After a day of strong winds from the north on Saturday, I had high hopes for getting out on both Sunday and Monday, but it wasn't to be. Sunday was nice enough though, and we had good conditions for seeing alcids with slight seas and cloudy skies. Razorbills were not as abundant as they sometimes are, but we still saw over 200 by 0830. By 0930, we were about 24 nautical miles offshore and seeing plenty of Dovekies, as well as our first Atlantic Puffins. About 30 miles out, we had a close flyby Thick-billed Murre on the bow: our third for the season. I thought it would be a good idea to try to find some warmer water, so we kept charging offshore, arriving at "The Point" around 1100. The Point is a heavily visited area where there is a deep submarine canyon and typically good tuna fishing. We found several boats fishing there and catching both Bluefin and Yellowfin Tuna. The water was warmer, but only reached the low to mid 60s. The 70 degree Gulf Stream water was farther offshore and out of range on this day. Nevertheless, we did find a few hundred Bonaparte's Gulls near the temperature break, and also several Red Phalaropes and one adult Little Gull, which was not close or easy to see. There were also quite a few Humpback Whales. These have been scarce inshore this winter, and perhaps they have been out here for a while. The water depth was in excess of 600 fathoms where we were seeing them, but there was a lot of bait out there. The inshore tack was the best for puffins, and Danny counted 61 in half an hour during the best of it. There was also a first winter Little Gull, but it kept its distance too. Back inshore there were a few Common Loons and several small groups of Razorbills.
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