Setúbal is known for its resident dolphin family, which we wanted to pay a visit. We went to a camping near Sétubal and booked a dolphin tour with Rotas do Sal for the following day.
The estuary of the Sado River is the habitat of a large family of bottlenose dolphins. We were told that there are 28 members of the pod, each of whom has been named by the local community. They inhabit warm and temperate seas worldwide, but there are only two resident families in Europe: one in Ireland and the second here in Setúbal.
After we had spotted the first dolphin, we were spending half an hour following them slowly. The dolphins seamed undisturbed and dived around the boat in a relaxed way. We could even watch them underwater, as the visibility was very good. They sometimes turned around, showing us their bellies.
There was a young one amongst them, about 6-month-old.
The fun started, when the maximum time of half an hour was over and we had to leave. A couple of dolphins followed the boat, using the wave it created to jump and roll around in it. Not sure, if that happens very often, as even the crew was fascinated.
Completely exited from our encounter with the dolphins, we spent some time in Setúbal, before we returned to our camping outside of town. What a great day and what an experience. Nothing better than to watch this fascinating animals in their habitat.
We will continue down the coast and plan some hiking – more next!