Where is best for whale watching in WA?? The southwest!!! More specifically, Augusta and Albany of course!
I’m sure some of you are thinking…”When is the best time to go whale watching in Augusta??” Between May-August is the best time, but to answer that more simply…NOW is the time to be in the bay and here’s why!!! We have it all here in Augusta, this season we have seen BLUE WHALES, minke whales, dolphins and most frequently, humpbacks and southern right whales! We have been lucky enough to have a few of our friends here helping us the past week! Keith Lightbody and Michael from @aeroture never seize to amaze us with the incredible content they capture while they’re onboard with us!! Be sure to scroll through the images and stay tuned for an awesome little video that @aeroture is producing for us 😀
We had an awesome spirt of good weather throughout the week, which enabled us to venture out into the southern ocean where we usually don’t get to explore! The deeper waters meant endless BREACHING and tail shots! To identify humpbacks you need images of the animals under fluke as each individuals pigment and shape of the tail are unique! Our customers were lucky to witness small groups of whales actively communicating through breaching and splashing as they joined up to travel in larger groups for protection out in the open ocean as they move past the Cape Leeuwin lighthouse from the Southern Ocean into the Indian Ocean.
We also had a brief visit from a Dwarf Minke whale this week!!! The flash of grey got the crew wondering for a moment before we saw the curved dorsal of the Minke back at the surface, only for a quick flash before darting past the bow and back to the depths! This is a rare occurrence in these waters as the majority of the population inhabit the eastern coastal waters where you can even dive with them!!!
The southern right whales have been sighted almost every day over the past week, both close to shore and out in the depths where we were lucky enough to witness a 90 tonne giant BREACH over 10 times near the vessel! This event lest everyone on the boat in awe! From encounters so close you cop a spray to the face to pec slaps and rollie pollies the southern rights have definitely left us entertained! Now we wait for the pregnant females to give birth to their ONE TONNE babies!!! Stay tuned for weekly updates!
