A Southern California whale watcher was driven to tears of joy Sunday during an incredibly close encounter with a very curious humpback whale.
Delaney Trowbridge, 20, was on an all-day trip with Pacific Offshore Expeditions when one of two humpback whales south of Malibu decided to “mug” the company’s 30-foot inflatable vessel. (See video below.)
The term refers to a type of friendly behavior sometimes associated with humpback whales, and this whale stayed with the boat for what seemed an eternity, allowing for what Capt. Ryan Lawler described as an “encounter of a lifetime.”
Lawler’s video shows the whale within feet of the boat, rolling over as if craving a belly rub, moving around gently and gracefully as if posing for videos and photos.
“The encounter itself lasted a little more than an hour,” Lawler told For The Win Outdoors. “But it brought a euphoria that lasted all day.”
Trowbridge, who works as a naturalist for Pacific Offshore Expeditions, is featured toward the end of the video enjoying a moment so intimate that Lawler joked that the whale was requesting a kiss.
Trowbridge laughed at the notion. Then she began to cry what Lawler called “happy tears,” which streamed down her cheeks.
On Monday she posted Instagram video putting her raw emotions on public display. (Posted above.) It was just her laughing, and crying, with the whale stationed a few feet behind. Short and sweet, garnering thousands of views in just a few hours.
“I’ve been whale watching so many times. I’ve put in so many hours and so many miles and I’ve never had an encounter quite like this,” Trowbridge told For The Win Outdoors. “I tend to lose my voice when I get excited, but what else can you do when you have a 40-foot animal staring you in the face?”
Lawler said that all of the passengers expressed “powerful emotions” during an encounter that played out while the boat’s motor was turned off.
He said he wasn’t sure if anyone else cried but added, “I did hear another woman at the front exclaiming it was ‘the best day ever’ a half-dozen times.”
