HOW I FIRST SAW OPO

Te Ao Hou, July 1958, Page 22

HOW I FIRST SAW OPO Although I had heard that there was a dolphin in the Hokianga Harbour I did not make her acquaintance until June of 1955. I was returning from Rangi Point School about 6.30 p.m. and the sea was rather choppy. Suddenly there was a big splash and a boiling swirl. A large fish was streaking for my boat just under the surface. I really thought it was going to hit my boat, when about 10 yards away, it dived and surfaced on the other side. It played round and round the boat. Such was the way I first met Opo. I was afraid she would be hit by my outboard, so I went in-shore as close as I could. When I was in about 4 feet of water I looked back. She was about three feet out of the water, standing literally on her tail and looking at me from a distance of about fifty yards away. She sank out of sight and that was the last I saw of her that afternoon. In August of the same year, two other chaps and I went to Rangi Point to gather pipis. We had not gone far when we were joined by Opo. By this time, whenever we went out fishing we were always on the look-out for her and rarely were we disappointed. Opo really gave a charming display that day. She played round and round our boat and then swam just under the keel. When she did this you could feel the boat being lifted in the swell she made as she swam under the boat. One of the chaps sat right in the bow and kept putting his hand in the sea trying to touch Opo. At last he did. As far as I know he was the first person to touch Opo with his hand. While picking pipis three boats passed going to Opononi but she stayed just out from our boat cruising round. Then she followed us all the way back to Opononi.