Daily Trip 18 September 2017

Guide Summary and Photographs

We had absolutely breathe-taking experiences out at sea today with the best Southern Right Whale sighting of the season so far! All in all, we saw an impressive 8 different animal species as well as a large variety of birds.

We launched our first trip at 10:30 and straight off the bat, caught up with some Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphins. This was a great find and we were lucky to have the dolphins come up really nice and close for us. These dolphins move quite sporadically which make them a bit tough to photograph but, with them swimming so close to the surface this morning, they gave us a couple of nice opportunities to nab a photograph or two.

We found ourselves off the coast of Pearly Beach next, with a sighting that can only be described as enchanting. After watching numerous Southern Rights in the area frolic around, sail and enjoy the swell, we had a mating group come so close, they very nearly hit the boat. No words can really do what we saw today justice, so the photos below will just have to suffice. The whales stayed within arms distance for a solid 10 minutes, carrying on with what we like to describe as “typical mating behaviour”. To see these gentle giants so close that you can almost look them in the eye is one of the most awe inspiring sights that anyone could ever hope to experience, and we were really fortunate to have the opportunity to share this with them today.

Following this spectacular sight, we moved on towards the seals, spotting 3 juvenile African Penguins along the way. These guys are a blue-brown-ish colouration and It may take these guys 12 – 22 months to reach their adult plumage.

We cruised through shark alley for a bit after this, fully taking in the spectacle that is our Cape Fur Seal colony before showing our clients a Great White Shark and a Bronze Whaler. With the Marine Big 5 complete, we made our way back to the harbour.

Our second trip got to see their first whale from land as we were sprucing the boat up for them. This active individual is none other than the cool little Humpback Whale that we’ve been seeing of late, so after 3 separate sightings, we’ve decided to name it, Nessy. Nessy was fooling around in front of Black Sophie’s Rock by the time we launched, which made for an easy catch up. We spent the sighting completely enthralled, trying to predict where this sub adult might surface again. she gave us a couple of close passes before we head on down to the shallows.

Here, we got to see 2 free swimming Great Whites before we moved towards Pearly Beach. Our first whale sighting here was particularly special, with us happening upon a mother and her calf, which is only our 3^rd pair for the season. We watched these two cuties roll on their bellies and chill in the swell a bit whilst a Giant Petrel flew past before we stopped by a mating group. Once we’d stop at the mating group, we also had a lone Bottlenose Dolphin pop up. A few close approaches and some gorgeous pics later we left the whales and the dolphin behind in search of some seabirds.

En route to Dyer, we found a Mola Mola or Sunfish in the water, and also managed to spot some Cape Cormorants and an Antarctic Tern. We found some Penguins on Dyer Island next and then we moved on to Geyser Rock to tick off the Bank Cormorants and the Cape Fur Seals. On the way back in, we got to see some Sooty Shearwaters and some more Cormorants, which made for a great end to a perfect day.

If you would like to get hold of your trip footage, please download the credit card authorization form here to complete and forward it through to bookings@whalewatchsa.com. Please be sure to mention the date and launching time with response. Our team will reply with a direct link to your video footage for download, please allow 72 hours to footage to be uploaded. Download link will be valid for 6 months.

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