A kayaker has captured the moment he had a close encounter with a 30ft whale off the South West coast. Rupert Kirkwood, 62, from Devon was having a paddle off the coast of Cornwall when he was circled by a Minke whale.
The encounter lasted about 20 minutes as he paddled offshore near Fowey. Eldest son Henry, who now lives in Bristol, helps him with his videos, the latest one amassing 101,000 views on Twitter.
Mr Kirkwood said: "Whales are very difficult to spot because they just roll off the surface without a splash and then they go. The beauty of them – which always makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck – is the noise of the blowhole. If I had been in a boat with an engine and not a kayak, there would have been no way I would have seen (the whale) because it guided me to it with the noise. The whole experience was absolutely thrilling.”
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Mr Kirkwood, from Holsworthy, has a "passion for natural history" and has been kayaking for 17 years, but it is only in the past five years since retiring that he has managed to dedicate most of his time to the sport. Ever since he began kayaking, he has travelled nearly 30,000 miles and in that time he has seen around 25 whales.
He is also a father-of-four and he regularly posts kayaking updates on his blog that is called The Lone Kayaker. The updates include photographs and videos that he takes whilst out on his adventures.
He said: "An interest in natural history is in my blood and I’ve always had an absolute passion for it. When I’m kayaking I often come across dolphins, who are quite social, and all sorts of other amazing creatures like basking sharks, giant tuna, sunfish, and even one leatherback turtle.
“I’m always thrilled to see seals and in the early mornings, otters – which are up there with my favourite creatures.” Although Rupert often comes into close contact with the wild animals he has never felt threatened by any of them.
He said: "Even when it’s a 30ft whale that could tip me out of my kayak with a single movement, it knows I’m there and it’s in total control. Many of the creatures actually come towards a kayak because it breaks up the boring monotony of the sea.
“I don’t feel threatened by them at all, they always come over to have a look at me and it’s the same for the whales. Even when I was watching a basking shark, which can be around 25ft long and a bit more sinister, it had no interest in any bad intent.”
Rupert has also said that anyone who may want to take up kayaking should be prepared for the animals. He said: "I do take a barrage of safety equipment with me and I always wear a life jacket.
“I called in with Fowey Coast Watch when I paddled out yesterday because there’s people who sit on top of a cliff looking out with binoculars, so I radioed in to tell them my plans. I always take a phone with me of course, a GPS personal locator beacon and flares – just in case of problems.”
Now Mr Kirkwood's children now have a keen interest in wildlife and they now help their dad to share his videos on social media. The video showing his close encounter with the whale has been posted on Twitter and it has been viewed over 101,000 times.
He said: "The children are very excited about that. My eldest son Henry, who now lives in Bristol, is studying to be a surveyor but he is a very talented wildlife photographer.
“He helps me put together videos to post online. The more people I share the videos with the better as far as I’m concerned. I just feel guilty that I get to have all the fun.”
If you would like to find out more about The Lone Kayaker you can visit: https://thelonekayaker.wordpress.com/
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