A WHALE OF A TAIL

After a day of fishing or should I say catching, we headed back home across the big pond (the Atlantic Ocean) still about 20 miles off shore, no land is sight, still looking for signs of fish. You know birds flying overhead, movement in the water, a big splash anything. When I see something, couldn't really judge the distance, there was still no land in sight. The day was very calm on the pond. I put the throttle down and headed to the disturbance ahead. Getting closer and closer, the things getting bigger and bigger. Then I saw it, spray into the air, perhaps it was a pod of dolphins or pilot whales. Noooo! I don't think so, they looked bigger. I slowed down because Marine Mammals are protected and you have to keep your distance. We got within range and they were whales indeed. Sperm whales, wow, they were giant, it was a pod of females and their babies, the babies are bigger than the boat. The mothers lined up like giant logs with the young in between the mothers. I turned the boat off and we just observed them. They began to approach us, one female started rubbing herself along the hull of the boat, ooops, she is big enough to flip the boat without much effort. Still curious the whale wanted to check us out, as I was leaning over the side to see what she was doing, up she came to look me right in the eye, I stumbled back landing on my ass. Not without getting a picture. My son Jason and his college buddies, and nephew Kevin, were on the boat too, Jason wanted to jump in and swim with them, I insisted that they wouldn't like you near the babies, who knows what would happen to these apparently calm creatures if they felt threatened. We drifted with the ladies for about an hour. They played, they dove, we got to see that famous whale tail that so many people take pictures of. We thought about Moby Dick and what these whales could do to us if they wanted. They are gentle beautiful creatures. I think that I got to see an amazing wonder that I will never forget.