A glimpse of another world

I took a trip last week to see bottlenose dolphins, just off the coast not far from here.  The Pelagic Tour, organised by Northern Experience Wildlife Tours, left the Royal Quays Marina at North Shields on the JFK Two and headed down the river to the mouth of the Tyne.  We turned south and very soon met a school of dolphins in the bay just beyond the South Pier.  They were busy feeding and didn't come close but the skipper turned off the engine and as we floated on the flat sea we could hear the dolphins breathing as they broke the surface.

I was disappointed by my photos.  My lens (100-280mm) was too short for the more distant views and later was too long for the close views.  It was also very difficult to predict where the next dolphin would surface.  Other people on the boat with more experience, more appropriate equipment, a better position on the boat and better reflexes (!) fared much better.

Experts can identify individuals from the appearance of their dorsal fin and many of the local dolphins are well known.

We headed north, past Tynemouth and met the same school of dolphins off Cullercoats and Whitley Bay.  There were dozen or more and this time they came very close to the boat.  After more frustration with trying to take photos I switched to video on the phone and fared much better.  I think the best photos were frame grabs from the video.

      

We then motored father north, as far as Blyth and Cambois (pronounced Cammus if you are not from round here) and moved inshore to meet the dolphins once again.  On the photos you can see the bubbles as they breathe out just before breaking the surface and snatching a breath in before submerging again.

I made a short compilation of the best bits of video.

This was a wonderful afternoon and a great privilege to get close to these amazing animals living in a totally different world not so far away.