Whale Watching in July for the first time in 2020 and the Humpback Whales completely filled Flinders Bay as it reached peak hour on the Humpback highway. Our morning began with some action as head lunging attracted our attention to a busy part of the bay with five pods mingling through the area. Some were happy to keep on swimming by but it didn’t take long for a competitive pod to start up as breaching ahead began to take place. Three whales were actively chasing each other and one of the individuals launched into a powerful breach only a few meters from our bow. They continued to rumble after each other with plenty of pushing and shoving as they dived in and around our vessel. Two curious adults took a few moments to approach us and have a good look before continuing on towards the reef line, ready for the next stage of their journey.
The afternoon was just as busy and within moments of departing the boat harbour we were in the company of two enormous adult whales. They were relaxed and focused on moving towards the reef line as they passed by incredibly close to the shore. Enormous in size, we could hear the power of their exhalation and they eventually led us straight to yet another competition pod. These four whales were busily chasing each other around the fringes of the reef and would deliberately use us to swim in and around as they challenged each other. It was very special to listen to them as each surfaced and the powerful roar of the exhalation powered through the still afternoon breeze. Bottlenose Dolphins accompanied us as we journeyed towards a pec slapping female who was being as little bit flirty towards a couple of males who had approached. They were encouraged by her pec slapping and began to follow her as she led them on a chase out of the bay.
