Although my last post was about the Kyo Maru, it's worth mentioning that it is not alone in behaving like that. We've put our boats off the stern of the factory ship many times on past expeditions to slow the whaling process down, and in my experience all the hunter ships will muscle our little boats right out of the way. So today we tried something new, and Kyo went well over the line in response.

I should start by saying this is something we've wanted to do for years (at least I have), but we needed a ship as maneuverable as the Esperanza to do it safely. I'll also need to explain a bit about how the whaling process works: Three ships go out hunting. When they harpoon a whale they tie it alongside, and bring it to the factory ship. A cable from the factory ship is used to pull the whale up its stern ramp. The whole transfer process happens at about 5 knots (6 mph/9 kph). More importantly, if the whale is tied along the port (left) side of the hunter, then the ship has to be positioned behind and a bit to starboard (right) of the factory ship before they can transfer the whale.

Today, Frank parked the Esperanza right about where the hunter ship wanted to be - approximately 100 metres (roughly 100 yards) behind the factory ship. Close enough to wreck havoc with their transfer process, but far enough back to stay safe.

After pushing through our boats the Kyo came alongside the Esperanza from the stern, and very deliberately steered right into her. People on board the Esperanza tell me our whole ship shook at the bump, although I don't think it was intended to cause damage. While the crew of the Kyo turned their fire hoses on our ship, their helmsman backed off and came in again - most likely trying to push the Esperanza out of the way. But the Esperanza is quite a lot bigger and more solid than our rubber and plastic boats. The whaling ship couldn't move her. As he had during the entire incident, Frank steered a steady course.

The only comical aspect I have heard about this whole dangerous episode, was John's report of a lone Kyo deckhand, futilely running around with a fender, trying to cushion the impact.

There we were Mathijs and I in a small Nouvarina inflatable pursuing the Nisshin Maru closely up ahead, with the Esperanza nearby on our right side. The chop and swell coming from the other boats in the water and the Nisshin Maru changing course at speed was causing quite a choppy stir in the water.

Suddenly a whaling hunter vessel with its whale catch attached to its port (left) side was moving in to position to transfer its catch to the Nisshin Maru and moving fast towards us on our little Nouvarinas port side. So we quickly put on the throttle and aimed to cross her bow before she moved into position for a whale transfer process. This was so that we would not catch the swell coming off her fast, hard turns in the water and to get ahead of her so that we would be amongst the transfer process rather than be left behind in the choppy wake.

With the fire hoses spraying us, whale blood spray coming out of the outlet holes on the Nisshin Marus hull and little iceberg bits in our path, the situation was a bit hairy. Next thing I know I feel our inflatable rolling over on to its right side steeply like it was floating in midair (which I think we may have been) and I knew the boat had crossed its point of no return and was going to flip. So instinctively I dived out of the boat to clear its hull as it was flipping over.

It happened so quickly that I did not even have a chance to look around to Mathijs who was driving, to say something along the lines of "Mama Mia". My last memory before over-turning was a hunter vessel heading towards us and so I thought to myself 'surface, see where it is and doggie paddle outta here!' As soon as I hit the water I covered my head and realised my survival suit hood was not on and letting icy water in. As I surfaced I was looking for Mathijs and trying to grab a line from the upturned inflatable in the water.

- Mikey 

And suddenly there it was. After a month and a day at sea, there on the horizon sat the factory ship of the Japanese whaling fleet, the infamous 'Nisshin Maru' and she was getting closer by the second.

Yesterday our two ships split up to increase our search area and the Esperanza spotted the whaling fleet this morning at 07:30. So we headed at full speed towards her and towards the whalers.

Our ship was a hive of activity and anticipation and she shuddered with the extra exertion of 'full speed ahead'. When we arrived our captain immediately called the Nisshin Maru over the radio and asked them to leave the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary and return to Japan or we would start 'non-violent direct action' to stop them killing whales. There was no response. So without delay our four inflatable boats and their crews were lowered into the water ready to meet up with the four others simultaneously launching from our sister ship.

The plan was simply to form a circle round the Nisshin Maru with our flags and banners - written in 10 different languages including Japanese - flying high to let them know in no uncertain terms that we have arrived and we mean business.

And for about three seconds everything went according to plan. What spoiled the plan was the arrival of one of the three hunter ships to transfer a dead whale to the Nisshin Maru for 'processing'. So we did what any self-respecting "Ocean Defenders" would do. We tried to stop them.

The 12 to 4 watch, normally just Naomi and Hana. But tonight several others were on the bridge to admire penguins standing on a nearby chunk of ice. We were near the ice edge, in a field of large icebergs with lots of smaller bits littering the water. Everyone was on a sharp lookout for dangers to navigation as well as wildlife. Naomi pointed to a distant whale blow, which Nathan checked out through binoculars. Seconds later he was saying, "Am I hallucinating, or is that a ship?"

It was indeed a ship. Very far off. Just on the visual horizon. Drifting. As yet, unidentified. The time was shortly before 2:00 a.m.

The whaling fleet consists of three hunter ships, a factory ship, and two spotter (observation) ships that range far from the others. The spotter vessels are used to chart the ice edge, look for whales, make observations, and (in the past) track Greenpeace ships so the rest of the fleet can avoid us and keep working.

This one is a spotter vessel. The last thing we wanted to find, or rather, the last thing that we wanted to find us. By the time we are close enough for a positive ID, they have surely seen us. Frank (captain), now on the bridge, immediately called for the helicopter crew (already awake and standing by) to get aloft to look for the rest of the fleet. Engineers were also woken, to prepare for maximum speed. Spare hands scanned the horizon.

Game on, advantage whalers.

(Post written 3:40 a.m. ship time)