One of the most incredible shots we've ever seen, captured by a novice whale watcher! Photo by Stig Thormodsrud	Our Summer Whales! Seen midsummer into late fall. Click on picture to view a larger image All Pictures by Heidi Tiura or Steph Dutton unless otherwise noted.	How rare is a blue whale breach? We have seen a handful in 10+ years! See the eye at the curve of the mouth?
Meet Blue Cadillac. This blue whale has odd upturned fluke tips like fins on a 1950's Cadillac. We have seen it for several years now.	Huge, muscular and fast, blue whales are the largest animals on earth EVER for size and mass.	Blues don't show their flukes as often as other whales, but when they do, it is as graceful as a ballerina with a tail stock the size of a redwood tree.

Kate Cummings got this lovely shot. Note the sun reflecting up on the underside of the flukes.

The next shot is one for the record book. We took the same picture at the same time, but not zoomed in.
Stig Thormosrud, who was on his first whale watch ever, was zoomed in. The reason it looks like a photo that has spent serious time in Photoshop is because there was another blue whale on the left of this one. It rose and blew, creating this contrast. Blues almost never breach and very rarely throw their entire head out of the water like this. We went nuts on the boat!

You're looking at the inside of a blue whale's mouth. This is the jaw. What looks like a pink jelly seems to be a scratch or scar in the whale's mouth. Kate took this July 2010.

Blue whale just outside Moss Landing. Kaste Cummings 7/2010.

This blue whale is called Blue Cadillac by us. It has upturned fluke tips.

The enormity of these animals is hard to grasp. They are huge and muscular.

Next shot by Diane Olson. This looks like a jet's tail!

Next two pictures by our captain, Jim Davis, from July 2010; same day!