater<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure id=\"attachment_1768\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1768\" style=\"width: 399px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/northumberland\/a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond\/attachment\/20120908-_dsc4112\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1768\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1768\" title=\"Northern Gannet [Morus bassanus], North Sea, Northumberland 08\/09\/2012 (c)Martin Kitching\/www.northernexperienceimages.co.uk\" src=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4112.jpg\" alt=\"Northern Gannet,pelagics,North Sea,Northumberland,bird photography\" width=\"399\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4112.jpg 399w, https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4112-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1768\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Northern Gannet<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure id=\"attachment_1770\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1770\" style=\"width: 399px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/northumberland\/a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond\/attachment\/20120908-_dsc4157\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1770\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1770\" title=\"Northern Gannet [Morus bassanus], North Sea, Northumberland 08\/09\/2012 (c)Martin Kitching\/www.northernexperienceimages.co.uk\" src=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4157.jpg\" alt=\"Northern Gannet,North Sea,Northumberland,pelagics,bird photography\" width=\"399\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4157.jpg 399w, https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4157-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1770\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Northern Gannet<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure id=\"attachment_1771\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1771\" style=\"width: 399px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/northumberland\/a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond\/attachment\/20120908-_dsc4179\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1771\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1771\" title=\"Minke Whale [Balaenoptera acutorostrata], North Sea, Northumberland 08\/09\/2012 (c)Martin Kitching\/www.northernexperienceimages.co.uk\" src=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4179.jpg\" alt=\"Minke Whale,whale watching,dolphin watching,North Sea,Northumberland,pelagic,wildlife photography tuition\" width=\"399\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4179.jpg 399w, https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4179-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1771\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Minke Whale<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure id=\"attachment_1774\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1774\" style=\"width: 399px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/northumberland\/a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond\/attachment\/20120908-_dsc4293\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1774\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1774\" title=\"Minke Whale [Balaenoptera acutorostrata], North Sea, Northumberland 08\/09\/2012 (c)Martin Kitching\/www.northernexperienceimages.co.uk\" src=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4293.jpg\" alt=\"Minke Whale,whale watching,dolphin watching,North Sea,Northumberland,wildlife photography tuition\" width=\"399\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4293.jpg 399w, https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4293-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1774\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Minke Whale<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure id=\"attachment_1772\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1772\" style=\"width: 399px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/northumberland\/a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond\/attachment\/20120908-_dsc4194\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1772\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1772\" title=\"Minke Whale [Balaenoptera acutorostrata], North Sea, Northumberland 08\/09\/2012 (c)Martin Kitching\/www.northernexperienceimages.co.uk\" src=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4194.jpg\" alt=\"Minke Whale,whale watching,dolphin watching,North Sea,Northumberland,wildlife photography tuition\" width=\"399\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4194.jpg 399w, https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4194-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1772\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Minke Whale<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure id=\"attachment_1773\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1773\" style=\"width: 399px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/northumberland\/a-whale-of-a-time-on-a-millpond\/attachment\/20120908-_dsc4282\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1773\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1773\" title=\"Minke Whale [Balaenoptera acutorostrata], North Sea, Northumberland 08\/09\/2012 (c)Martin Kitching\/www.northernexperienceimages.co.uk\" src=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4282.jpg\" alt=\"Minke Whale,whale watching,dolphin watching,North Sea,Northumberland,wildlife photography tuition\" width=\"399\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4282.jpg 399w, https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/20120908-_DSC4282-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1773\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Minke Whale<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Our &#8216;Whale and Dolphin Cruise&#8217; has become an integral part of the Northern Experience Pelagics annual itinerary, and with an excellent weather forecast for yesterday&#8217;s sailing (and some detailed discussions between Martin and our skipper, John) optimism was running high. As we boarded Glad Tidings 5 with 50 clients, there was a really sociable atmosphere.\u00a0 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[105,5],"tags":[122,185,363,240,301,309,365],"class_list":["post-1767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-north-sea","category-northumberland","tag-fulmar","tag-gannet","tag-great-skua","tag-harbour-porpoise","tag-kittiwake","tag-minke-whale","tag-sooty-shearwater"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1767"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1767\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1777,"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1767\/revisions\/1777"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}