Jolly Breeze Whale Adventures
4 King Street E5B 1Y2 Saint Andrews, NB, Canada

New Short Term Rental by-law and permitting process is scheduled for first reading at the town meeting on Jan. 18th at 6:00 pm. The public consultation session is currently set 3 weeks later on Feb. 8th. If you have a short term rental or airbnb in Saint Andrews, be sure to follow the proceedings.

Good year so far with 9 Right Whale Babies!

An early Christmas present! The Canadian Whale Institute’s Campobello Whale Rescue Team (CWRT) freed an entangled humpback whale today in the Bay of Fundy, Can...ada. A badly entangled humpback whale was reported Sunday afternoon by a fisherman, it was too late in the day for the whale rescue team to respond. Monday was giving the only suitable weather for the week; everyone pitched in. Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Conservation and Protection (C&P) had an aerial surveillance plane in the air at first light and relocated the entangled whale Monday morning. The CWRT set out from Campobello Island in the fog and traveled 35 nautical miles over bumpy seas to the location. The whale had multiple wraps of rope around the head and body and the tail that was weighing it down and not moving much. CWRT needed several hours and made many cuts with specialized knives and a cutting grapple until the whale finally swam free. Many thanks to the commercial fisherman who reported the entangled whale and to the DFO C&P aerial team and the vessel team from Grand Manan Island for their support. (Photo credit: Scott Fitzgerald CWRT). See more

We were very sad to hear about the loss of Laurie Murison. She had an endless passion for improving the well being of the wildlife in the Bay of Fundy along with her many other tasks running the museum and saving lighthouses. I would often go to Laurie for questions about whale behaviour and she was always happy to share her knowledge. Here is a letter she wrote to me in 2016: 'With so many whales in the area there is a huge amount of social activity going on that we ha...ve no idea what it is all about, but full bellies and free time leads to socializing in humpbacks, rights, fins when the groups are big. I imagine there was a lot of vocalizing going on under water as well. It is hard to say if they start setting up potential mates on the feeding ground as hormone levels rise - they are unlike right whales and don't have sperm competition so testosterone levels are probably rising rapidly this time of year. They may also have been competing for the boat since they like to have diversions and many are now completely happy interacting with boats and people. That spot has been so busy all summer - since June - I wonder how there has been enough food but perhaps the oceanography brings krill and herring into that area on a regular basis. Barnacles do come off accidentally. I have seen humpbacks bleeding from a dislodged barnacle and also scratches on other humpbacks from barnacles from other whales. On the breeding ground humpback males can be very aggressive one moment and then tender the next but during the rowdy times it is common to see small wounds from barnacle scrapes. I have also seen humpbacks in the middle of right whale courtship groups, as excited as the right whales. I have also seen what I call the humpback huddle when several groups come together into a large group that may be a dozen animals. They stay together for a few dives and then break back up into their smaller groups, perhaps the ones that had been with or with new "friends" for the day. They are certainly complex whales and will come to the rescue of other species as well as humpback calves if they are in danger". Laurie

Great Saint Andrews Charity idea: Local school snack program. More details of program below if you are interested.

A big thank you to the Campobello Whale Rescue team for the recent rescue of a humpback whale off Grand Manan Island last week. (part of the Canadian Whale Institute for donations!).

Another great local charity if you are looking for local NB donation ideas.

In honor of Remembrance Day. Poppies painted on historic Algonquin Resort red slate roofing tile. Joanne Carney. My father Edward Zaluski is a retired Canadian Air Force pilot.

Great local cause for the support of Fundy Bay Keeper if you need charitable donation ideas!

New painting on a true Atlantic Canada canvas: red rock shale. Inspired by our Bay of Fundy whales of course! The natural relief on the rock makes for great clouds too.

Newest linocut ink print. Thank you to Sunbury Shores for use of the awesome print studio! Joanne Carney 2020.

Great pirate ship ginger bread house in Saint Andrew’s! Captain Santa, a cute puffin, the Kraken and more.

Jaw and baleen of a Right Whale

NEW: St. Andrews Vacation Rental Owners Group. For owners or prospective Short Term Rental owners in St. Andrews and New Brunswick. The new Short Term Rental By-law for St. Andrews is due out early January 2021.

We will add one more trip on Saturday as the weather is fabulous! (if we get enough people interested). Call: 506-529-8116.

Local art calendar by Simone Ritter. Great gift idea. Also see Simone Ritter Art.

Probable New Beaked Whale Species: Sea Shepherd Research Mission discovers probable 24th beaked whale species 100 miles north of the San Benito Islands, Mexico ...(~about 300 miles south of the US border)! On 17 November 2020, scientists on board Sea Shepherd vessel Martin Sheen observed three beaked whales that differed from any known species. The expedition, led by renowned beaked whale researchers Dr. Gustavo Cárdenas Hinojosa, Dr. Jay Barlow, and Dr. Elizabeth Henderson and Sea Shepherd crew wanted to identify a beaked whale species associated with an unidentified acoustic signal previously recorded in the area. They captured photographs, videos, acoustic recordings, and genetic samples. The experts are highly confident that the photographic and acoustic evidence reveals the presence of an entirely new whale species! Environmental genetic sampling, performed at the time of the sighting, is undergoing analysis and is expected to prove the existence of this new species definitively. We saw something new. Something that was not expected in this area, something that doesn’t match, either visually or acoustically, anything that is known to exist, said Dr. Jay Barlow. Fantastic finding! UPDATE: MORE VIDEO, interview with Jay Barlow: https://i.stuff.co.nz//scientists-think-they-may-have-foun See more

Happy and Safe Halloween to all!

Last trip of the year for 2020 with a send off by Tessa the Town cat! The Humpbacks Cork and Chevron put on a good show for the this last beautiful day on the water. Thank you to everyone for their support during this challenging year.

Wishing everyone happy and safe holidays!! (Pottery by Captain Randy Russell).

Cool drone footage of St. Andrews.

Wood carving of a Puffin. By owner Joanne Carney (under guidance of local carving teacher Bob Carney). Inspired by the Puffins we sometimes see on our Whale Watching tours in the Bay of Fundy. Did you know that their beaks glow under ultraviolet light?!

Recent study of economic impact of whale watching in Alaska and importance of maintaining healthy whale populations.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! A beautiful day on the water on Monday with Humpback whales Cork and Chevron, entertaining us with their antics. (engines off and they approached us so calmly, we did not approach them).

You can look back to last year to see a couple of amazing great white shark videos!

the Pansy Patch 1924 in St. Andrews

The underside of the humpback whale tail has back and white patterns that are like a fingerprint. They are then given names. Thank you to Danielle and Flukematcher for help with the ID's. A few of the whales spotted this past week-end and yesterday.

Humpback whales! Better than Netflix!

Breaching humpback whales today. Sunday space at 1:30 pm. Heading off Grand Manan!! Join us for a great day on the water! Tour may be longer than the usual 2.5 hours but there is a bathroom on board!

Song of the Deep sculpture representing the songs of the humpback whale. Wonderful way to greet visitors at the Kingsbrae Gardens parking lot in St Andrews. Awesome weather tomorrow Sunday for whale watching and space still available.

Trip at 1:30 today Friday and cannot have better weather for it!! September heat wave and calm winds. Still space. Cork joined us on our last trip out.

The flags are flying at half mast in St. Andrews. The community is mourning the loss of one of our respected business owners and fellow whale watching Captain at Quoddy Link Marine. Our deepest condolences go out to the family and crew.

Chevron and Cork humpback whales made an appearance for those fortunate enough to join us on the VIP Nautica today! Cork even breached for us!!

Bumpy head humpback Chevron. These are the Tubercles are about the size of your fist with one or two hairs called Vibrissae. These hairs are most likely used to help the whale feel different vibrations in the water column that helps them build up a finer picture of their surrounding environment.

Beautiful day on the water. Chevron performed all day with a flipper display, showing her tail. Also a breach for those lucky enough to be on the 5:00 pm tour!

Humpback, Fin's and Minke whales all spotted on today's tour! Still space Saturday 8:00 am.

Four half price tickets for the 1:30 pm tour today Tuesday Sept. 8th. Call to book.

We had a wave from Chevron on Sept.6th! Hello back!

Humpback whale Chevron returns to our area!

https://bangordailynews.com/2020/08/11/act-out/maine-is-home-to-8-types-of-sharks-from-sand-tigers-to-great-whites/

Awesome moonrise sunset tour simultaneously tonight. Another chance tomorrow evening 5:30 pm tour!!

Larry Pardey died Aug. 28th at the age of 80. Lin and Larry Pardey and their books were mentors to us in our early years when we were building a 37 foot sailboat, living aboard for 10 years and sailing. They circumnavigated the world twice without an engine!

Great news to report: We heard from the Campobello Island Whale Rescue Team that the humpback whale that was trapped in a fishing weir on Wednesday has swam out this morning and is now free again! Huge thank you to the weir operator who acted very quickly yesterday to remove some top poles and allow a larger opening for the whale to escape. Thank you also to DFO for their rapid response and monitoring of the situation yesterday and of course to the Whale Rescue Team. (photo is of how we think this whale felt once he was released. It is not of photo of the previously entrapped whale).

Sadly there is a young humpback stuck in a fishing weir in our area. All the authorities and whale rescue teams have been notified. Wishing Mackie with the Campobello Rescue Team all the best for freeing this whale. He will be checking on his/her status in the morning.

Mola Mola : Great prehistoric looking Ocean Sunfish. Some cool facts: They love to sunbathe. Sunfish spend up to half the day basking in the sun near the surface of the water, which helps warm their bodies up ... 2. They can weigh more than a car. 3. They lay more eggs than any other animal. 4. They have super weird teeth. 5. They are related to the bass.

Join CHCO-TV, the St. Stephen Area Chamber of Commerce, the Town of St. Stephen, the The Saint Croix Courier/Courier Weekend and the St. Andrews by-the-Sea Chamber of Commerce for a virtual Meet Your St. Croix Candidates Night on September 4th!

Attention SHORT TERM RENTAL owners in St. Andrews. The Council is putting through new regulations that you should be aware of and may wish to comment on. It is addressed in both the Primary Municipal plan and the new By-laws. Letters of concern need to go to the Councillors this week. It provides them powers to cap the number of rentals and use a lottery system to decide who is provided permits. Also they are working on a permit system with regulations that you may want to help draft. The original onerous Rezoning requirement has recently been removed but the powers to cap and lottery persist and you may want your voice heard in that regard. Draft Plans can be read at town website: townofstandrews.ca, right hand side. Joanne Carney

Newest Captain of our team! Maya Willms has been spending the summers in St. Andrews since she was 4 years. She has a degree in Biology and is on her way to Dalhousie for her Masters.

Special treat of great tail lobbing and tail slapping by Chevron Thursday.

Amazing Basking Shark beside the boat today!

Amazing morning krill photo from the edge of the boat and lunge feeding Minke trying to catch them!

Love this photo of a Lunge feeding Minke whale. We were able to view the Minke whale lunge feeding multiple times on the Sunday Sunrise tour! The herring fish tend to be closer to the surface at night and early morning and then deeper during the day when the sun shines bright.

Amazing sunrise tour Aug. 8th. 3 seats left Aug. 9 sunrise tour! Call to book 506-529-8116.

Still some seats left for the awesome Sunrise whale watches on Saturday Aug. 8 and Sunday Aug. 9th!

Great outdoor fun. Better than a couch and Netflix!!

Bluenose II was in St. Martins area today. Hope everyone enjoys this picture as much as I did Local Photographer Dan Withers captured this amazing picture.

So fun to see some White Sided Dolphins today. Other highlights this week were the Fin Whales, Bald Eagles, lots of seals and more!

Another great sunrise tour. Nice to be only boat out on the water especially during the long week-end. The Minke whale 'Slice' had a partner today and they were traveling together!

The Fin Whales are happy that more herring fish have moved in. They are busy feeding in cirlcles. Rainbow blows and all delighting our guests!

For a little humour... A younger child on the VIP Nautica asked "Can we get closer to the whale?". Biologist on board answers: "No because the whales have a larger social distancing bubble than we have!"

Sunrise tours! 6:15 am. Have the whales all to yourselves! July 26th Sunday. Saturday Aug. 1st. Check in for more week-end dates.

First 6:00 am sunrise tour. Great to be the only boat out on the water at that time! Early worm gets the bird.. Puffins!! Along with whales of course. Next 6:15 am tours Sunday July. 26th and Saturday Aug. 1st.

You can see how the right side of the jaw is white on the Fin Whale. The counter shading helps them catch food and evade predators. The white is only on the right hand side!

Close up of a humpback whale flipper. VIP Nautica- 12 passenger motor vessel- Jolly Breeze Whale Adventures.

Found this whale rock in our garden today! Thank you so much. I love rock hunting. (Miramichi NB rocks on back).

Impressive Fin whale. Second largest whale in the world! Such a peaceful trip with only our boat out there! Join us on our VIP Nautica. Best range and agility on the Bay!

Beautiful day on the water with an endangered Right Whale! Video by crew biologist Mahe. Juvenile 2019 calf.

The 'Old Sow' whirlpool has sure been running with high tides with the new moon tonight. Hopefully that will bring in more of the larger whales as well!!

First humpback whale of the season July 16th, VIP Nautica with Jolly Breeze Whale Adventures. Cork welcomed us with open 'flippers' and sure displayed how happy she was see us after her long migration north to her favourite feeding grounds in the Bay of Fundy. We were understandably distracted and did not capture a picture of her breaching at the end! (shortened version of original video).