09.03.2019 – ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival)

With the RIBEIRA BRAVA still noticeably freshly painted and shining from maintenance recently done on dry dock, we started our afternoon tour sailing towards a group of Short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus), that were supposedly 4 nm from shore and heading east. A pleasant wind breeze could be felt and all onboard were comfortably installed. At the helm of this traditional madeiran relic was our oldest skipper from the Lobosonda team, Sr.Luís, and with a heading already given by our spotter on land, we expected a sighting in the next hour or so.

Without any surprise we as a crew have been accustomed over the years, that exact planning and trying to set a timetable for a Whalewatching trip can sometimes be tricky!!! As the hour passed we were informed that our targeted group of Short-finned pilot whales were maintaining a constant speed and heading east, which meant that our ETA was delayed by another hour or so.

Finally after two hours heading east we managed to have a brief sighting of the group and on the way back were blessed by the ocean, with a strong wind now coming against our heading towards the harbour of Calheta. Overall it took exactly 4 hours until we were back in the marina and, while some of us were more wet then others, everyone on board was generally happy and enlightened by this experience out on the Atlantic ocean…..

By Daniel Jardim

Sightings of the day

Ribeira Brava

10:00 Short-finned pilot whales, Bottlenose dolphins

14:30 Short-finned pilot whales

Stenella

15:00 Short-finned pilot whales Bottlenose dolphins