Biggest Swell of the Year

We have had a stop start few days. Strong winds at times have kept us at the marina and yesterday we could not find the very quiet Southern Right whales that were seen just off Marine Drive the day before.
With strong winds limiting our desire to leave King George Sound too.
A couple of days ago we found whales in the shelter of the northern side of Breaksea Island. After a fair bit of effort to find them, it was good to see them slapping their tails on the sea surface, until just before the other whale watching vessel got there. Just after I had explained to our passengers the rules regarding distances we must keep from the whales the other operator cruised down our port side until they spotted the whales and then turned towards the island, luffed up and dropped their sail just in front of the whales. The whales dove and went very quiet so we follow until they get past the seal colony and then head for home.
I have contacted Dept Parks and Wildlife and will meet with Peter Hartley some time next week

For the second day we have witnessed one of the biggest swells of the year. Today we saw The Belches (an offshore reef with 12 metres of water covering it) breaking. No doubt The Gap, Blow-holes and Natural Bridge on the south coast would have been very spectacular, with the southerly swell.
We head out and intend to cruise through Frenchman Bay, past Limestone Head hoping to find a whale in Frenchman Bay which is very protected. Not to be though and just like yesterday we head across King George Sound with the swell helping us on our way.
As we get about half way across Bernie calls to say he has seen blows back towards the ship that is about half way back to Marine Drive.
We spot the blows and head in that direction. We get to the general area, we think the whales are heading towards town so idle in that direction. No sight for over 10 minutes. Whales have a huge lung capacity and it can be longer than 20 minutes between breaths, but like you and I if they are travelling fast that time is a lot shorter. These whales cant have gone far.
The whales surface in about the same place we first saw them and just lay on the surface for some time, much to the joy of some of our passengers.
Now the whales slowly head North West towards Middleton Beach. They are just cruising slow, staying on the surface for several breaths and then travelling just under the surface as they are leaving their foot print on the sea surface, making them easy to follow. 
We have been with these whales for some time and are now joined by the other whale watching vessel. 



But now the whales turn and head South East. They are now heading in the Bald Head direction. We follow for some time, we have been with the whales for close to 1 hour and its now time to head home.

Which Way Are You Going Now?

After a 60th birthday celebration Eve arrived early to take down all the decorations before today's passengers board the boat. The weather is calm but as we make our way across the sound it seems that the SSE winds have arrived early and we get a very light drizzle. We head to Limestone Head and with no sightings turn to Breaksea Island. We round the north eastern end of the island and then head back towards Bald Head. Misty rain is making it hard, but out of the corner of my eye I spot a couple of blows. We turn and head further south catching up with 2 Humpbacks as the head towards Bald Head. We follow and now whales seem to be appearing every where, several large splashes even further south tell us that whales are now breaching. Some times when you spot a whale breach you can be tempted to head straight to it, but some times a whale will only breach once and then stop. We choose a whale that is standing on its head and waving it tail to attract our attention. As we get to with in 250 metres the whales dive and are next seen heading east. Come on guys that's the wrong way!!!! We follow and now they are heading west. Out next sighting is as they lift their tails and take a dive so we head back towards the marina.

Whale reported to CALM

With clouds being pushed around with a North Easterly breeze we head towards Limestone Head. I had seen several blows out deep on the Humpback Highway (a line between Bald Head and Breaksea Island) Slowing the motors down a little I spot a blow about 1 km east of us, at the same time as some of our passengers. We continue slowly and then we spot a soft blow astern. As we get closer to this very quiet whale we see that it is very small and it dose not look very healthy. The whale had red marks on its back and on its tail. At one point I thought I saw some thing trailing from the whales tail but we could not get close enough to get a better look. Discussion with passengers and it seems that I was not the only one to think there is some thing trailing from this whale. As I scan the rest of King George Sound I spot several blows towards Michaelmas Island. As we leave the sick whale I contact the local authorities CALM and although I cant speak to a officer I leave a message detailing the area the whale is in and the condition that this whale is in. We get to the island to find 3 young humpbacks and shortly after we knock the motors out of gear the pod changes direction and swims over to us. At times just metres off the stern the whales seem to be diving and then surfacing 20 metres from where they lifted their tail to start their dive. We stay with them for some time and as they head towards Limestone Head we head back towards the marina.

A Little Hit & Miss.

With great anticipation we leave the marina this morning.  Cruising out of Princess Royal Harbour I take my position up on the fly-bridge a great place to keep a good look out for any evidence of a whale. We had just 6 people join us on our first whale -watching cruise for this season. We head towards Mistaken Island and cruise through the passage. Then head through Frenchman Bay and towards Limestone Head. No sightings so we continue towards Breaksea Island. Cruising slowly along the northern side of the island we enjoy a spot of morning tea :) Spending some time watching the lazy New Zealand Fur Seals and then over towards Nanarup Beach. Still no sightings so we head through the centre of King George Sound towards the marina. We did not see any whales today but we did cover a lot of ground in search of them. On our way home I said to the passengers that they were welcome to join us again at any time this season. With genuine surprise they were very happy that we would make such an offer. But as I said we want to show our clients a whale and our job is not done until we have.

Some Days are Dimonds.

But not today :(
With Showers coming over the harbour we head out towards Limestone Head. Bernie says he has seen a whale there but it is very quiet. We spend time looking but if it dose not want to be seen then who are we to argue. We head out to Breaksea Island and as we are heading to the seal colony I spot several blows east of Michaelmas Island. But rather than head straight there we go and check on the seals. Thinking that the whales will be heading west so coming towards us. Problem is when we head towards where we saw the last blows we do not see any blows. We spend time cruising back and forth scanning all around. I know I was not mistaken and passengers who also saw the blows don't believe how a whale can disappear. We cruise over Herald Reef thinking that they might have slipped past us and headed into King George Sound inshore. As we decide that we will not see a whale today and start to head home Bernie calls on the two way and tells me that he has seen several blows heading to the east of Breaksea Island. Well we are not that far away so I turn the boat and head out. As we are getting close we see a whale smash its tail on the sea surface. Sea conditions are not that good where the whales are, we get a bit of a look but when the rain starts to set in and the whales head out to rougher seas its time to head home. The rain stays with us until we are just about to enter the marina.
My guests all tell me that some times you just have to accept that when dealing with nature you have to accept that every day is not going to be amazing, but I  want my guests to go away with great memories of their cruise so I offer a return cruise tomorrow and everyone accepts. With better weather forecast lets hope that the whales will play the game too.

Looking for Love

The weather has calmed down. (Not Before Time) Although the is a bit of South Westerly swell rolling into King George Sound. We cruise past one of the bulk carriers anchored close to Mistaken Island. Bernie has told me that he saw several whales heading towards Bald Head. I know we wont see those whales as they will be going past the Salmon Holes by the time we get to Bald Head, and truthfully the swell out side the sound would make things very uncomfortable. We cruise past the eastern end of Mistaken Island then in to Frenchman Bay, past the wreck of HMAS Perth, Seal Rock and over to Limestone Head. As we get close to Limestone Head the call comes from Bernie that he thought he saw a blow close to the mainland, As I am chatting to Bernie, Eve my deckie comes to the bow and says she thinks she saw a blow in the direction of the islands, but not too far away. With reduced revs we turn and head in that direction. When looking for whales you have to scan all around as often a whale will pop up behind you, or off to either side. I spot a soft blow about 600 metres away. We find 1 humpback whale and follow him for some time as it just slowly cruises north, over towards the 3 ships at anchor. I am sure that he is "Looking for Love". I say him but I have no idea if the whale was a bull or cow. Being mating season you would think if it was a cow then a bull would not be far away. I am often asked to identify between bull and cow. I assume that if you have 2 whales the one in front is probably the female and the one following with its tongue hanging out is most likely the male. Why should things be different with whales. We leave this whale after some time and head towards Whale-world and cruise back toward home along the coast.