Ayla’s Voyage Blog

Publish Date: Thursday, August 20, 2009
Its a cloudy day on the St. Lawrence River as Three@Sea makes its way up the Saguenay Fjord in Quebec, Canada. A cool wind whips around the flybridge, and a slight chop bounces our boat. Mom, Dad, and I are up on the flybridge, watching for something…looking…wondering…THERE! Near shore, we see what looks like just a white cap, but as a spout of mist flies up into the air, we know that a living, breathing creature is just under the surface there. A Beluga whale.

Now, closer to the boat, two or three white shapes come to the surface for a breath of air. We can see their entire body resting only just under the surface, and as they dive and frolic, they draw closer to us. They are now too close, and Dad kills the engine as not to scare or hurt these tragically endangered species.

Beluga whales are beautiful, graceful, amazing creatures, but things are going south for them. The water is so polluted here, that a Beluga Whale’s carcass is considered toxic waste. Not just plain waste, but toxic waste. It is tragic and heart wrenching that such a beautiful creature as a Beluga can be toxic.

As the pod of Beluga’s turns from our boat and swim away, Dad restarts the engine and we cruise off. I turn around to see them spout one last time, and hope that we can work to better understand, and protect, the Beluga Whale.