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The longest day
December 21st - Day 23
Today is the summer solstice down here in the southern hemisphere. It's the longest day of the year, and we had no idea when we woke up how true that would be...
"It's good flying weather - if you're a boat."
Too rough for whaling this morning, and visibility's not so great either. Looks like another slow day…or maybe not.
At 09.00 Waldemar and Jesse spot a whale. Trouble is, so have the whalers. The Kyo Maru changes course and the chase begins. Vincent, Jesse and our photo and video guys scramble into the Hurricane. With Jesse at the wheel they try to catch up to the Kyo.
It takes the Hurricane half an hour to reach the catcher, which is moving at high speed, but they are in time. Jesse spots the whale as soon as they arrive. It's right in front of the harpoon so that's where he puts the Hurricane. For the better part of an hour he stays there - Vincent shouting whale positions and spotting for chunks of ice.
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The boat crew radios updates back to the Arctic Sunrise, but in the heat of the chase doesn't realize their radio has taken too much spray and stopped working. On the bridge we could barely hear them and they couldn't hear us at all.
When Jesse and Vincent realize they've lost contact, they slow down and try to get their radio operational. No luck. They try the back up radio. No luck there either.
A small ship and a much smaller boat, trying to find each other in the expanse of the Southern Ocean, without radio contact, don't have much of a chance. Fortunately, the boat crew has a SART (Search And Rescue Transmitter), which transmits a signal we home in on with our radar.
When we pick them up, Jesse and Vincent think they failed. But on the radar we watched the catcher return to formation, and head away. One whale escaped, and the day starts with a victory - though one that would be short lived.
Fighting the transfer
Repairs are made to the radio, and the Mermaid is also readied for launch. At about 14.00 (two o' clock) we see that one of the catchers (the Kyo, which Vincent and Jesse had chased earlier) has set course to meet up with the factory ship (the Nisshin Maru). It has killed a whale, and is on its way to deliver the whale for processing.
Both the Mermaid and Hurricane are launched. The Mermaid will be the media and safety boat. The Hurricane will try to interfere with the transfer - on board are Wally (driver), Jo and Mikey.
The Kyo begins hosing them down before the Nisshin even arrives, but the boat crew notices a gruesome detail. The whale tied up beside the catcher is missing its tail flukes, which must have come off in transit. From a practical perspective this will make transferring the whale more difficult - so the crew of the Hurricane redouble their efforts.
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Waldemar puts the Hurricane up at the catcher's bow - trying to prevent it from moving into position - but the 739 ton catcher muscles right in.
The bow of the catcher curves inwards. As one swell tilts the Hurricane towards the Kyo, another tilts the Kyo over towards the Hurricane.
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With the weight of the ship pressing down on its mainframe, the Hurricane is, for a short time, wedged against the bow wave and trapped. Mikey is pinned between the metal main frame of the Hurricane and the hull of the Kyo, but squeezes out unharmed.
Throughout the protest the boat crew kept their cool. Even smiling at the whalers between brutal blasts from fire-hoses and water cannons, which came close to knocking Waldemar out.
After the transfer, when a big swell carries the Hurricane up level with the harpooner, Mikey takes the opportunity to offer the man a handshake, but only gets a stunned stare from the whaler in return.
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Chasing the catcher
The Mermaid stays with the Kyo to keep it from whaling again. The battered crew of the Hurricane return to the Sunrise and, after refuelling, are replaced by Olivier (driver), Duygu and Nathalie.
The two boats stick with the Kyo for a few hours. Then the Mermaid heads back for refuelling and a fresh crew.
Alone the Hurricane keeps watch over the catcher. Olivier, goes over what happens next:
"We were keeping up with the catcher. The sea was calmer then in the morning, and it was bright and sunny. A beautiful day. The Mermaid is already on her way back to help us. She will arrive within ten minutes.
Then, a whale. No, two whales. The whalers see them also.
First Duygu is driving then she has me take over. The Hurricane is in front of the harpoon - between it and the whales - and it is working. We are dodging pieces of ice, and the Kyo is swerving around trying to get a shot, but they can't. I stay between.
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Then TONK - a piece of ice, a small one that I did not even see, has wrecked our propeller. We are disabled. Then POW - the whalers have killed a whale. There is nothing we can do. That was a bad feeling."
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Minutes later, the Mermaid arrives on the scene to find the whale dead with ropes already around it. John, Eva, Marieke and Waldemar (driver) pull one of the ropes off, but the whalers manage to get the whale tied to the side of their ship and head for the Nisshin Maru.
The whalers have brought in another catcher to add extra fire-hoses at the stern of the factory ship. Without a safety boat, there is not much Waldemar can do to stop the transfer. The Mermaid is boxed in on three sides, and almost caught in the entangling lines dragged by the Nisshin.
After the transfer the Mermaid sticks with the Kyo - until finally the whalers come out and cover the harpoon. The whaling day has ended. Everyone returns safely to the Arctic Sunrise - thinking, already, about tomorrow.
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Want help the crew put an end to whaling in the Southern Ocean Sanctuary?
Join the Global Whale Action Team to receive updates and alerts about how you can pitch in.
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