The whales say goodbye

11 September 2024

The whales say goodbye

After bidding farewell to the guest crew from the leg to Tonga, the crew spent a day and a half cleaning, carrying out minor maintenance on the ship, and provisioning. By Monday afternoon, with all preparations completed, the new guest crew arrived for the passage to Fiji. The weather was far from tropical during these days; the sun was seldom seen, and there were several rain showers over Tongatapu. Nevertheless, everyone was eager and filled with anticipation for the voyage ahead!

On the first night of the passage, we remained at anchor to help everyone get accustomed to the gentle motion of the ship and recover from any lingering jet lag. On Tuesday morning, it was time to depart from Tonga. But first, we had to clear customs and immigration ashore and await the pilot to guide us out of the harbor and between the reefs. Within an hour of getting underway, we set a few sails and made for the open ocean, carefully navigating through more reefs and shallows.

Just as we were bracing the yards to trim the sails for the new course, several calls rang out across the deck: “Whales! Whales on the starboard side!” With all hands focused, we finished handling the sails, and then everyone rushed to the rail to witness the spectacle. What began as a few spouts about 100 meters away quickly turned into an extraordinary display by the humpback whales! From waving flukes to splashing tail fins, the highlight came when two whales breached just 20 meters from the ship! We all felt a surge of excitement and awe at witnessing these magnificent creatures once again in the waters of Tonga—a place so renowned for its whales that an entire tourism industry thrives on watching and swimming with them.

We will certainly remember this day and this special place, but now we are underway, bound for Fiji. With the wind at our back and the forecourse set, we are rolling gently and already brimming with excitement for the next leg of our Pacific adventure.