Good Things Come in Threes!
Another Triple Dolphin Day!
Maybe we were a little quick to discount the good weather we were having! We certainly didn’t enjoy the wind and rain that buffeted the boat this morning and early afternoon! What we did enjoy though, was a day almost completely full of dolphins! We spotted Kesslet, Charlie, and Scoopy first thing in the Kessock Channel on the 10am trip. Kesslet and Scoopy were sitting on their own near South Kessock, whereas Charlie was milling around the centre of the channel, so came over to say hello! He swam right alongside, surfacing next to us twice, before disappearing back off into the riptide behind us; Kesslet and Scoopy soon joined him there as well. They seemed to stay up there until the end of the 10am trip, but came down later, as on the 12pm, we found Charlie hunting in the river on his own. He seemed quite happy and active, but that left us wondering where the little “lovebirds” were off to! We later discovered exactly where, when guide Krystyna walked up the quayside to have a look, and all three dolphins were motoring their way out of the river! Once again, young Charlie had been left in the lurch while Kesslet and Scoopy had time to themselves. Poor Charlie!
Playtime at Dolphin Nursery!
With the trio joined back up again, it seemed to spark a little bit of life into their activities. With full bellies, all three were eager to play, and the chance to do so presented itself rather quickly when Kesslet came across a particularly large and enticing bit of seaweed. Needless to say, this toy became the centre of attention, and an eruption of breaching, tail lobbing, and surface rushes sent spray all over the Kessock Channel! The activity was over almost as quickly as it started, with Kesslet coming out as the winner of the toy battle. Thankfully, she was willing to share, as son Charlie came over to join her in wearing the new accessory (a rather jealous looking Scoopy sulked in the background)! As we came out at 2pm, the festivities had concluded and the seaweed discarded. All three were sitting off the cardinal marker still, resting in the waves pushing against them. They surfaced in time and occasionally one after the other in a delightful little pattern that we did our best not to disturb. We encountered the three sleepyheads another two times, drifting off under the Kessock Bridge and then just shy of Meikle Mee, where we left them to follow the tide back out past Alturlie Point! A rather relaxed end to a busy day!