, wee ett at ye tte fa

17 ~- Sunday, March 26, 1989 - North Shore News

hale watching Is

fun and informative

I MAY start to sound like my colleaguc, Bob Hunter, but
forgive me. Mammals have no place in cages. You can keep
all the snakes and spiders you wish in zoos and all the cad-
fish you can ‘“‘ketch’’ in aquariums but leave the monkeys

and the whales out of it.

I believe that animals should be
seen in their natural habitat, un-
molested by human beings who
come with nothing other than their
presence and a camera.

If I can’t afford to make a visit
to China to see the pandas I'm
quite content to watch them on
T.V. What good did it do me to
ogie nwo dozy pandas in the San
Diego Zoo — they were obviously
bored witless and about as interest-
ing to watch as your toenails grow-
ing.

eae

I've had two wonderful experi-
ences with marine mammais at
large.

The first was on the hydrofoil
linking Spain and Morocco. We
were on our way to spend a day in
Tangier, just to prove to Brian that
my stories about North Africa
weren't products of a fertile imag-
ination.

About halfway across the Sirait
of Gibraltar there was a flurry of
excited Spanish and the passengers
started crowding to the port win-
dows. There, a school of dolphins
was performing a show, leaping
and diving and having a great
time. Dan’t tell me that those
animals didn’t know what they
were doing!

As soon as the passengers had
nearly tipped the boat by shifting
to the port side, the dolphins swit-
ched over to starboard and so did

crew was quick to put a siop to it
in the interests of safety and the
“Hey, Flipper, if we can get that
much action out of a hydrofoil,
jasay we give that ferryboat a
try?”

Whales, too, must have a sense
of humor.

A couple of years ago, 1 was
given an assignment by a publica-
tion to do a series of articles on the
West Coast of Vancouver Island.

One of the topics was the grow-
ing popularity of “‘Whate Wat-
ching” cruises out of Ucluciet.

It was a great opportunity for
Brian and me to skip-out for a
couple of days with a geod excuse.

On an icy March morning,
bundied to the cycbrows in warm
duds, we boarded a small cruise
vessel with about 30 other passen-
gers, mostly retired Americans.

it was one stormy morning —
the sky was neon-lit with patches
of black, grey and brilliant white.
Slashes of lightning danced around
and then we'd sail through
scalding sun.

It seemed that every five minutes
the weather changed. Hail covered
the decks inches deep and then
deluges of rain would wash them
clean. The boat chugged right
along, the crew handing out sick-
bags or het coffee, your choice.

After about an hour, we slowed
down and skirted our way through
some small channels —- don't ask
me where we were but there was 4
serene little bay at the end.

The captain cut the engines and
we rocked gently while he explain-
ed some of the habits of the grey
whales.

We were all to watch for **ffuk-
ing’? — sort of a whale headstand

where the tail is flipped out of the
water.

We crowded on deck, 60 eves
scanning the water.

Problern was, we were all look.
ing Out (o sea, expecting to get a
distant glimpse.

Barbara McCreadie

Enter the whale with a sense of
humor. He popped up right beside
our boat and when nobody noticed
him, he sprayed! With great accu-
racy he water-pistoled 2 line of
viewers with the equivalent of
whale spit. That certainly got our
attention.

Assured of centre stage, he did a
couple of turns around and unde;
the boat, making sure he hit the
maximum number of passengers
when he raised a spray.

Then he would hide. On which
side would he choose to surface?
“There he is!’? and a monstrous
back, scarred and crusty would
appear, almost close enough to
touch.

Finally, as if he’d instructed a
stage manager to change the
lighting, the hail and lightning
caught up with us and we hustled
below decks, a boat-load of
satisfied fans.

ane

The season for whale-watching
varies, but it's mainiy March and
April. The whales spend the winter

down south where the calves are

born. Come spring. they head
north to Alaska, but. handicapped
by mothers and babies, they have
fo Make some pit stops.

On the West Coast of Van-

couver Island there’s plenty of

food, sheltered bays — in short. a
whale hatel.

The young males — and, prob-
ably a few older ones that are sick
of nursery duty — head north
soonest.

The moms seem to know when
the little guys are ready for the last
leg of the trip; they have a meeting
to decide flight time and suddenly,
they're gone.

It’s possible to see the occasional
whale, tired of travel, who has
decided to retire in the Ucluelet-
Tofino area. 1 suspect our star may
have been one of them — a Bob
Hope of the whale community.

kak

There are all sorts of tours
available for those who wish to see
teal whales. As far as I know, all
are reliable.

One caution —- don’t head for
the West Coast without some con-
firmed reservations for both ac-
commodation and whale cruises.
The Long Beach area is an easy
drive, but it’s isolated. Show up
without a place to stay and you
could be out of luck.

You'll find that it’s best to book |

accommodation with kitchen facil-
ities — each time I’ve visited, the
restaurant scene is the equivalent
of a ‘‘movable feast.’’ If the towns
are crowded, you may not want to
wait.

Both groceries and liquor are
available but { generally pack my
own.

eee

For more information, every
travel agent has brochures and
booklets coming out of their ears.
Also, Tourism B.C. has complete
accommodation guides as well as
lists of all scheduled whale visits.

While you’re there, bring hiking
boots and spend some time on the
beaches and trails.

MEDITERRAN

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June 5-10, 1989

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926-4344

106-100 Park Royal South, West Vancouver
| (GROUND FLOOR OF OFFICE TOWER)

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