A bittersweet moment this morning as we headed out for our last day of Humpback Whale Season 2024 and it was an absolutely brilliant final day with the whales and our Pod Members. We’ve been joining the pod with our Humpbacks for the last six months on both the east and west coast of Australia enjoying our time with the Humpback Whales in Augusta, Fremantle and the Gold Coast. It was set to be a momentous day and the final one with our Humpback Whales for this year. Our morning began soon after arriving in the sighting grounds with mum and her very little calf who was most likely born a little later in the season. A gentle approach ensured we could build trust with this mum and calf as the little one played with seaweed during each surfacing.
A surprise visitor came over towards the boat as well, a juvenile Hammerhead Shark and this little guy was teeny tiny! He seemed to be on edge as almost everything bigger than him in the ocean would look at him as a nice bite sized snack. He was curious as he approached us and was scouting underneath each clump of floating seaweed that often is host to a collection of small fish seeking shelter, perhaps a small snack for him. It certainly was all about the seaweed for this two little ones as the young calf was enjoying rolling gently amongst the calm, glassy conditions while lifting the seaweed up on top of her rostrum. A short time later the young Hammerhead was back and seemed to be tracking mum and calf but at his mini size we weren’t quite sure what his big master plan was because at his size he was more like a mosquito than a predator, at least in his mind he is the biggest predator around.
On our final tour this afternoon and amongst the heat haze we spotted a mother whale and her calf enjoying the beautiful weather. The little one was playful as mum rested quietly and was enjoying the seaweed as well, it has been a big hit and very popular amongst the visiting calves over the last week. Approaching for a close look the calf continued to play until suddenly the little one launched into a massive, full body breach right off the bow. Another breach followed before an enormous shadow appeared below the surface before propelling upwards as mumma whale decided she would breach right next to us, it was incredible! The closest breach of the season on our final tour and we were all astounded, the sound of both their bodies crashing down onto the waters surface was spectacular and the white water was flying. The calf continued to breach as both mum and calf moved off in a hurry and we wondered if a shark had startled them both.
Dorsal fins surged towards them and we could see it was the local Bottlenose Dolphins as fifteen individuals raced over to join the Humpbacks. All together and moving quickly they flew in towards our bow surfacing right alongside us as the fun continued and amongst all this incredible activity we could hardly believe it was the last tour of the season. The mother whale seemed flustered with all this commotion after being woken up from her slumber by her breaching calf, she slowly started to settle back down again thankfully. It took a little while longer for them to find another spot suitable to sleep in as finally breathing returned to normally and a sleepy calf settled in with mum for a snooze. Wishing them well as the afternoon sea breeze began to ruffle the waters surface we hoped they would both make the safest of journeys back to Antarctica in the days ahead.
Making our way back towards the harbour for the last time this season was a very special moment for our family and crew onboard to reflect on our biggest Humpback season yet. To all our wonderful Pod Members that Joined The Pod and witnessed the Language of the Whales we would like to thank you very much for your support and attendance to one of the greatest shows on earth that is our Humpback Whale migration.
As a family owned and operated business we are forever grateful to bring people to see one of God’s greatest creations which is our whales. There have been so many incredible moments and outstanding behaviours we have had the privilege of witnessing, it truly is remarkable but we couldn’t do it without two very important things. Our whales and you, our wonderful guests that join us every season.
I want to also thank my wonderful family that is aboard every tour. To our captain who is also known as my dad and co-captain when captain Ambrose is at the wheel. He takes us and our lovely guests out every day safe and sound, showing respect to our whales with the way he drives the vessel to deliver an incredible experience our Pod Members can cherish forever. To my mother, always making sure everyone onboard feels like family with her kindness and care exceeding expectations. I have had the privilege to capture moments in time to give to our guest to keep that memory forever and I am very grateful for it. Thank you to my whales for putting on a spectacle so I can have the opportunity to get the pictures for our guests and to add to our research with ID work and behaviours.
I saved the best for last, my sister. Every single tour she teaches our Pod Members the Language of the Whales as she is fluent in it with her live commentary throughout every moment she enriches our Pod Members with a very special knowledge only she has through her dedication and love for her whales, thank you Gem for every word spoken….. you only had a few tongue ties 🙂
Also how could we forget our magnificent crew, thank you for all your hard work and good laughs throughout the whole season, it was an absolute pleasure to work with you all everyday and thank you for making our guests time onboard wonderful. To our little doggie Alby, always running side to side of the captains lounge to try and make friends with our whales out the window, to greeting our guests with a waggy tail and a staffy smile, you are definitely the best deckie we have had.….no offence to our other crew! Now our sights are set on our Bremer Bay Orca Season that is fast approaching and we hope to see a few familiar faces during the 2025 season starting on January the 2nd, it’s gonna be Huuuuge!
