Saturday, I went to the south jetty, here in Gold Beach, Oregon, to photograph ospreys and while I was there I met a friend who pointed out there were whales about a quarter of a mile from the mouth of the Rogue River. I started shooting and here’s some of what I got.

This is what I first saw. That’s a whale breaching.

This is a blowup of the same photo. It’s the first whale I ever saw breaching.

There were actually about six to eight whales out there and I took quite a few photos but wished they come in closer.’

This and the next photo are members of the pod. At this time of year the whales are making their way north. I’ve heard that some individuals will stay in a bay or cove for several years. Apparently there was one such cow and her calf that lingered just off Brookings, Oregon, 30 miles south of me, for a few years.

Another photo of the pod. Some, you can see their backs, others you can only see them spouting. In the upper right-hand corner is an osprey with a fish. I love ospreys.

I went home and, later in the day I got a call from my friend, Christine Mack. Whales had moved in closer to the mouth of the Rogue. So, I drove back down.

I got up on the jetty but saw nothing. Eventually, another friend, Desi Yager, came up on the jetty and sat with me. I was about to call Christine to tell her I’d seen nothing when, out of the corner of my eye I saw a whale, about the size of a school bus, surface right in the mouth of the river. It happened too fast for me to get a photo. So, I sat down and waited, and more came right into the river’s mouth.

Here are two whales entering the river. They swan about 300 yards up the river before returning to the sea.

This is one of the whales spouting. In the background is the north jetty which lies on the Wedderburn side of the river. I wish I’d gone there, instead. I’d have been closer to them.

And this is a blowup of the photo above.