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| Kayak whale watching near disaster | | Print | |
| Written by Josh | |
| Saturday, 24 October 2009 | |
New undies, please! Stunning is the only word I could rightly use to describe the conditions for today so my spirits were high as I left the boat ramp. I had a feeling it would be a good day... and it was... monumental even. My search for fish took me on a 25km journey today, trolling under pedal-power for most of that time, throwing a few casts at a few marked drop offs and drifting for a couple of clicks. Starting out on a south-east course I hugged the coastline until I reached the Clarence river mouth outside of Iluka. One quick run across the mouth resulted in naught so I turned around to troll my way back to Woody Head. Despite locating loads of fishing marks along the way I decided to head north out wide and then cut back to the west when level with Shark Bay.  This whale was almost circling me! About half way back I started seeing whales, appearing on cue in all directions around me. They weren't overly active but they were feeding, launching their wide open mouths into masses of krill. Judging by the amount of activity that I started seeing on the sounder, I'm willing to bet a few fish were scooped up to.  SURPRISE! At one point a large (approx 13 metres) humpback surfaced about 25 metres ahead of me, so I stopped pedalling and quickly pulled in the rods. Then I reached for my camera and sat there poised for the money shot. For the next 10 minutes the whale circled around me, seemingly oblivious to my proximity. Each time I thought it threatened to come close I'd pedal a couple of strokes to get away from it's potential path. For the most part it hung close to the surface and most of the time I was aware of it's location. But each time it submerged it would randomly appear again. Each time this happened it was a little unnerving.  How close? It was when narrating to the camera I observed that it had submerged and that I'd lost it's location, asking 'where's it gone?' As if to answer me on cue the whale surfaced then and there... right next to me. It was no more than a couple of feet away and rolling on it's side to get a good look as it passed. I don't even know how I managed to keep snapping photos, because all I wanted to do was hold on for dear life with one hand and cover my head with the other. For a moment there I felt for sure I was going to get slapped across the back of the head with a humpback tail.  That black shadow is my rod holder! A turbulent whirlpool formed beside the kayak and for a second there it felt like I'd be sucked in. Any other kayak would have been tipped for certain I think, but the Island (fitted with only one ama) was steady as a rock. So even though I was of course freaking out, somehow a part of me knew I'd be OK. That was the part of me that kept snapping photos.  It rolled over next to the kayak As far as the still shots went, stars aligned perfectly, with the settings just right for the scene that played out. I did have to tweak the zoom slightly and somehow managed to maintain composure enough (and quick thinking) to adjust the lens before snapping. I was filming at the time to, although it was a crying shame I didn't have the Lumix mounted on the starboard side (a habit I've been developing), because had I not left it's RAM camera mount at home, I would have had the camera pointed directly where the whale surfaced.  Then submerged again What an experience! Breathtaking is one word I'd use to describe it. Heart-stopping is another. I have had quite a few close contacts with humpbacks, in Hervey Bay, Jervis Bay and now Woody Head. This one was by far the most spectacular, and easily the most intimidating. For sure, had it only been just another foot closer, it would have been anyone's guess as to what would have happened. had the starboard ama been installed, it would have copped a mighty knock, that much is certain!  As it submerges a whirlpool is left in its wake  Up it comes again  Nice big hump you have there buddy!  Goodbye!    |
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