We love seeing the whales breach and play just off our coastline here on the Southern Gold Coast; though naturally it gets better the closer you get to them!
We (Dean & Sue) the managers from Kirra Beach Apartments decided to join the crew of Whale Watching Coolangatta on a beautiful day in October. Sue can get a little queasy easy, so I spoke with the crew from Coolangatta Whale Watching and they offered the following advice;
If you are a first time whale watcher, youmay want to consider motion sickness medications. These can usually be found in most convenience stores or chemists. Most medications must be taken a few hours prior to the trip. Be sure to check the label. Once your trip begins, it is too late to take anything.
A good breakfast is key! Very often people will go on their first whale watch fearing they may get sick. They will skip breakfast thinking that no food in their stomach means they won’t get sick. In fact, the opposite is true. An empty stomach produces acids and, in turn, can actually make you sick. Eat a good carbohydrate breakfast. This includes things like bagels and cereal.
So with assistance for the Coolangatta Whale watching team we chose a day of slight swell and gentle breezes , had a health breakfast with lots of carbs (don’t really need an excuse for this) and we were both fine.
The boat is a catamaran hull so it was pretty stable and when the skipper pushed the throttle down it was giddy up and here we go along the Tweed River and safely out to the sea.
I was briefly admiring my local surf breaks from a seaward direction and then our friendly crew called out “12 o’clock –whale breaching!” The delightful Arianna had us all spotting and calling whale locations and there was plenty to see. Within minutes we saw three separate pods all pretty close by and they had fins and tails flipping and flapping and sometimes the whales were fully breaching –all within a 1 kilometre off the coastline.
Arianna explained whale behaviour in a fun and informative way, with her delightful commentary and insights helping to explain why it’s common to see the ‘Humpback Highway’ so close to our beautiful Southern Gold Coast.
A great day out and can’t believe it’s so close to Kirra Beach Apartments.
We chose to self-drive but talking with the crew it’s easy for those without a car to simply book their pick-up bus.
To find out more about a short stay including a whale watching cruise, or accommodation for your family holiday or business venture, call (07) 5523 7900, or email info@kirrabeachapartments.com.au
