Whales!!!

Today was the big whale watching day! We had to be up incredibly early to meet the boat at 7:30 (thankfully, we have been keeping an early schedule so being in bed by 9 has not been challenging).

We met our boat at the island’s public beach. This “beach” reaffirmed my belief that French Polynesia simply doesn’t believe in beaches the way we think of them in the States. There was maybe 8’ of sand between the retaining wall and the water, and in some places, there was no land between ocean and wall. At home, there would be 40’ of sand, dotted with countless umbrellas, beach chairs, and other items. Here, a few people sitting on towels. Nothing more.

We weren’t half an hour from shore when we saw whales. At this time of year, most males and single females have left for the South Pole. Mothers with calves will stay a bit longer in the warm Polynesian waters to gather strength and gain weight before beginning their migration, so there was no surprise that the whales we saw were a mother and calf.

We had been warned that we would be swimming a fair distance in open ocean. I was shocked to learn that they have no life jackets, so I got in and figured I’d do my best. The swim was really hard, and I wasn’t able to see the whales from in the water.

Our second whale encounter was better. Melissa and I opted to stay on the boat rather than do the grueling swim again, and our choice paid off. The mother whale swam within 10’ of our boat.

One guy in our party got a great underwater video of the whales, so I am looking forward to getting a copy of that video.

We tried one more time to whales, but they were moving around a lot which suggested that they were not receptive to boat encounters today. Our captain did a great job of pivoting and identifying other opportunities on the water. First, we stopped to snorkel at a place that has these cool conch shells called Lambis Robusta, or fake spider conchs.

We also saw turtles, rays, sharks, and did more snorkeling.

The shark didn’t impress, as previously noted. This was a small one, and it was alone. I was the one to spot it, as I did twice yesterday after being told there are no sharks in the area. I’m pretty sure if there are fish, there are likely sharks!

The last creatures we saw were a pack of spotted eagle rays. These are my favorites! They flap their wings gently, gliding around the ocean almost effortlessly. They seem peaceful, graceful, and very elegant.

We got back to shore around noon, had lunch, and were falling asleep at the table. Our taxi driver picked us up and we went to the hotel and took long naps. Looooong naps. Dinner was at Rudy’s again, and it was delicious, again.

Tomorrow we have an 11am check-out and a 12:30 ferry to Tahiti. I pray to all gods that the water is smoother tomorrow than it was on the ferry crossing out here!