photography

Swimming with Humpback Whales

September 6, 2018September 6, 2018 by Offgridmonkeys, posted in Monkey Do, Uncategorized

This time Offgridmonkeys were lucky enough to achieve another activity we have wanted to do for a long time.

Humpbacks up close and personal

Ningaloo Coral and Fish

Trying to be fish

The Ningaloo Reef is an amazing place with the best coral close to shore we have ever seen, and also hosts amazing wildlife. Our last visit here we swam with Whale Sharks and Manta Rays, and this trip to the outer reef was to interact with Hump Back Whales!!

We headed out from Coral Bay with Ningaloo Reef Dive and Snorkel. The team on board were great taking us south to clearer shallower water to give us the best possible opportunity of seeing these gentle giants up close in the water. A spotter plane was also up early looking for good candidates for us to interact with. Interactions can only take place with calm whales, so any breaching or excitable behaviour from whales rules them out as does any calves in a group.

5X4A8011-Web — Can you spot us? We look so tiny you may have to zoom in!

We were very lucky on the day to have numerous small groups of mainly 2 or three (often pregnant females with an escort whale) that were happily cruising north up the coast to calf and did not mind a few tiny humans floating on the surface nearby.

The first glimpse underwater gives you an idea of the immense size and power of these ocean giants and was truly breath-taking. To be honest they were not that interested in us – more intent on continuing their journey north, but this almost made it more special – to just observe natural behaviour without interfering or changing it in any way was such a privilege.

mba

An added bonus was Tom from @oceancollectivemedia was on board to capture photos and video so we could just enjoy the experience and also additional photos were available from the spotter plane pilot which you can see from the few we have posted were fantastic.

Whale Breaching

Baby whale breaching

The team at Ningaloo Reef Dive and Snorkel also arranged a dog sitter for Buster the wonder dog for the day which he thoroughly enjoyed (loads of cuddles and walks). As locals at Coral Bay cannot have dogs (only the tourists can bring them along to camp) there are many people willing to look after fur kids for a day.

So how do humpback whale and whale shark interactions compare? You get to spend more time with whale sharks as they swim slower and are closer to the surface however humpbacks sheer size and the extra adrenaline punch that goes with the shorter encounters are also exhilarating! If you can, do both!

Coral Coast – Red Bluff and Shark Bay

August 16, 2018August 16, 2018 by Offgridmonkeys, posted in Uncategorized

Offgridmonkeys have continued their travels up the Coral Coast stopping at Quobba Station and staying at Red Bluff which is a surfing mecca with a mean left break.

First stop was the blowholes on the way to Quobba Station where water spouts are pushed at pressure through the rocks creating geysers up to 30m high.

The waves certainly didn’t disappoint, neither did the wildlife. We had an amazing dog friendly campsite right on the top of the cliffs with constant sightings of whales, dolphins and manta rays. We literally could not look at the ocean without spotting performing migrating whales breaching, blowing and frolicking in the waves.

Offgridmonkey Camp Red Bluff

Red Bluff from the cliffs

Our Camp

Pizza night on Saturdays was also a hit with most of the campers converging on the outdoor seating at the site shop to socialise and swap stories with other campers. The waves were up to 5 meters high during out week stay so there were plenty of tales to be told from intrepid surfers.

We also visited Gnaraloo station for the day and Gnaraloo Bay is stunning without a sole in site and definitely worth a visit. The snorkelling is also good.

We then moved on to Denham and Shark Bay. Again very dog friendly and Buster even got to spend a day in doggy day care which can be arranged through the discovery centre while we went into Francois Peron National Park. Once again the dramatic colours of the scenery and wildlife spotting from the cliffs did not disappoint. The drive in is 4WD and fairly soft sand so be prepared, but good old Silver Foxy performed admirably once again (the park provides free compressors so you can let your tyres down and reinflate them with ease). Even better is that at the end of the day at the park gates there is an artesian hot pool to soak weary bones which we enjoyed thoroughly!!

Offgridmonkeys HAD to of course also visit MONKEY Mia. Once again we struck it lucky with the dolphins in the bay when we arrived. Check out the video for the eyeballing from a bottle nose dolphin.

Pelican Monkey Mia

We also stopped in at the Hamelin Pool to see the stromatolites which are actually the earliest fossil evidence of life on earth. When you think that really they are whole communities of bacteria growing together over millions of years it blows these monkeys minds!!

Now we are hitting the road for more Ningaloo action at Warroora Station and Coral Bay, so see you all soon x

Music: https://www.bensound.com

Tag: photography

Swimming with Humpback Whales

Coral Coast – Red Bluff and Shark Bay

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