Sperm Whale Trip Report 2025 - Trip 1

Dominica Island, Caribbean
January 16 - 22, 2026

January 17, 2026. Day One.

We Have Whales!

We found a family of whales quickly and were in the water almost right away. 

The guests smiles said everything… moments like this remind me why I do this.

Everyone was buzzing. Whales will definitely do that to you.

We had another encounter shortly after, this time with a baby. 

Richard (one of our guests), got an incredible pass as the calf swam directly underneath him.

So close that there was no blue between them. That’s the dream.

After several really good encounters, things quieted down. 

We dropped the hydrophone, listened, and then headed north in the direction the sounds were coming from.

And we waited… And waited.

Eventually, we spotted blows in the distance.

We found more whales, a decent-sized family swimming together. 

Our first group of swimmers jumped in and were treated to an unexpected bonus: pilot whales swimming behind the sperm whales. 

I’m not sure what the pilots were doing. If they were hunting, they quickly moved off once we entered the water.

Everyone was on fire seeing them. 

Pilot whales can be bad news for sperm whales though, when a large pod moves in, the sperm whales often leave the area. I’m hoping that won’t be the case this time. 

Our week is just getting started.

We jumped back in for another encounter. The whales began swimming off very slowly, and although we normally don’t follow whales when they move away, they were moving at such a slow pace that we followed slowly behind them… and I’m glad we did.

Most of the whales eventually dropped down or moved off, except for four that turned back toward us and began rolling and playing.

They stopped swimming and just rolled and played together. It was awesome. 

We hit the holy grail of sperm whale encounters on day one.

Magic happened. We were given some truly special moments to capture photos and video. This is the stuff dreams are made of, and our friends had an absolutely epic time.

Can’t wait for tomorrow.

January 18, 2026. Day Two.

When we left the island this morning, we could barely see it. 

The rain was coming down hard, just sheets of gray swallowing the shoreline.

It’s been raining steadily for the past couple of days.

Thankfully, most of that rain stays over the island. 

Out on the ocean, the clouds tend to break apart, puffy whites, patches of blue sky, and rainbows. 

We’ve seen a lot of rainbows the past two days.

We motored out a few miles and stopped to drop the hydrophone. To the south, we heard hunting clicks. To the north, we picked up the steady clicks of a male. 

The boys are in town. We were hopeful this would turn into a good day.

Another gift, no cruise ships today. 

The ocean felt peaceful. 

When the cruise ships are in port, dozens of whale-watching boats head out at once. One or two boats is not a problem, but when a lot of small, fast boats start zipping around trying to show people whales, things can get chaotic.

We headed south toward the clicks and found a few whales, but they were pushing farther into the Atlantic. 

The problem today was the ocean itself, the Atlantic side was rough, with heavy swell, wind and whitecaps everywhere.

We attempted one jump. 

The first group caught a glimpse of a whale before it dove. 

Our group didn’t see the whale, but instead, we were surprised by something completely unexpected.

A massive blue marlin!

As we swam in the direction where the whale had been, I looked down and saw a marlin coming up from the depths. It rose fast, gave us a quick look, and kept moving. I dropped down and fired a few frames, hoping for nothing more than a proof-of-life image.

Thankfully, I got it.

My first blue marlin.

We tried to find another whale to swim with, but after getting tossed around by the Atlantic, we made the call to head back north to calmer water.

The sperm whales we encountered today were acting a bit squirrelly. 

After seeing pilot whales yesterday, I think I understand why. 

When pilot whales are around, sperm whales often leave the area and move farther offshore into deeper water, where they can better avoid them.

Things stayed quiet for a while. 

Eventually, we found a large pod of Fraser’s and pan tropical spotted dolphins hunting together.

We spent some time watching them from the boat, no water time, as Fraser’s dolphins are very shy.

Still, the sun was out. It was warm. Beautiful, even in its stillness. 

We finished the day with a relaxed snorkel at Roberts Reef, a small, quiet reef close to shore.

With not much happening offshore, it felt like a good way to let everyone get wet and unwind.

After that, we admitted defeat and called it a day.

No whales today.

I do think the pilot whales we saw yesterday had an impact on sperm whale activity today. We heard reports that the pilot whales were seen in the north, but they were too far away for us to try and find them.

Tomorrow is another day.

January 19, 2026. Day Three

We left port this morning with another rainbow stretched across the sky. 

There’s been a lot of that here lately, little signs of magic, even before the day begins.

We headed south, back toward the area where we’d seen whales yesterday. 

After dropping the hydrophone, we picked up clicks and followed the sound until we found a lone sperm whale. According to our captain, Bill, the pattern suggested a young male. 

He was well out in the Atlantic, beyond the protection of the island, where the wind was strong and the seas were rough.

We managed one jump. We saw the whale approaching, but it dropped quickly and disappeared, not to be seen again. 

Typical male sperm whale behavior.

There was no realistic chance of swimming with him, and with the conditions deteriorating, we made the call to head north.

So far nothing. 

We heard reports of melon-headed whales farther north, but they were too far away for us to try to reach.

 Later, we learned they were actually pygmy sperm whales. A friend of mine, Aimee, was on another boat and managed to get some beautiful images of them.

We will definitely put some time into trying to find them tomorrow. 

It was a tough day. 

A beautiful day at sea, but quiet for us. 

That’s nature. Some days she gives you magic. Other days… nothing at all.

We did finish on a hopeful note. 

On our final hydrophone drop of the day, we heard sperm whale clicks again, about five miles farther out, we were already nine miles offshore.  Too far for us to try and search with the time that we had left.

Tomorrow, we’ll head back in that direction and see if those whales are still around, and hopefully closer.

January 20, 2026. Day Four.

Another rainy, rainbow-filled morning. During the rainy season, which is pretty much every day here in Dominica, rainbows are everywhere. 

If you’re a rainbow hunter, this is the place to be.

As we motored out, reports started coming in… the whales were back.

I am super happy.

By 9 a.m., we had whales. It felt like the pilot whales had finally pushed off, and the sperm whales had returned.

We wasted no time and were in the water with a juvenile male, a rare opportunity, as males are not common to swim with. 

He was moving slowly and calmly, opening his mouth as he passed. 

Their teeth are so different from the females. I love when they open their mouth. 

We swam alongside him until he dipped and turned away. I thought he was going to disappear, but instead, he stayed at the surface, completely still. 

He stopped long enough for us to catch up, giving us time to really look at him, or maybe for him to look at us, before finally swimming off.

It was a great first encounter, and a very welcome one after two quiet days. 

By 11 a.m., we left the pod we’d been following. 

We’d already had several solid jumps, but the whales were moving farther offshore into the Atlantic. We chose not to keep following them, we didn’t want to give them a reason to continue pushing away from the island.

We headed north to explore, hoping maybe we’d find the pygmy killer whales my friend had seen the day before. 

That would be a dream to photograph.

Instead, we found another pod of sperm whales about nine miles offshore. These whales were extremely relaxed, and in a sleepy state.

Man I hope they stop, go vertical and start sleeping.

 We followed at a respectful distance and managed a few nice jumps before the wind continued to build and the swells made getting back on the boat difficult. For safety, we made the call to wrap things up.

After two days of so-so encounters, it felt really good to spend quality time with the whales again. I was super happy for everyone.

Friends operating on the north side of the island also reported a strong day with lots of whales. The sperm whales are definitely returning.

On our way back to port, Kevin got a call from a friend, pilot whales were nearby. I guess they didn’t leave the island. 

We altered course and found a family of about thirteen whales moving slowly along the surface. They looked like they were finished hunting and were now resting.

Our first jump was with a large male who watched us closely, swimming incredibly slowly. He seemed to decide we weren’t a threat and simply swam off.

On the second and third jumps, the rest of the family came in, mothers and calves moving closer to take a look. It felt like the big male had given his approval and allowed us into their space.

We managed four jumps with them before calling it a day, an epic way to finish.

What a day.

Excited to see what tomorrow brings.

January 21, 2026. Day Five
Final Day for Week One

Today marked the final day for our first group of friends joining us this season.

We left the island this morning under clearing skies. Last night, the rain came down hard, like really hard, but this morning the ocean greeted us with blue skies and calm light. 

Hopefully, it will hold.

We headed south, but reports suggested the whales were far offshore, more than ten and a half miles out. 

Our captain isn’t a fan of pushing beyond the ten-mile line. 

Once you cross it, communication drops, and safety becomes a different game altogether. It’s not worth gambling with lives.

We shifted plans and headed north, where whales had been reported. 

They were there, but so was heavy boat traffic. Too many whale-watching boats and dive boats in one place puts pressure on the animals and takes something away from the experience. 

The magic fades when things feel crowded.

We chose not to stay long. We managed one final jump with the whales, everyone saw it, and then we made the call to move on.

As we headed south again, we heard that one of the whale-watching boats had encountered pilot whales earlier in the morning but hadn’t shared the information. 

Part of me was disappointed, and another part of me was quietly relieved. Sometimes fewer boats are better for everyone, whales included.

We kept searching. If we found them, great. If not, that’s nature, the rules of the game.

Looking back, this was a really good week of diving for our guests. 

We experienced a little of everything: unforgettable moments, quiet days, magic, and frustration when things didn’t go our way. 

Those harder moments make the good ones land even deeper.

What a great trip, and a strong way to kick off the 2026 season.

To my friends who joined me this week, thank you. 

Truly. 

Thank you for your trust, your patience, and for sharing these moments out here with us.