18:02.841 S  163:11.565 W

19/08/09

00:30

About 7:30 Demetri and I were sitting in the cockpit after dinner  when we heard what sounded like a whale very close by.  It turned out to be what we think is a Humpback Whale and her calf.

They grow from 12 to 16 meters and this one is at least 12 meters and the young one about 4 metres.  They have been with us for the last 4 ½ hours frolicking almost like dolphins, swimming alongside and diving under the boat.  The depth sounder has registered   as little as

3.3 meters.  They swim as close as a metre from the boat and when the   mother spouts from windward we get  wet in the cockpit. We’ve tried unsuccessfully to photograph them, it’s too dark. Spreader lights aren’t enough for the cameras. There is no moon  and there is a full cloud cover complete with light rain squalls.

We just gibed, and I thought that might put them off but they are still with us.

They are truly awesome and we feel very small, and also very lucky to have this experience.

It’s only a pity it’s not in daylight.

We are 25 miles South East of Palmerston and  I will drop the pole in an hour or so and turn more North. I imagine they will leave us then.  It’s been a beautiful escort.

02:00

I’ve dropped the yankee and we are sailing  with a deeply reefed main  and a  small amount of

Staysail.  The Whales are still with us, sometimes they scrape the hull, I hope she’s not feeling amorous.

08:00

I went to bed at 3:15 and the whales were still with us.  Demetri headed further North and inadvertently exited on  the Whale Road off ramp.  After 8 hours of our company they carried on West North West.  We had a very rainy rolly night as we has to reduce  boat speed in order to arrive in daylight.  Of course the slower we wanted to go, the stronger the  wind became and when we wanted to speed  up it dropped.  It poured down big time the last few hours.

We joined three other yachts on the 6 available moorings.  Our mooring has a very dodgy rope  so Steve dove 11 metres with our pony bottle and attached our own rope to the mooring chain.  Simon, our local host, brought the authorities to the boat to check us in.  We are now 140 New Zealand Dollars lighter.