2003

Snorkelling with Humpback Whales in Vava’u – Tonga
By: Ron Hunter of Dive Forster @ Fisherman’s Wharf

August through September 2003 saw four groups of divers and snorkellers travel with Dive Forster @ Fisherman’s Wharf to Vava’u, the northern most group of islands of the Tonga archipelago.

A number of travellers from our expedition to Vava’u in 2002 were travelling again, following on the absolutely fantastic experiences that we enjoyed then. Another forty-two adventurers who had heard about our experiences in 2002 joined us on the tours.

We were not to be disappointed in 2003. Each day that we went out to swim with the whales was entirely different and special. Each week we enjoyed at least one absolutely unique interaction with the whales. Each week the group enthused about how “it couldn’t be better than that”. And each week it wasn’t “better” just totally unique and amazing on each occasion.

The first week we came upon a mother and quite a young calf, we stood off in the whale watch boat until they were used to our presence. The whale watch operators are so conscious of not stressing or harassing the whales that patience and care is paramount in everyone’s actions. We were rewarded for our patience, as accepting our presence the mother located her calf on her nose and gently pushed the baby humpback sideways through the water over to our boat, proudly showing us her young calf.

Carefully, five persons at a time we slipped into the water and slowly snorkelled over to the calf, which was by now gamboling on the surface, with mum resting some ten metres below him in the crystal clear water. The calf swam down to mum re-establishing contact by rubbing across the protuberances on her nose; these protuberances are actually clumps of hair. Moving under her tail the calf would feed from the rich stream of milk that mum squirted into his mouth. Then mum gently lifted him back to the surface on her nose once again proudly displaying him just three metres away to us, the five snorkellers.

Our group took turn about snorkelling with these two whales for over three hours. Some of these encounters became very close indeed, on one of these occasions, mum was moving slowly away from us, having been nose to nose with our group in the water. As she moved her body mass came closer and closer to us. It soon became apparent that her tail would be VERY close indeed. Back pedalling like crazy we moved away, but not quite fast enough, her tail swept around gently (for a whale) bumping us aside. Now that was a close encounter of the best kind.

We were to have two days with this same mother humpback and her calf, and on both occasions she proudly presented and displayed her baby to us. Our entire group had the best interaction with these two whales that anyone could imagine. These were two very gentle, emotion filled days of close contact with some of the biggest creatures on the planet. Two of our group were ladies of respectively seventy-four and seventy-eight years of age. They were both to snorkel with the whales on a number of occasions on both days, more power to them getting out there and doing it all at their age.

During our second week we had two days snorkelling with mums and calves. These were close but generally fairly fleeting encounters as the whales were now in threes and fours. Male and female “escorts” were accompanying the mums and calves and these escorts tend to keep the pod of whales moving along.

On our third time out with the whales we were to experience an encounter that no one could have imagined. The whale watch operator Alan had never before in his decade of experience seen anything like it.

We had observed two whales around half a kilometre away, they “tail displayed” as they dived leaving a telltale “footprint” on the calm surface. We were slowly motoring over to their last position at a speed of around six knots when the calf surfaced directly in front of our vessel, immediately followed by mum who had surfaced between our boat and her calf. We were now barely making way as our engines were in neutral, but we were so close to the mother that we could not avoid her and our vessel gently rode up on her back. Collecting her calf she swam away from us for about four hundred metres before stopping near a small island.

We motored slowly over to the pair who were now resting on the surface. The mother appeared uninjured or even concerned that our vessel had bumped her. She now swam curiously around our boat with her calf alternatively under her massive head or resting on the hairy lumps on her nose.

We made ready to get in the water to snorkel with the two whales and five of us gently slipped in and snorkelled thirty or so metres over to them. Having gained a great deal of experience with whales over the last two seasons in Vava’u and over twenty years of operating Whale Watch cruises in Australia, I was to be the guide in charge of the group.

All of our knowledge about Humpback Whales had led us to believe that Humpback Whales did not have very good vision directly in front, as their eyes were so far back and on the sides of their heads. Best practice was believed to be to approach the whales from their side and slightly from the front. This we attempted to do only to have the mother turn towards us coming directly head on to us where she would hover motionless around three metres away from the group. We attempted to move away from directly in front of her, out of her supposed “blind spot”, this only caused her to move her position so that she once again was directly head on to us. We attempted to move the other way and once again she moved to a head on position. Things began to fall apart as our co-ordinated movement failed and our group splintered into a pair of snorkellers and another group of three. The mother, still with her calf in close contact now turned her attention to the hapless pair of snorkellers. She once again instigated the head on attitude until totally confused the two snorkellers split up; she then swam between the pair and turned her attention on the remaining three until they too were split up. Individual snorkellers were now scattered all over the surface, we were all fairly tired from not only the constant swimming but also the adrenalin rush that came from such a close encounter. We singly and in small groups attempted to snorkel our way back to the boat only to find that the mother had interspersed herself between us and the boat. In time we managed to get back onboard all “buzzing” from our experience.

There was no time for rest, the next group of four were ready for their turn, and they plus myself slipped into the water. Once again the mother approached us in close concert with her calf. She had a fresh group of play things to move around, and move us around she did. She repeated her splitting up of the group; it wasn’t long before we also were spread all over the ocean. At one stage she concentrated on two of our group Jake and Bob, whom one wit in our group described as “two old bulls”. She approached the two of them to within two metres and managed to split them up, she checked both of them out and then swam between them, rejecting them both as “unsuitable”. Jake is still under therapy for a rejection complex he has since developed.

This whale continued her amazing behaviour for over three hours. Her actions could be likened to a sheep dog, with us as the sheep. She was definitely in charge. Eventually all of us were back onboard and totally exhausted from our three hours of being moved all over the ocean. The mother together with her calf continued to circle our boat waiting for someone to get in so she could “play” with them, but no one had enough energy to attempt to get back in the water with them.

The encounter was once again at this whales discretion, at any time she could have swum off. Never at any stage did her actions seem aggressive; she appeared to take great care in not infiltrating a two to three metre “safety zone” that seems to exist between the whales and snorkellers. Never at any stage did we feel threatened by the actions of this whale, but we certainly did have some heart stopping excitement as she moved us around.

We slowly motored away leaving the two whales still resting near the small island where we had first encountered them. Everyone on the boat was in a quiet mood as we tried to absorb what we had experienced. It did not then and does not even now seem real.

Our third week was again to present us with a totally unique experience. We had had success snorkelling with groups of whales on a number of days and everyone was sure that they had seen the best. Then on our last day out with the whales we were to come upon a single male humpback. We followed this whale for a while, he was travelling very close to the shore of Hunga Island swimming in a depth of about twenty-five to thirty metres of “gin clear” water.

We travelled with this solitary whale for a short period of time until we came upon a mother and calf who were accompanied by another adult escort. All four whales were now basically stationary in the water. Quickly and quietly five of us slipped into the water and snorkelled over to the mother and calf who were now resting on the surface.

The mother and calf were very curious about our presence and commenced to circle the group of us at a distance of between two and four metres. Being this close to these magnificent creatures we were able to establish absolute eye contact with them both. It is said that the eyes are the window to the soul, well the eyes on the humpbacks display such a depth of intelligence and curiosity that these encounters that we experienced were some of the most emotionally charged events that any of had ever been privileged to enjoy.

All the while, as the mother and calf curiously circled us, the two adult escorts were in close attendance. At times they were directly underneath us and then surfacing they would be in very close proximity indeed. At one stage we were entirely surrounded by whales as we lay motionless in the water, the mother and calf were slowly circling, with the group of us facing their right hand side and the two escorts either side of us at a distance of around six metres away.

It was then we were treated to one of the escorts “singing”, this singing was emanating from the first whale, the male that we had sighted, for it is only the male humpbacks that sing. The other escort appeared to be a mature female being not as deep through the midsection as the male. This male obviously fancied himself as a potential suitor and it appeared that the other escort, the female, was running interference for the new mother.

What an experience! Some of our group were just yelling with excitement, both in the water and when they were back onboard our vessel. Everyone rated it as the best day of adventure that they had ever been involved in.

The stories and photographs from our 2003 tours to Vava’u are the stuff of legends. No one who has snorkelled with the Humpback Whales can not be moved by the experience. For many it is a life altering moment. And for all, the privilege of being amongst the few fortunate people to have enjoyed and thrilled at these special encounters with the Humpback Whales is something that will be remembered right through their life.

We are, of course, returning to Vava’u in 2004. Half of the travellers from our 2003 tours are joining us again in 2004. Numbers on our tours are limited and all tours are fully escorted to ensure that everyone has the best possible time in Vava’u and with the Humpback Whales.