'Once in a lifetime': New Hampshire man's video shows 3 whales breaching at the same time
New Hampshire's Robert Addie has spent decades on the waters of Massachusetts and Alaska as a commercial fisherman, but nothing came close to the experience he had last weekend when he saw three humpback whales leaping out of the water in near perfect unison. The experience was so rare that even marine scientists are jealous, according to the Associated Press.
A video, captured by Addie, that has now gone viral, shows the three whales breaching at the same time off the coast of Cape Cod.
"Out for our annual giant tuna fishing trip with my adult children and the whales put on an epic show," wrote Addie, alongside the video he shared on Facebook.
"It was such an uplifting thing to see. Just incredible," Addie told AP. “A triple breach is unheard of and a synchronized triple breach is even rarer."
Watch the video of three whales breaching at the same time.
“It’s once in a lifetime. Just very fortunate. I feel God shined down on me to allow me to to capture that," he added.
Addie told AP that he had been trying to film some humpback whales about 300 yards from their boat and was having no luck until he got what he called a “whale ballet.”
While whale experts have told him the aerial maneuvers may have been an attempt to remove parasites or aid digestion, Addie believes that they have been teaching or training the younger whale.
"They were only about 300 to 400 yards away, so we heard it too. We heard the blowholes. We heard the belly flop, as I like to call it," said Addie to WCVB5. "I was stunned and then I just felt the joy. I felt the joy of being with my girls. A lot of emotions came up."
The Portsmouth resident, now a home remodeler, was celebrating his 59th birthday, as well as his safe return from a humanitarian aid trip to Ukraine where he aided troops on the frontlines and came under heavy artillery fire.
“I got to see the worst of the world and the best of the world in a very short period of time,” Addie told WMUR News 9. “A friend of mine said 'Your joy of catching up with your daughters in being home was reflected in the three whales.' Three daughters, three whales. Very special.”
More: Trio of humpback whales breach water like synchronized swimmers
Addie, later also thanked everyone for showering love on him and his video.
"A busy day for this Portsmouth guy fielding a mountain of reporters calls, texts, messages, DM’s, even LinkedIn messages," wrote Addie on Facebook. "What a time my daughters, my son-in-law, and I had. Once in a lifetime as they say."
"Thank you for all the love shown for the video it’s making the news worldwide. Making Portsmouth proud with all the attention I pray," he added.
More: Florida fishermen had close, 'once-in-a-lifetime' encounter with pod of killer whales
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Video shows three humpback whales perform synchronized triple breach
