Text and photos by Mary L. Peachin
Vol. 10 No. 6
Tugging my fin to slow me down, my buddy signaled, his arms spread, “There’s something big following us.” Assuming it was another reef shark, I turned around to see a humpback whale approaching us. In defensive mode, we glued our backs to the 60-foot reef and watched the whale surface, breach, and then return to check us out a second time. His close proximity limited our view to a barnacle-encrusted flipper. When the humpback glided to a halt—within touching distance—we swam toward him. He descended into the abyss without a ripple in the water.