There she blows!

Every year between June and November I spend a goodly part of the day standing on the veranda and staring at the sea until the little squiggles start to dance in front of my eyes and everything looks green when I go back inside! The reason? Whales! The Southern Right to be precise, so called because they were the 'right' whale to hunt. They have a lot of blubber, they float when they are killed and they swim close to the shore, 'good' reasons to hunt this noble mammal almost to the point of extinction. When whaling began five centuries ago, there were an estimated 300 000 Southern Rights and by the end of the 19th Century, 99% had been killed. In 1940 they were finally given protection and today there are 10%-15% of that number. Although they are increasing at around 7% per year, they still face dangers like collisions with ships, entanglement in fishing nets, pollution and starving to death due to over fishing in the Atlantic.

A mother and calf

Slow swimmers, they migrate from their icy feeding grounds off Antarctica, to the warmer (for them yes, for me no!) waters off our coastline where the peak calving time is July and August. So, I stand and stare and wait and if I am very lucky I see the spray from their blowholes.

There she blows!

The coastal town of Hermanus is one of the best places to whale watch in South Africa. The Whale Festival is an annual event (this year it is from 30 September to 4 October) and hundreds of people make their way there from around the world hoping to watch the whales frolicking and lolling close to the shore. I find it hard to imagine a mammal of approximately 54000 kg frolicking! Another unique thing about Hermanus is this: it is home to the only Whale Crier in the world! Wilson Salakusana keeps a close watch on these gentle giants and blows a kelp horn to alert whale watchers to the their presence.

Wilson Salakusana, Whale Crier from Hermanus

As I write this, Rob is there, in Hermanus, sending text messages 'wonderful sighting this morning, they were almost close enough to touch' and 'there are 7 whales and a calf just below the restaurant. Fabulous lunch.' Then he sends a photograph via email. Very unfair!

Bye for now!

A funny thing, I have been singing that old Ringo Starr song lately, you must know the one, it goes like this, 'All I have is a photograph................'