© Dennis Loveridge Extra Large: The 22.3m whale that washed up on Waiinu Beach at the weekend. The man in the background is standing on a four-wheeler motorcycle to see over its back.
Residents of Waitotara were in for a big surprise when they went down to the beach on Saturday.
Late Friday or early Saturday morning a 22.3m-long whale washed up on Waiinu beach, about 1.5km south of the Waitotara River mouth.
Although it is not uncommon for whales to wash up on the beach, this was the largest one local residents have seen.
One woman said the whales they saw usually were smaller and a different species to the one found this weekend.
This one is believed to be a pygmy blue whale.
A neighbour had told them where it was, and she had gone down to the beach to have a look on Saturday morning.
The woman said the giant mammal was "pretty awe-inspiring".
"It was just amazing. I've not seen anything like it. I didn't want to leave it," she said.
The whale was so tall that, at 1.57m (5ft 2in) herself, she could not see over it.
Whanganui Department of Conservation biodiversity programme manager Jim Campbell said identification was a best guess, going on its size and the shape of its fins.