And the First Whale of the Year goes to....Futurismo!!!

2nd February:

The day anyone expected to happen, did!! The trip was kind of pumpy and long but it had really good sighting results, which included the Common Dolphins and....the Sperm Whale!! Finally we had a whale under the radar and although it was sighted by the lookout really far away to the southeast edge of the island, we were able to get there on time to enjoy a few minutes with the big male! It was the male that is already known by everyone that works on this business and we actually named it Mr. Liable, because it has always been out there for everyone to see it, and we do see it all the time!

The first sign of the Sperm whale, its "small" dorsal fin.

We were about 8 nautical miles from the shore, at 37º34'52,6''N and 25º17'17,5''W.

The blow it's one of the most easy characteristics to detect the presence of an animal in the sea.

Before we arrived, the lookout told us that the Sperm whale had been making dives of 45 to 60 minutes long and we hoped that when we get'd get there, it would already be at the surface. Hopefully for us, it was!!

A better sight of the dorsal region of the Sperm Whale which has the characteristic wavy pattern.

Just before a deep dive the Sperm whale shows the fluke and can stay underwater for a period of up to 2 hours.

The typical image that everyone wants to have on their cameras from a whale watching trip!! And that's what we always want you to experience when we go out and therefore, we try as hard as we can everytime!

Jeep Tours: Azores Explorer

27th, January:

The Azores Explorer is an exploring tour which allows you to enjoy the northwest area of the island. It goes from Ponta Delgada to the Sete Cidades lakes and back, and includes stopping in Ferraria or Mosteiros in order to give you the opportunity of bathing in the natural hotsprings, in case of Ferraria, or enjoying the natural swimming pools at Mosteiros.

One of the Futurismo jeeps that are used for the jeep safaris.

The Tour is offroad as much as possible, allowing you to enjoy landscapes that otherwise you wouldn´t have the chance to see.

The view of the Mosteiros islets and village from the offroad trail.

This time we stopped at Mosteiros, at the swimming pools in the middle of the rocks. When it's warm, this is a perfect place to have a peaceful bath and enjoy the pleasures of snorkeling, seeing all the different species of fishes and other animals that exist on the pools. Also the numerous and colorfull algae are a treat for the eye.

One of the natural pools in Mosteiros.

After this, we got back to the road and went to Sete Cidades lakes. The trail follows the upper limit of the crater which allows you to have a really beautiful high perspective of the mountain and the lakes.

The view of the two lakes from the offroad trail on the top of the mountain.

We also saw the small twin lakes called the "Empadadas" which were slightly flooded, but it didn't stop us to continue our journey. And then we were in the water with the jeep!!

The flooded road we had ahead, we did it amazingly!!

And the road after we passed! Uff...we said...!

Just before we went back to Ponta Delgada we had time to stop at a sightseeing-point called Pico do Carvão in which you have a perfect view of the two sides of the island, North and South coasts and all the small peaks in between. As a great background, the sillouette of the Fogo mountain in which crater lays the Fogo lake.

View from Pico do Carvão: both sides of the island and centered, the Fogo mountain.

It was a half-day tour but it also can be made as a full-day tour with some extra sightseeing-points and stops at more interesting places!! Join us next time!!

WALKING AND JEEP TOURS: how to get lots of fun without a boat!!!

If you don´t like very much of having to get on a boat or you probably get seasick, we have other kind of nature activities so that you won't get bored on your vacations. In order for you to see why S. Miguel island is called the Green Island or "Ilha Verde", the Walking and Jeep tours are perfect for landscape photographing! You'll be exploring the offroad trails and having a really nice time while listening to the tour guide who will always be there for you telling you about all the curious stories of each place!

Because we had a relatively hard Winter, we always have the concern of checking the walking trails to see if they are still standing safe, clean of trees or big brunches, if they have too much wholes on the ground or are turned into extrem sport rutes!! =)

26th January:

On this day Laura, Irene and I (Laura and I are biologists and Irene is a Tour Guide) decided to check one of the trails and went from Praia da Viola to Porto da Maia, northeast from Ponta Delgada.

View to the Viola beach, before starting the descending part of the trail.

It was good day with a slightly greyish sky! And we were all ansious to start! It´s a really easy trail on good weather but if it has been raining, it can be a little more challenging.

The background will always be the sea, and as you go down to the beach, you'll encounter numerous abandoned watermills that used to establish the water suply to the houses located on the surroundings. These are abandoned as well and have been turned into beautiful ruins covered of green.

A peculiar detail from one of the ruined watermills.

We recomend you to bring good hicking boots, confortable clothes, a raincoat (remember, you're in the Azores, you ALWAYS need to have a raincoat just in case!!) and of course water and some energetic food!

Here are some specific informations about the trail:

Trail: Lomba da Maia - Praia da Viola - Maia

Difficulty: Easy

Lenght: 5 km

Time: 2h00

The biggest waterfall on the way, it runs towards the beach which lays in front of it, just a few steps down away.

The view reaching "Praia da Viola".

After relaxing on the beach and maybe taking a bath at the sea, you have to walk west and then go up through the vegetation. There's no mistake, all the path is well marked and there are no other options that might mislay you.

After the beach, one part of the trail, seemed like a jungle of Giant Reed.

After a short while you'll be able to see the village of Maia through the landscape and you'll know you're close to your goal.

The trail and Maia Village on sight.

All the trail is well marked so that you'll always be safe.

The Maia village, and the little harbor where the trail ends!! If you have done the trail already, i hope you've had a nice time!! And if you're thinking about doing it, Good Luck!!

Yes, it's winter...

Well, this year has begun with some whale watching trips but unfortunatelly we haven´t seen any whales...At least not the big whales... Probably because they're still on vacation, the dolphins took their place and amused us with great jumps, splashes, everything we were expecting from the friendly common dolphins!!

16th, January:

We went out with the weather threatening to get a bit rainy and windy. We saw some spreaded groups of Common Dolphins that were a bit shy and although it was dificult to find them through the waves, we did, and in the middle of the trip we saw a tiny tiny sea turtle at the surface of the water but soon she had other things to do and gone down! Despite the cold wind, everyone had a good time!

22nd, January:

Although the groups in Winter are much smaler and spread throughout a bigger area, we had the chance to see the Common Dolphins again, but this time on a beautiful day without wind or clouds and the water shining with the reflection of the sky! And this day, it seemed like there were common dolphins everywhere!! The groups were really small but most of them were really calm, friendly and jumping all over the place! Of course, when the animals look amused i try to take some pictures but i think that my random behaviour amuses them even more!! It´s the most frustrating thing: trying to take pictures to a bunge of jumping dolphins! Either way, that day was a success to us, the crew and for the clients as well!

Last two months statistics

Very hard weather during November and December turns the activity less interesting and the sigths not so varied in number of species.
Let´s hope 2010 becomes a better year for all: nature and people.
Thanks to everyone for being with us.

The Futurismo team

Observations October 09

Observations September 09