More Wonderful Whales and Warm Wine

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We woke early, 6.30am, to make sure we had enough time to have breakfast and pack everything up as we’d told the Council lady we would. We don’t want to risk getting a fine!

The drive to Hervey Bay was quite quick, despite being during peak period and we got to the Marina half an hour early. We were asked to wait while they set the boat up and Andrew, one of the staff, gave some kids the left over bread from yesterday to feed the fish at the back of the boat. They had a lovely time and lots of small fish appeared from nowhere and quickly snapped up all the pieces. This kept us all entertained until we were given permission to board. The vessel was a catamaran named “Whalesong” which could hold about 45 people, although we had a lot less today. Aboard there was the Captain, Jason, and three others taking care of us all and spotting for whales when not catering.

Barry and I headed for the front of the boat to get the best view. It was a bit windy and chilly once we got underway, until the sun came out later, but worth it. Before long we saw some Inshore Bottlenose Dolphins zooming past going somewhere. We took a quick look but kept on heading out to the end of Fraser Island, where Jason had been informed by a fisherman pal that there were whales this morning. Not long after, we found two juvenile Humpback Whales. The law says you cannot approach closer than 100 metres so we were hoping they would come to us, but they didn’t. They gave us a few tail flicks and a pectoral wave (like lifting one arm up), which was nice to see. Then they started going under for minutes at a time so Jason decided to keep heading on to the Island.

He was very good at spotting things that hardly showed in the water, and soon called out that he thought he’d seen a Dugong. Unfortunately, we didn’t see it – I would have liked to. He also spotted a Green Turtle, mostly submerged, which we did see. It put its head up for a look and a breath and kept forging on. Unfortunately, we later saw another two turtles but they were both floating on the surface and not moving so we think they were dead.

On the way, we were treated to a coffee and snack, some cake, a melon slice and a piece of warm, fresh capsicum foccacia, which was all very tasty. We ate it sitting on the front deck so we didn’t miss anything.

Near the end of Fraser Island we saw four more juvenile Humpbacks. Again they didn’t approach so we watched them from the obligatory 100 metres, but they were much more active than the other two. They were not as big as we’d hoped to see because they were only 2 or 3 years old. It is evidently too early in the season to see adults in the bay as they are still heading north. We were told they will come back in August to rest in the bay before heading south to Antarctica. It seems the Information Centre Clerk may have exaggerated somewhat.

It was really great watching them, despite the distance, and we were waved at quite a few times. We also saw one roll half over so you could see his underside quite clearly. They all flicked their tails and one slapped it down into the water several times. We didn’t see any breaching (jumping out of the water) but they kept us entertained for about ten minutes before they stopped to rest. It was wonderful to see.

Jason put on more speed and took us further into the centre of the bay to find some more dolphins and sure enough a large Offshore Bottlenose popped up to ride the bow wave. He was beautiful and moved really fast just below the surface but clearly visible below us. He regularly did a kind of half jump out of the water to snatch a very quick breath before going back under the surface. He also kept rolling to the side slightly so he could have a look at us. We watched for a while, moving over so everyone else got the view.

By now it was lunch time and most people went down to the lounge, where the food was being served. We stayed for a last look at the dolphin and then went down. The meal was delicious, with lots of fresh local produce, and consisted of cold chicken pieces, sliced ham, a piece of quiche, some mixed greens and olive salad and some potato salad, served with fresh sliced bread and butter. Most people were eating in the lounge but all the seats were taken and it was noisy (from the engines) and stuffy in there so we went back up top.

One problem we hadn’t anticipated was that the wind was rather strong and the moment we turned the corner some of the lettuce flew off our plates. I stuck a finger over the top and as soon as I sat down I stuck it between two pieces of bread. You could see salad pieces all over the deck, so we weren’t the only ones it happened to.

While we ate, Jason had moved to the area of another sighting and had stopped to have a look around. Unluckily, they must have got fed up with the previous boat and gone deep because we didn’t see any sign of them. They can stay below the surface for up to 45 minutes so we finally headed off to try and find another group of whales or the dolphins, before it was time to return.

We soon picked up a hitch-hiker riding the bow wave – another Off-shore Bottlenose. This one didn’t look at us so often but still hopped up for breaths regularly. They take really quick gasps and you wonder how they can breathe out, as well as back in, in such a short time.

We also spotted another small group of a different breed of inshore dolphins and one leapt right out of the water, which was wonderful to see. Jason and a few people saw a sea snake, too, and soon afterwards I saw a Stingray appear from below and “fly” away (they look as if they fly through the water when they flap their side fins). The whales, I’m sorry to say, proved elusive and we didn’t see any more. Nonetheless, I feel much happier after this trip than the first one.

We arrived back at the Marina shortly, having passed fairly close to the Urangan Pier that we saw yesterday. It really is long! It didn’t seem possible but we’d been on the water for five and a half hours! We disembarked and got a quick take away coffee each, which we drank as we headed directly back to Maryborough, which took 45 minutes.

By the time we’d hitched up and dumped the water, it was 3.45pm and Barry was getting worried that we’d run out of daylight. We are normally settled by 3.30 – 4pm but we hadn’t even left yet. He checked the repaired tyre and it seemed to be holding OK. As we prepared everything, I was called to by someone in a “Concept” caravan. It was two couples we’d seen in Pomona. They’re also heading up north so we may encounter them again.

We then rang the Brierley Winery, in Childers, to let them know we were on the way. It is a free camp but only for customers, so you have to buy a bottle of their wine.

We found the road OK and drove the 6 km along it, half on dirt road, although it was smooth and well dressed so was not a problem. We arrived at 4.30pm, which is ½ hour after their closing time. They live in a house behind the winery office and had stayed open for us, which we greatly appreciated. We were proudly given a wine tasting, with a couple of delicious reds, Chambourcin, and a Mulled Wine. We were told their wines were made the “old” way and did not contain the sulphur most others use to speed up the process and keep the wine uniform. It certainly was tasty! I bought a bottle of the gorgeous 2008 Chambourcin for $35 but not the mulled wine as it was another $25, which would make it a VERY expensive “Free” night.

Feeling a bit woozy from the generous tasting, we set up the van, unpowered, and had dinner (reheated leftovers from yesterday). We worked out where in Bundaberg we would stay and then had an early night. We were both falling asleep after our big day out. I’m so glad I spent the money and did another whale watch.

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Photos

A Pectoral Wave from a Humpback Whale
This was one of the first things we saw. There are actually two whales here. They are juveniles, about 2 or 3 years old. They were very hard to photograph as they moved so fast. They played on the surface for quite a while.

The "Whalesong" Catamaran
This is the vessel we did the whale watching from. It had seats on the front deck, which is where we spent most of the time.

A Tail Flick
I nearly missed this but Barry caught it on video. Automatic cameras are a pain sometimes.

An Offshore Bottle-nosed Dolphin
These are the larger Bottle-nosed Dolphins. He stayed riding our bow wave for ages and kept skipping out of the water for a quick breath and a look at us. We saw another further around the Bay.

Big Woody Island, Hervey Bay
There are a lot of white birds on the end of the island, probably Pelicans but we were too far away to see. You can just see Fraser Island behind it. They are sand Islands.