Most years in October, Winkie, of
crocodile wrestling fame, organises a weekend at Bittangabee Bay in
Ben Boyd National Park to socialise, paddle with whales, and
bushwalk. Most attendees are keen sea kayakers so sea kayaking -
also the best way to see whales - is generally front and centre on
the activity schedule.
From the 2016 Winkie Weekend
Generally, we like to tack on a couple
of extra days to improve the drive to activity ratio, but in 2019, we
just did not have the time to do that. So, it was a quick weekend
trip with one great day kayaking book-ended by a few hours of
mountain biking to break up the drive at either end.
Green Cape lighthouse from the 2016 Winkie Weekend
On Friday, when we were mountain
biking, the crew had gone south to Green Cape. Apparently, winds
were light and the swell was pretty manageable. Whales were seen and
everyone had a great day. Green Cape is a pretty interesting place.
A very narrow spit of land with sea cliffs on all aspects juts out
into the Tasman Sea. The coastline, which has been running south,
makes a greater than 90 degree turn and runs northwest into Disaster
Bay. This can generate some pretty big seas. During southerly
blows, the wave-rider buoy often records combined sea and swell
height in excess of 7 metres.
I've paddled around Green Cape twice.
Once in big seas with a few metre swell running and a southerly blow
chasing us northwards. The second time, paddling south, when there
was barely a metre swell and calm winds.
Passing Green Cape in 2018 on the way to the Nadgee
Saturday the winds were forecast to be
increasing to 15 to 20 knots from the southwest. Obviously the
safest and most logical choice would be to go south and come back
with a tail wind but when has doing the safest thing been the most
fun? We went north.
The pod heading to Green Cape in 2016
The group started out quite large but
fairly rapidly decreased to a more manageable 7 to 9 (it varied).
The seas were a bit lumpy with a couple of opposing swells running
and the southwest wind already blowing around 5 to 7 knots so when we
got out of sheltered Bittangabee Bay and started paddling north along
the cliffs, the novice kayakers got anxious. Kerry escorted them
back to Bittangabee Bay and then paddled back out to where the rest
of the group was bobbing around waiting.
Near Mowarry Point, 2019
PC. Doug Brown
Heading north again we very quickly
encountered two whales who put on an amazing display of breaching as
they swam right past us. Some kayakers had to back-paddle as the
whales came so close. We were not paddling after them, rather the
whales were swimming towards us!
Me and a friendly whale 2019,
PC Kerry
The wind was increasing and the sea
getting a bit more bumpy as we paddled into Saltwater Bay for a
breather. Here the group calved with about half the people heading
back while the rest of us continued on to Mowarry Bay. There were
more whale sightings but mostly in the distance.
Me and another whale 2019,
PC, Doug Brown
We had a land break at Mowarry Bay
which enabled Campbell to catch up with us and join us for the paddle
back.
Beautiful Mowarry Bay in 2018
On the way back the southwest wind was
up and it was one of those every kayaker for themselves return
journeys. The fast kayakers - Grahame and Campbell - rapidly
disappeared into the distance after we regrouped - which we did a
several times. Impossible to keep up with them, and I just tried to
focus on how I had been trained - by another epic kayaker - to
increase my cadence instead of trying to pull harder and harder.
Whales keeping us company
The frustration of paddling into a
steady 15 to 20 knot wind was tempered by the whale interactions we
had. I had two whales follow me for several kilometres only a few
metres off my port side. Every time I looked over, two whales would
be gently rising up to breathe and then falling back again. A couple
of times they came so close to me that I thought they were rock reefs
I was about to hit. I am anthropomorphizing, but it felt as if they
were swimming alongside to offer me encouragement.
2019 was a good year for whales
Near Mowarry Point we had groups of
whales on all sides of us with some swimming close in shore and some
a bit further out. As we passed Hegartys Bay, which is only a couple
of kilometres from Bittangabee Bay, the whales displayed a few more
times and then sedately swam out to sea.
This one is taken off the Tollgate Islands near where I live
That evening we had the traditional
Winkie banquet to celebrate another fine whale watching weekend.
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