My friend Seth and I had rigged her up a couple of nights prior so she was sitting pretty on the trailer at the marina when I got there around 10. All I had to do was back her down the ramp and set her afloat. I was sailing solo, which is the usual case, so here's the order of operation:
- After hooking the trailer to the truck I towed her over to and backed her down the ramp.
- Got out of the truck, pushed her off the trailer so she was floating.
- Scurried aboard and started the motor.
- Scurried off and unhooked her from the trailer.
- Scurried back on board, motored over to the dock and tied her off.
- Went back and pulled the truck and trailer up off the ramp and parked them in the spot reserved for the boat.
- I got back to the dock, hoisted the main and sailed quietly out of the harbor. It was an uneventful launch, which is exactly what I prefer.
The wind was out of the SSW and about 10 knots which carried the boat nicely. It was good and steady until I got about two miles out when it died completely. I tried various tacks but couldn't catch the slightest breeze. I had no inclination to motor anywhere and I was content to put my feet up and just relax.
I was on the verge of dozing when I heard an odd noise somewhere behind me. It sounded as though something big fell into the water. I looked and saw a fishing boat about a half mile aft and thought they must have dropped a lobster pot. Sound plays tricks on the water and I went back to my quiet reverie.
A few minutes later, I heard it again, and this time it was louder. It looked like something was breaking the surface of the water about 100 yards away. It was hard to tell what it was, or if it was anything at all. Again, I went back to enjoying the perfect calm and quiet.
The next time it happened, it was 30 yards directly off my port beam- right where I happened to be looking. And right there, before my eyes a whale breached! WOW! I was knocked out!
A second later another breached directly aft of the boat. I scrambled for my camera and tried to get a picture, but they were soon out of range. I felt truly lucky to have had the experience but I wished I'd gotten a shot of one or both of them.
Twenty minutes later, after drifting along and catching what little breeze might materialize, I heard the sound that I now recognized as a whale exhaling through her blow-hole. Again, she was about 100 yards aft of the boat and heading toward me. She surfaced every 30 yards or so and kept a safe distance. And that's how the rest of the day went. I'd drift along or sail when there was wind and one or two whales would pop up around Aelena and me every fifteen or twenty minutes. As soon as I'd hear them, I'd grab the camera and try to anticipate where one would show up next.
Between the shutter lag on my older digital and trying to guess where they were coming up, it was pretty tough to get any pictures, but thankfully I had some luck. I got three or four shots of them above the water that I've posted the pictures on http://pescatello.org .
It was certainly a rewarding start to the '07 sailing season!
