STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A spontaneous boat ride on the Fourth of July turned into an unforgettable encounter for two brothers and one of their sons, when they came face-to-face with a whale swimming through Raritan Bay.
The trio was enjoying the weather on the water and fishing when they noticed something unusual — a large, dark shape surfacing just beyond their boat.
Within moments, it became clear that it was a whale gliding through the bay, with its massive back breaching the water for almost an hour, to an hour and a half, noted Steven Barbarino.
Barbarino’s son, also Steven Barbarino, was navigating the boat when it happened.
“We were sailing around between the Raritan, outside Great Kills between Sandy Hook and the Verrazzano,” Barbarino explained, “just sailing along, when the whale appeared and was playing for about an hour with us.”…