My bag arrived in time for one day’s shoot. We had just five days over the water and four of them were just too windy and the whales were very shy. There was one, though, who would stay on the ocean bottom where we barely could see him and then every 20 minutes he would come up for air. Our trick was to swim like hell to intersect him when he reached the surface without being clobbered. I got three chances, and during one, I guessed right and he came up just in front of me. I could have grabbed his tail and gone for a ride. Now I am off for the Duba Plains in Botswana; hopefully, my bags will make it with me! Stay tuned!
As many of you know by now, my trip to Tonga marks the first time in decades of rugged and remote travel that my bags have not made it with me. Thwarted by airlines, mechanical troubles, and weather, I have one camera, no underwater gear, the clothes on my back and boatloads of frustration. Thank you to Darren Jew who has been stellar in allowing me to use his equipment so the trip wouldn’t be a complete and total washout.
