Friday, January 16, 2015

The Whales are Definitely Here

Hi All,
The sky is clear, the water is glistening and flat. The perfect day to look for whales. We head out past the reef toward Northwest Point which is at the end of the Island. We see Big Blue's boat going in the same direction come to an abrupt stop. They have spotted a whale! We motor over, but this whale is on the move. We see it surface a few times then it's gone. We decide with the weather so perfect, why not go to West Caicos. This island is drop dead gorgeous. There are cliffs and beaches without a soul on them. There we find another whale passing by. We don't get a good show but, its great to see them.
We tie up to a dive buoy right off the shore.  The "wall" is very close to shore on this side of the Island and we decide to swim out to it. The wall is a sheer vertical drop where the water goes from about 30 feet to several thousand. Because of the depth change, the water changes color from turquoise to deep dark blue.  As we approach, it becomes very dark and a bit eerie. Then like looking off a cliff it goes straight down and we couldn't see anything but inky black water. I was expecting some sort of big scary thing (Nessie?) peer back at us from the edge but that was my imagination!! When we get back in the boat John sees a spout right near the shore! Even close to shore, the water here is deep  making it a perfect place for a whale to rest and have a little protection. I figure this will be our friendly whale. Not to be. This one also surfaces and swims off in a big hurry to get to the Silver Bank.
We head around the Island to the South side where the water is much shallower. The beaches are spectacular and the water is so clear you can see rays and star fish from the boat. We stop and have a beautiful swim in a cove. There are huge cliffs surrounding us and glittering water stretching for miles.  It's getting late so we get back in Spy Hop and start our long ride home. A Petrel swoops down to see who's out in his water then travels out to the horizon to patrol for fish. Petrels are pelagic bird meaning they don't come on land except to have their chicks.

1 comment:

  1. Wow whale season! The sea sounds glorious! Thanks for posting.

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