On July 9th 2024 Hebrides Cruises ship Elizabeth G was returning from the Outer Hebrides via Gunna Sound off the island of Coll when a shout went up from Helen, one of the guests. She had spotted a big “blow” in the distance which could only be made by a whale, and this was quickly confirmed as a humpback whale by our onboard Wildlife Guide Hannah Lightley. As everyone on board watched with amazement, the whale surfaced several hundred metres in front of Elizabeth G, exhibiting multiple tail flukes!
Meanwhile Hebrides Cruises Skipper Alasdair Sinclair had spotted another humpback whale around one kilometre from the vessel so Elizabeth G was carefully steered towards the second animal which was tail slapping multiple times. As they got closer, the engines were switched to neutral so as not to disturb the whale. At that point the guests experienced an incredible encounter as the humpback whale decided to associate with the vessel, surfacing only several metres from the bow and then actually swimming under the boat. Whales are naturally inquisitive animals and will sometimes choose to approach and swim around vessels. All Hebrides Cruises Skippers and crews are WISE accredited and strictly follow correct protocols when encountering marine mammals and always let the animals come to them.
Everyone onboard was transfixed at the encounter, with big smiles, squeals of excitement and even tears amongst the group, as many of the guests, and two of the Hebrides Cruises crew, had never encountered a humpback whale before.
Hannah immediately got in touch with Lyndsay McNeill who runs the Scottish Humpback Whale catalogue and sent per photos so she could ID the whales. Every tail fluke is as unique as a human fingerprint and is used to identify whales. Photographs are used for ‘Photo-ID’, and when a whale is identified in a specific location, it’s possible build a better picture of their movements by having information on where else that whale has been photographed. The first humpback whale encountered was confirmed as ‘Barrett’, which is number 100 in the Scottish Humpback catalogue, and which was seen in the same area in 2022 and 2023. However, the second humpback whale that swam under the vessel has been confirmed as a ‘new whale’ i.e. it hasn’t been seen in Scottish waters before.
So the final exciting news from this amazing encounter was that because the second humpback whale hasn’t been identified before, Hebrides Cruises guests and crew were given the opportunity to give the whale a name. It is now called ‘Sinclair’ after Skipper Alasdair Sinclair who first spotted it, and who is of course quite delighted!
I was fortunate to be on a six day private charter cruise on the Emma Jane. We were very fortunate with our weather given that we travelled at the end of September but what really made the cruise special was the quality of the crew on the vessel. We could not have asked for better. Our skipper (Charlie) was very responsive to our requests or suggestions for places we wanted to visit. Our chef (also called Charlie) was terrific, producing great meals on a series of special themes. Our wildlife guide (George) was brilliant at spotting animal life and helping us to understand their way of living. We especially enjoyed the frequency with which common dolphin took to surfing off the bow of the ship. Our stewardess (Sofia) was also really good. She looked after us so well and was tremendous at decorating the dinner table and ensuring that service throughout was of the highest standard. She also was particularly strong at remembering our individual preferences for drinks and food and quickly mastered all our names. I was hugely impressed with the whole effort by the team who all got on together so well. They seemed to be enjoying themselves which only made it easier for all of us to enjoy ourselves. All round a full five star review. It was a terrific six days which will last long in the memory. Thank you all so much.
Michael Spence: 28 September 2024Private Charter 6 Nights