27th July 2022
We woke at 7, and began slowly and quietly to break camp (careful to avoid disturbing the late-rising Spanish). We left the campsite soon after 10 (after finding someone to unlock our electric), and hit the road for Santander. We had an easy 50 minute drive, with just a little complication as we approached the ferry port. On arrival, we checked in and the very friendly staff directed us to the cafe with clear instructions about when we would begin shuffling cars (something that doesn’t often happen in France or the UK).
Once on board, we put our luggage in the cabin, then sat on deck to watch the departure. Santander looks like a nice town, with lots of sandy beaches and hotels - you could easily holiday here as a foot passenger.
Later that day we saw dolphins, and then in the distance a fin whale breaching followed by a group of beaked whales. The volunteer from the Orca whale-watching group was very jealous of the photo, saying that she hadn’t yet seen one breach (just spouts in the distance). Later that evening (after Lindsey and George had gone back to the cabin) I watching another fin whale in the distance, when a low blow about 50 metres away alerted me to a pair of fin whales heading towards the back of the ship. I quickly turned my camera, taking a number of photos before they disappeared. I decided not to show those to the Orca volunteer!
Before heading in I also took a few pictures of the sunset, which was quite spectacular.
