Yesterday morning, I was having a long lie trying to recover from a rotten cold. My plans of wallowing under a blanket of self-pity were interupted by a call from my big brother, John. "Killer whales at West Voe!!" He quickly described what had happened (including a dog walker who'd been concerned the whales would get stranded, such was their behaviour in the shallows at West Voe) and that they were moving northward at speed, east of Sumburgh Head RSPB reserve.
I literally threw on clothes - mismatched socks, scruffy jumper - put the news out, grabbed a banana and dashed out the door. I came across Jenny, our Shetland Administrator, on her morning run and she hopped in the passenger seat and off we went. From speaking to a couple of folk at Grutness, we realised we were too late so decided to get ahead of the whales (thought to be a pod of four or five), and wait at my parents house. Looking upon the generous sea view, we commented upon how considerate it was of the whales to turn up on the first calm and dry day for ages. After a few minutes of gazing in anticipation at a calm quiet sea, we were rewarded by the sight of a large black fin coming past the headland. Yes!!!
The whales were a bit of a distance out, but clearly visible to the naked eye. All was calm for a while, then there was a flurry of activity. We were treated to views of the whales chasing a shag, the little on in particular liked to leap clear of the water, and I saw one flipping something with its tail, perhaps the remains of a seal caught at Boddam. Here's my amazing shot of a seal escaping the jaws of the massive predators through the foaming waves!
Well, OK - it's a wind-up toy in the bath... but hey - you get the idea! If you wish to see better images of the whales, I imagine a quick search on the internet will come up with something.
I tried to keep folk up to date with the location of the whales via my Twitter and Facebook account, and others were doing the same. Over 100 people managed to watch the whales on their journey northward, past Levenwick, Sandwick and north beyond Cunningsburgh. The next picture shows the coastline that the whales (and appreciative audience!) followed, with Sumburgh Head in the distance. There's a dot in the sea which is an orca.
Part of the crowd, with Mousa RSPB reserve in the distance. The whales didn't linger here long, nor come close in shore - rather fortunate for the seals present at Sandsayre!
Whilst it is always a wonderful experience to see the whales in person, it is made far better when others get to share. I was really pleased it was not a school day and so many bairns got to see these charismatic creatures. My favourite moment was at Sandwick, hearing the whales' blow immediately followed by the elated skirls of the youngsters gathered by the shore. Believe it or not - the smudge of black in the sea to the left of the following photo is the largest of the whales and there were children perched down on the rocks. It was just after this we saw one of the smaller whales pursuing a long-tailed duck. The fulmars that had been resting on the water got quite a surprise too.
When it started to rain, I returned to my blankets, hot lemon, Olbas oil and matching socks, warmed by the new memories.
Sumburgh Head and Mousa are best known for their summer spectacle - and I do hope you visit this year - but this proved that winter wildife can be dramatic, exciting and heart-warming.
Thank you for reading and best wishes from a typically windy day at Sumburgh Head.