Location: Stellwagen Bank, Bay of Massachusetts
After
2 ½ months in Deltaville we are ready for something different.
This
afternoon we find it.
We're
motor-sailing in nearly flat-calm seas from Onset, Massachusetts to
Casco Bay, Maine with our friends Mike & Roberta on “Celilo”.
On the horizon we see a a few whale watching boats just sitting
there. A closer look reveals what appear to be whale spouts!
We
head over and, sure enough, there are whales. A pair of humpback
(we're pretty sure) whales is lounging on the surface. They dive and
we see their tails flip up in the air. We get closer. We watch.
There they are again!
After
about a half hour the tour boats head back to port, leaving us alone
with the whales. What a treat. We can hear them breathe. We can
see what looks like barnacles on their fins. We're closer than we've
ever been to whales on the ocean.
At
one point they're between Celilo and Rachel, on a collision course
with Rachel! Like an old sub movie we imagine “AAH-OOH-GAH!
AAH-OOH-GAH! DIVE! DIVE!!” We cringe, hold our breath, and, just
in time to avoid us, they dive. Absolutely spectacular. Nerve
wracking, but thrilling and exceptional.
Something
different, indeed.
