I took some friends out whale watching this morning. We cruised around for a while and finally ran across three whales lazing about and spouting occasionally.
One of the 65 foot tour catamarans showed up so I decided to reposition my boat so we could get better pictures. The law says you must maintain a minimum of 100 yards between the whales and your boat. If they decide to get closer you should put the engine in neutral.
We gave the whales a wide berth and were almost in position when another whale surfaced about twenty yards off our stern. I shifted to neutral. This apparently was seen as an invitation as he cruised right over and started to rub up against the boat, dove underneath and circled us for over ten minutes.
Here's some of the pictures I shot.
I never realized how big pectoral fins were until I saw it this close. It's about the same size as a Piper Cub wing.