Pico/Exploring
The environs of the Azores are such a battle within themselves. When first approaching the islands, the steep escarpments and the rugged coastlines of black lava, stopped short by the sea, seem to make the island inhospitable. But if one raises their eyes up into the hills, a completely different picture is formed. The lush green countryside is dotted with terraced fields and gardens, rising as high as the volcano will let them, sometimes right to the edge of the caldera, the central feature that each island has to call its own. Villages dot the shoreline; their stark white buildings and orange roofs create a sharp contrast to the emerald hills. It is then you know there is more than meets the eye to the Azores and they are beckoning for the guests of Endeavour to come and discover them.
The Azores have a deep history behind them, having been established in the 15th century. Each island developed at a different speed, depending on the quality of the harbor, commerce and distance to others. Throughout their history, until only the recent past, the Azores have been heavily involved with Whaling. It was only banned in 1987. The Yankee whalers were the original introduction to whaling. However the Azoreans developed shore based whaling, meaning spotters onshore kept a lookout, and then sent signals to alert the whalers of the presence and location of the whales. The whaling boats were open, and usually rowed, using only handheld harpoons to actually do the hunting. Whaling was quite a dangerous undertaking, with many boats being wrecked, and lives lost while the whale was fighting for its own life.
Today whaling has taken on a whole new meaning. Since the ban on hunting whales, the Azoreans have developed a grand whale watching business. It is part of their new focus on eco-tourism. On almost all the islands there is a whale watching operation which takes guests out to look at the whales, mainly sperm whales. There are strict regulations on the watchers, making sure there is no impact on whales, indeed properly done, the whales even become curious.
Today Endeavour became a whale watching ship. After our morning excursion on Pico, we set out to explore the straits between the main island group, hoping to catch a glimpse of the sea mammals that had so far been elusive. Our searching paid off! There was a call from the bridge that a sperm whale had been spotted, and then another sperm whale had been sighted, and then another . . . all in all the ship ran across 15 animals.
Pictured here is one of the sperm whales that the splash cam team was able to photograph. With the Moby Dick-esque features, the sperm whale is one of the easiest to identify. From a distance one can identify it by its low angled blow and at close range you can clearly see its squarish head. The sperm whale was one of the most heavily hunted of all the whale species for the precious spermaceti oil that is located in the whale’s large head. It was greatly valued for its tolerance to heat, and to this day a comparable synthetic substitute has not been found.
Today we were able to enjoy the Azores both above and below the water; our interest, fascination, and excitement nearing their peaks. We all eagerly await tomorrow for what may push us to the limits.
The environs of the Azores are such a battle within themselves. When first approaching the islands, the steep escarpments and the rugged coastlines of black lava, stopped short by the sea, seem to make the island inhospitable. But if one raises their eyes up into the hills, a completely different picture is formed. The lush green countryside is dotted with terraced fields and gardens, rising as high as the volcano will let them, sometimes right to the edge of the caldera, the central feature that each island has to call its own. Villages dot the shoreline; their stark white buildings and orange roofs create a sharp contrast to the emerald hills. It is then you know there is more than meets the eye to the Azores and they are beckoning for the guests of Endeavour to come and discover them.
The Azores have a deep history behind them, having been established in the 15th century. Each island developed at a different speed, depending on the quality of the harbor, commerce and distance to others. Throughout their history, until only the recent past, the Azores have been heavily involved with Whaling. It was only banned in 1987. The Yankee whalers were the original introduction to whaling. However the Azoreans developed shore based whaling, meaning spotters onshore kept a lookout, and then sent signals to alert the whalers of the presence and location of the whales. The whaling boats were open, and usually rowed, using only handheld harpoons to actually do the hunting. Whaling was quite a dangerous undertaking, with many boats being wrecked, and lives lost while the whale was fighting for its own life.
Today whaling has taken on a whole new meaning. Since the ban on hunting whales, the Azoreans have developed a grand whale watching business. It is part of their new focus on eco-tourism. On almost all the islands there is a whale watching operation which takes guests out to look at the whales, mainly sperm whales. There are strict regulations on the watchers, making sure there is no impact on whales, indeed properly done, the whales even become curious.
Today Endeavour became a whale watching ship. After our morning excursion on Pico, we set out to explore the straits between the main island group, hoping to catch a glimpse of the sea mammals that had so far been elusive. Our searching paid off! There was a call from the bridge that a sperm whale had been spotted, and then another sperm whale had been sighted, and then another . . . all in all the ship ran across 15 animals.
Pictured here is one of the sperm whales that the splash cam team was able to photograph. With the Moby Dick-esque features, the sperm whale is one of the easiest to identify. From a distance one can identify it by its low angled blow and at close range you can clearly see its squarish head. The sperm whale was one of the most heavily hunted of all the whale species for the precious spermaceti oil that is located in the whale’s large head. It was greatly valued for its tolerance to heat, and to this day a comparable synthetic substitute has not been found.
Today we were able to enjoy the Azores both above and below the water; our interest, fascination, and excitement nearing their peaks. We all eagerly await tomorrow for what may push us to the limits.
