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A
Wonderful Whale Tale From Los Cabos
Hola My Friends,
Well, have I ever got a story for you guys today!!
It
all started Saturday morning, January 10th, when we got word from Solmar
Sportfishing Fleet that a Humpback Whale was sighted by one of their
boats, struggling offshore of Chileno Bay, entangled in a drift net.
Sr. Luis Bulnes the owner of Solmar Fleet sent word, urging us to help
free this doomed, beautiful animal. So, we from Amigos Del Mar, along
with a TV reporter named Armando Figaredo on board a fast Solmar fishing
boat provided by Sr. Bulnes, plus my good friend Oscar Ortiz and some
folks from Cabo Expeditions, Lieutenant Pino Salas and one of his divers
from the Armada de Mexico (that's the Mexican Navy) and Oscar Hernandez
along with another diver from a dive shop called Deep Blue, headed
out to try to help.
When we arrived at Chileno Bay we found the whale (a 40 foot female
humpback) completely entangled and wrapped up in a monofilament net
that was probably 70 feet long. As we pulled close to her I saw the
net covering her whole body and trailing behind her. I have to admit
at this point I thought to myself there is no way we can do this! I
thought it hopeless. It was just too much for our small group of amateurs.
But we all decided to at least give it a try.
 
The divers entered the water and swam toward the whale,
Oscar from Cabo Expeditions hooked about 100 feet of line and a buoy
to the net and we started to try to pull ourselves down that line close
to her. She was frightened and moving along pretty good at this point
so pulling yourself along was difficult. We would pull ourselves down
the line then grab onto the net then using the mesh of the net pull ourselves
hand over hand onto her body and then just pick a spot and start cutting.
The mono line of the net was very tough and you could only cut a strand
or two at a time. Also, the unbreakable line cut into your hands as you
hung onto it, many of us are sporting deep line cuts on our palms and
our fingers this morning as I write this. Basically, you would hold on
and cut until you simply didn't have the strength in your arms to hold
on any more then you released yourself and floated to the surface. As
you rested for a minute the Zodiac boat from Cabo Expeditions would come
alongside, you would grab on and they would tow you back to the trailing
buoy and you started the process all over again.
Divers were working on different parts of the net, which as I say
covered her completely. Her mouth was completly wrapped and sealed
shut, her long pectoral fins were totally ensnared against her
body and a huge wad of net was trailing down her body and around
her tail. For all that she sure could swim though. We were moving
through the water so quickly at one point I turned my head and
my mask was pulled away from my face just from the slipstream
current she was creating.
Photos By Miguel Ortiz
Myself
and Lieutenant Salas, a really excellent diver, ended up working together
around her head. My theory was that even if we couldn't get all the
net, if we could just get her head free at least she could feed. We
kept cutting the monofilament and peeling it back away from her head
and finally her huge mouth was free of net. We then worked our way
back along her body, pulling the net back, cutting as we went and began
cutting our way through the lines that ensnared her pectoral fins.
It was right at this point that the most amazing thing happened; she
just stopped, whether from exhaustion or because she finally understood
we were trying to help (that's of course what I'd like to believe)
she became very still and just floated, breathing through her blowhole
quietly on the surface while all of us continued to cut, cut, cut.
Photos By
Miguel Ortiz
Oscar Ortiz and Oscar Hernandez cutting the net at the tail
To add a
little spice to this whole adventure, the net itself was filled with
a rotting mass of dead tuna, and several times we saw largish sharks
circling above or behind us as we worked. I've never really been afraid
of sharks at all, I've often dove with many sharks around, but in proximity
with all the rotten fish, I have to admit they made me a bit nervous.
I had a chance to speak with Oscar Ortiz last night. He theorizes that
the sharks, attracted by the whale's struggles, were gathering, waiting
for her to die so they could feed on her.
We were continuing to cut away at the net, I was working in the area
around her eye when she actually began to "sing" to us. As
we worked the mournful humpback whale song filled the water around us,
I could actually feel it it vibrate deep in my body as I continued cutting
the net. I think her singing motivated all of us to work that much harder.
 
Lt. Pino Salas cutting at the net around her pectoral
fin
Photos By Miguel Ortiz
It
was right about now that most of the net was removed from her body
that I decided to swim back to the boat and get my camera to try to
capture a few images of all this. I grabbed the camera and swam back
to the whale. I got several photos of the guys cutting away the remaining
net around her lower body and working on the net that was still wrapped
around her tail. I was swimming alongside of her trying to get a picture
of her head when, I think, feeling freedom, she sort of tossed her
head and bumped me. My camera housing was knocked from my hands and
I was knocked ass over tea kettle and my camera and housing sank in
about 1000 feet of water.
Her and I swimming together, much of the net is cleared
away now
Photo By Miguel Ortiz
Right
after she bumped me, having gotten most of the net off her body, the
remainder just tangled in her tail, the the whale took off, she was
really swimming fast trailing the whole length of net. I found myself
right next to Oscar at this point just hanging on, she was swimming
way too fast for us to even try to work on the remaining net. Finally
Oscar and I released from the line and floated to the surface, all
the other divers were already up, she had left us all in the dust.
We followed for a while, until she seemed to settle down again and
some of the guys went back to work, I have to tell you though I at
this point was completely spent. I didn't even have enough strength
in my arms to hang on to the Zodiac Boat and be towed back to the whale,
(getting old sucks). I floated quietly about 30 feet away as Oscar
Ortiz cut the last of the net free and the whole tangled mess bobbed
to the surface. Spectators who had assembled around us in kayaks and
small boats were cheering, Oscar came to the surface waving his arms
and screaming. She was free!! She was free!!
What a day!!
Lt. Salas and I with the mass of net, on the dock at
the navy base
Photos By Don Hirschaut
Kevin Colter
Amigos Del Mar de Los Cabos
P.S. In closing, I'm gonna get up on a soapbox here for just a second.
This net that nearly killed this wondrous animal was what is called
a "Drift
Gill Net". These nets are terribly destructive, sweeping across
a patch of ocean killing everything in their path. Along with the food
fish they are meant to harvest, what's called by-catch, which to the
fishing industry means undesirable catch, but to we who love the ocean
means the carcasses of Sealions, Manta Rays, Turtles and Dolphins are
way too often found dead and rotting in these nets. Drift Net fishing
has been banned in many parts of the world just because it is so destructive.
Drift Net fishing persists here in Mexico, not interestingly enough,
to feed the people of Mexico, but instead to provide fish for large "chain" seafood
restaurants in the United States. So, my friends, please, next time
you have an urge for a seafood dinner at Red Lobster or a greasy fish
fillet at Long John Silver's take a second and think about what it
costs, not the few dollars you will pay for the dinner, but think of
beautiful animals struggling until they finally die, ensnared in unbreakable
monofilament. Have a burger instead.
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