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We woke early and decided, as Kingscliff is only one hour away, to ask at the caravan park office if we could delay our departure so we could try whale watching at the Cape Byron Lighthouse again. Luckily, they agreed and we jumped straight in the car and drove there. The roads were less crowded than last night and we managed to get up to the top ($7) car park and were guided to park right next to Ros and Arthur, who had also just arrived!
The day was beautiful and sunny with a brisk wind that was a little cool – coats needed when out of the sun. We walked over to the fence and looked out over the clearest, bluest sea you could hope for. The first thing we spotted was a pod of dolphins swimming along below us, close to the shore. Soon after we saw some water splashes in the distance. They were quite large so we think it was from whales jumping out of the water (breaching) and crashing back into it, although we couldn’t see the whales themselves.
During the time we watched, we saw quite a few blows, where they
Dolphins at Cape Byron
We only saw glimpses of the whales but the dolphins came in really close to shore. expel water in a spout before taking a breath and part of the backs of several as they came to the surface to do so. The best view we had was one that did a spy hop, put half its body out of water to have a look around. It was quite near the shore but still far enough away that we couldn’t get photos. It was over in a second, too, but we were thrilled to see it.
Another whale came in quite close and showed a little of its back, then sank just below the surface. We could see the dark shape below and it seemed to be heading in closer to the Lighthouse. We stood and watched for ages waiting for it to come back to the surface or do something interesting to see but it just floated there for a while resting and periodically breathing gently, without the blows. It finally started moving slowly again but away from our position, and then seemed to disappear so we think it went deeper.
Despite only catching glimpses, it was a joy to have seen them and to watch the various birds swooping past the
cliffs. The scenery was spectacular from up there, looking across the whole bay, gleaming in the sunlight and showing off the golden sandy beach all around it.
We then noticed people going in and out of a building near the lighthouse and went to see what was there. It had been the lighthouse keeper’s house and was now a display centre and souvenir shop. Inside were some colourful information boards about the whales and other sea and land animals and birds in the area. Barry was particularly interested to find out that Cape Byron Lighthouse sits on the most Easterly point of Australia.
In one room, we discovered some familiar photo prints – it was more of John Derrey’s work (that we’d seen in the gallery yesterday). One standout photo was of a dolphin leaping out of the water with the lighthouse behind it and large splashes of waves nearby. He must have gone through a lot of film to get that shot! It was stunning.
We caught up with Ros and Arthur, who were just leaving, and said our goodbyes. We got a passerby to take a photo of us all
together, which was very nice. We then decided to get a coffee at the cafe up there, before going back to hitch up the van. The coffee was strong and tasty but it was quite chilly in the wind. Barry didn’t have his jacket on so he was soon ready to leave. We drove back to the van, with a small detour to the camera shop for some more photography supplies.
Having secured everything and hitched up, we set off for Kingscliff. The drive was uneventful, despite some very pot-holey roads, and only took about an hour. Along the way we noticed how lush and green everything was and also saw some sugar cane crops growing in large fields. What a contrast to Lightning Ridge and the mountains. We arrived in time for a late lunch (toasted cheese and tomato) before going to find our friend Margaret’s flat.
Margaret, now 87 years old, had lived next to Barry and his family when he was growing up and she had attended our wedding. She and her husband (unfortunately, she’s now widowed) had then gone off to live in warmer climes in Kingscliff. Her flat was
Photo by John Derrey
This is not a doctored photo. He waits for years and takes hundreds of shots to get them just right. on the ground floor and had a lovely view of the ocean. We all gossiped and indulged in sweet memories, along with some coffee and a piece of the carrot cake we’d picked up on the way. We then took Margaret to see the van in the caravan park. She was very impressed and wished us well in our travels.
After dropping her back at her flat, I made dinner – the last of the flavoured sausages (caramelised onion and garlic beef) which were delicious. Overall it had been another wonderful day, catching up with friends and seeing the whales and views at the lighthouse.
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