Keen Angler and Skipper Martin Godin and his crew mate, Toby Snow, set off from Sovereign Harbour, Eastbourne aboard Martin’s Boat “Octopussy” early on the 21st April aiming to catch some Cod or Pollack on a wreck some 16 miles South of Hastings. The sea was a lovely clear blue with not much tide running. Both anglers were quietly confident of a decent catch.
They started to Drift fish (with the engine running) at about 09.30 hours when Martin shouted ‘Look’ and pointed at 2, then 4 Dolphins swimming around the boat.
White-beaked dolphin sighted off Hastings – Copyright: Toby Snow
White-beaked dolphin – Copyright: Toby Snow
They thought at first they were Porpoises, spotting 3 adults and possibly a juvenile. Never in their lives had they seen such majestic creatures at such close quarters. They both were amazed at the playful way they darted around and under the boat, at one time Toby leaned over the side and could almost touch them! ‘They seemed to want to communicate’ said Martin who took photo’s and a brief video. This continued for 20 minutes when it was sadly time for Martin and Toby to go as being ‘on the drift’ on the edge of notorious shipping lanes is precarious to say the least. They moved inshore and caught a few plump Plaice before setting home. High 5’s and a few ‘Yee Haa’s’ were clearly audible from these seasoned anglers who both agreed that nature had rewarded them with a rare sighting
It was only when Toby reported the matter to the Sea Watch Foundation that the Dolphins were identified as White-Beaked Dolphins. Both men can’t wait for another ‘close encounter of the Dolphin kind!”
