Whale spotting in Argentina | Robert Murray

“Regina, Rosanna and I flew into Buenos Aires and out again 10 hours later, destination Trelew. The next morning we picked up a car and drove to Puerto Pyramides, centre for whale watching. We went to our hotel, and an hour later we were putting on flotation vests for our trip. The Gulf Nuevo has a narrow inlet and provides a sheltered sea location for the Southern Right Whale to breed and give birth.

I committed to this trip with some doubts as I am a terrible sailor, but the rewards exceeded doubts. The boat was about the size of a whale and could easily cope with the weather today, beautiful blue sky and little wind. We were soon sighting whales and one came right alongside, hence I knew the boat was no bigger than the whale. It swam under the boat and I was glad it did not surface just then! Several leapt out of the water and provided great movie shots. But we were lacking the classic tail out of the water.

We thought this had been the almost perfect trip and then, in quick succession, three whales arched their tails up into the sky and the trip had become perfect! Later that day and the next we explored the coast line and were distracted by a wonderful colony of Magellan penguins, sunning themselves and completely relaxed with us just a few feet away. From the cliff tops we could see several whales and we were continually shouting to one another “there’s one”. Somehow it seemed more respectful to see these amazing creatures from a distance and in context. However to be close was an unforgettable experience.

For two days we did not think of tango!”

Robert also travelled to Iguazu Falls and Patagonia to see the mighty Perito Moreno glacier, check out his fantastic shots…