Swimming with whales... If you nerd out on biodiversity and conservation laws, you’ll be wondering how such an adventure came about when it’s illegal to swim with whales in Australian waters. The answer to that is a family-owned business that has the whole ethical, eco-friendly, whale-friendly tourism experience down-pat – they manage the whole thing in a way that gave them access to a special permit. Partners Dylan and Lara run Woebegone Freedive – a small charter boat tour that runs out of Jervis Bay in NSW. Depending on the time of year, you can swim with seals, dolphins and sharks, but on a cold winter morning, I had my eyes set on one prize: humpback whales.
From May to November, whales can be spotted all up and down Australia’s east coast as they migrate between Antarctica’s colder waters for breeding and Queensland’s warmer waters for feeding. Wildlife scientist and whale specialist Dr Vanessa Pirotta calls this the Humpback Highway. While that does include Sydney-local waters from Cronulla all the way up to the Northern Beaches, Jervis Bay in the Shoalhaven region is a real whale-spotting hub.
These waters, and the big blue passersby, can be gazed upon from the Bannisters by the Sea pool deck. Every hotel room has a pair of binoculars for whale-spotting, but to take it to the next level, Bannisters has teamed up with Woebegone this whale season for a pretty unforgettable experience as far as eco-tourism goes. It's called the Mollymook Migration package, and it includes two nights' accommodation, breakfast, a two-course dinner at Rick Stein at Bannisters (iconic) and, of course, the Woebegone whale tour.
As I wet-suit up on the dock and get fitted for some extra-small flippers, Dylan and Lara comfortingly manage our expectations. Unlike those big vessels that take boatloads (quite literally) of tourists out and race in the direction of a whale as soon as it’s spotted on the horizon, Woebegone have a different approach. The key message of the day is: we might swim with whales, we might not, but it will be an adventure nonetheless. That way, the tourists are happy, the whales are happy – we’re all happy.
We have some special guests on board, including the aforementioned Dr Vanessa, armed with her very big wildlife-capturing camera in hand, and environmentalist Laura Wells, who has plenty more whale swims than me under her belt. Once, Laura was so lucky to have a whale in Tonga swim up to her and touch her – other times, it doesn't go that way. “That’s the nature of nature,” she says.
Part of the reason Woebegone has a permit that allows them to host groups that can swim with the whales is that their boat never goes up to them. Instead, they have a look at the direction they’re swimming in and park the boat – motors off – to see if the whales come close. This means that, despite spotting three or four whales in the distance (apparently too far) during the morning with the help of Dr Vanessa’s eagle eye, I brace for the reality that we might not get to swim with them.
Instead, we head out towards the area’s local seal colony. With my mask defogged and wetsuit zipped, I jump in the water and wait for the seals to get curious enough to come closer.
Come closer they do, swirling around our group. It turns out patience is a virtue, because in addition to our seal friends, some dolphins zip by to say hi as well. The collective adrenaline rush of getting so close with nature is palpable on the boat ride home, but what we all also share is a faint disappointment at not having met our key goal of the day.
In a last ditch attempt, we keep our eyes thoroughly peeled on the drive back to the dock. And, in some stroke of luck, not one, or two, but three whales spout water in the distance as if to say “hey, don’t give up just yet!".
They are heading right in our direction, so everyone knows what to do: re-suit and defog. One by one, we jump off the back of the boat into the water, only this time we slowly pull ourselves along a long rope with our dive instructor right at the very end, closest to the whales.
The spouts of water get closer and we get a sense of just how unbelievable the size of the animal kingdom’s largest creature is. In true ethical fashion, we wait for the whales to come to us. Today, about 25 metres away is as close as they were willing to come, but hey, they were hungry and on a mission to get to Queensland. Who could blame them?
The adrenaline slowly wears off on the way home, and I realise how hungry I am myself. Back to Bannisters it is, for a warm shower to thaw out and some dinner in Rick Stein’s kitchen. What a day.
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