With the Large – and Awe Inspiring! – Rorquals

No sooner had I finished my thought when the silhouette of a humpback propelling itself completely out of the water pierces the fog about 1 km away. The captain therefore decides to cautiously approach this individual, which was accompanied by six of its peers. Once we get closer, we patiently wait for them to surface again. After a few minutes, Gaspar’s calf breaks the surface about a hundred metres from the boat, followed by its mother, Yvon, H917, H871, H943 and finally NiCa 49.

The seven whales take a few breaths and suddenly change direction. They are heading directly toward us. They come closer… and closer… and closer still. Once again, we find ourselves surrounded by a group of whales, only this time, they’re humpbacks. When whales approach on their own, it is sometimes difficult for captains to maintain the mandatory 100-metre distance stipulated in the regulations of the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park. In these types of situations, marine activity regulations require that captains put themselves in neutral to avoid accidents. They must then wait until the whales have moved far enough away before they themselves continue their course.

From the boat, I observe the animals through the clear water and contemplate their sheer size. It blows me away that such enormous animals can be so graceful at the same time. Soon after, the whales quietly continue on their way and we observe them one last time before moving on to explore other sites within the Marine Park.

As I describe my outing, I realize how much I sound like a fisherman exaggerating the size of his catch of the day. But it’s also when I understand how lucky I am to do the job I do.