Whilst cairns and port douglas do not offer daily dedicated whale watching tours visitors just may have the chance to see the humpback whales whilst they are on their way to and from the great barrier reef on their dive and snorkel tours. When is the best time for port angeles whale watching. Several whale and dolphin cruises depart from the nelson bay marina. Venturing north on their annual holidays actually they migrate north to breed and give birth, but we like to think theyre on holidays too.
On the great barrier reef just off port douglas and cairns, we are blessed with the annual migration of the dwarf minke whales and the giant. Australia great barrier reef whale watching handbook. Michael douglas, left, and his wife, catherine zetajones, arrive at the 61st annual tony awards, sunday, june, 2010, in new york. The thunderstorms roll in and out and the air gets clear again. The great barrier reef is the only location where snorkel and dive tours with. The port itself is a bustling hive of aquatic activity throughout the year, and the whale watching season between may and november is no exception. Basically, our whale is faceplanting onto our atmosphere. Victorias whale watching season traditionally starts on the queens. I saw 7 common dolphins, 2000 sea lions, 30 sea otters, 4 gray whales, and 1 humpback. All whale watching expeditionary charters include the exclusive charter of galaxy i, all meals, beverages, necessary licenses to dive with the minke whales, on board resident minke whale expert and dive master. The southern right whale does not migrate in the same pattern as the humpback whales, but during the winter months the southern rights will move along the coastline seeking places to mate and shelter with their newborn calves they will enter and remain in bays and harbors for days at a time and then move slowly north or south. Swimmers had a whale shark of a time off port douglas.
Half and 1 day whale watching and fitzroy island adventure. Winter is whitsunday whale season whitsunday escape. Dont forget your camera, a whale watching tour in port douglas is an unforgettable experience. We have 1 of 3 permits to swim with dwarf minke whales on the great barrier reef from port douglas. Minke whale dive expeditions great barrier reef mike ball dive.
Join us for our first tour of the season as we cruise through resurrection bay to the gulf of alaska in search of our returning visitors. Whale season in cairns cairns attractions cairns attractions. As our passengers and staff can attest, last year was nothing short of extraordinary. The vapour cloud produced is caused when the whale empties its lungs, and can be quite pungent if youre downwind. Some operators like silversonic are granted a permit by the marine park authority to allow their guests to swim with the whales. Nicole kelby is a naturalborn storyteller who manages to be very funny and very wise at the same time. Checking the height of the whale right around this point shows that hes where we are splitting the upper and lower stratosphere. Apart from whales, dolphins and turtles also migrate through this way and are regularly spotted from the cape. More than 7,000 whales holiday in the fraser coast on their 5,000km migration from antarctica to teach their baby calves sweet skills like breaching, spy hopping, tummy flashes and plenty of other survival tools.
We are a charity based on the isle of man dedicated to studying and improving awareness of. This forms part of an annual migration of approximately 5,000 whales escaping bracing cold conditions in antartica to rear their young in the warmer waters of australias east coast. Whales choose the warm calm, protected waters around airlie beach and the islands of the. Today, 22 years later, i run every trip as if it is my firstupholding the reputation that captain fred built before i. Alaska gray whale watching cruise major marine tours. Season the peak whale watching season along the south african coast is from july through october when the southern right whale is resident along the cape south coast and humpback whales frequent the waters off the elephant coast in kawzulu natal. You will get less blue sky days and more humid cloudy days. Realistically, im pretty sure that, if our whale hadnt burned up already, we would have a localized whalesplosion and whaleshower.
The main whale watching season runs from late june to late september when the resident fish eating orcas are in the area feeding on migrating salmon. Whale watching in the whitsundays is a beautiful experience, and something you can do almost every day when you charter a bareboat between june and august. Whale shark spotted on the great barrier reef australia. This migration gives whale watches the opportunity to witness the whales on their incredible journey from the frigid waters of alaska down to. They will be here for several months from june to november. On the great barrier reef just off port douglas and cairns, we are blessed with the annual migration of the dwarf minke whales and the giant humpback whales as they head from the cold waters of the southern antarctic to the warmer waters further north to calve and find a mate.
Please contact the operators via our tours page to find out the best times to go. Several companies offer whale watch trips from there, and they all make a long, slow journey out of the harbor into open water before the whale watching can begin. Charters sole charters whole of vessel for up to 6 guests are available ex port douglas disembarking lizard island. Whale watching season 2018 is just around the corner. There have been a record number of reported whale sightings this year in melbournes port phillip and western port bays. Port douglas has an average rainfall of 2010mm average 168mm per month. The most spectacular display of all, where the animal leaps almost clear of the water, creating the kind of splash that only a 40 tonne animal can produce. Whales migrate to the waters off port douglas each year. If you like whale watching, well the season has oficially started. Often the first indication that a whale is in the area.
During junejuly there are often seen off the coast of port douglas and cairns as they migrate through the region to warm equatorial waters. If the boat captain spots a pod of whales they may. Whale watching private charter cruise port douglas. Or for a specialist whale watching experience consider undersea explorer they run minke whale snorkelling tours for a 5 day duration. Minke whale watching port douglas tourist information centre. Whale hello there time to dive into the blue with these. Best whale watching islands and resorts in the caribbean. You will only get excessive amt of rain if there is a low pressure system which means it can rain for days. Cairns or port douglas and observe the research activities first hand. Between march and june, these spectacular mammals return to their northern waters.
Port douglas in the wet season well ive returned to my least favourite place on our great cape york adventure port douglas. Tourists were treated to a lucky encounter on a trip to the great barrier reef on the 5th november 2010 when the boat they were aboard aristocat came across a whale shark the whale shark stayed with the boat for around 25 minutes, during which time this photo was snapped. Silversonic has one of the few permits available from the great barrier reef marine park authority that allows our guests to swim with dwarf minke whales if encountered a truly unforgettable experience from our experience, july to september is the peak season to encounter the inquisitive minkes as they frequent the agincourt ribbon reefs where silversonic visits. The humpback whale season in cairns is at its peak from july to september. Two excursions left the docks today, one at 9am and the other at noon. This photo of a whale shark was taken by the aristocat crew. Whale watching season in banderas bay and the pacific ocean near puerto vallarta officially begins december 8 th and runs through the winter until march 23 rd. You will find the islands are amazing spots sailing adventures. Record whale sightings in melbournes port phillip and. Port douglas whale season has arrived in port douglas.
Praise for whale season whale season is purely delightfulrich, clever, and crawling with affectionately twisted characters. Whale watching port douglas cairns forum tripadvisor. With tours operating daily, youll enjoy a fun excursion out on the water so be camera ready for these shy creatures. Optimum viewing months are septemberjanuary and marchjune. Ask about our special packages that include accommodation and whale watching. On wavelength, we do occasionally get to snorkel with minke whales in june and july and seeing inquisitive whales approach.
The winter season is a special time to go whale watching as the magnificent gray whale migrates through local waters. The whalewatching capital of australia, hervey bay, is a popular spot for our biggest coastal visitors, the humpback whales from june to november. The site booms during whale season, when the migration is caught in action from this great vantage point. When is the best time to visit port douglas and the daintree.
Gloucester whale watch in gloucester massachusetts. We are excitedly anticipating the beginning of the upcoming whale watching season. For history around the site and the migration, the maritime museum is open 10am to 4pm daily and is well worth a visit. Witness the return of gray whales to alaska waters on their annual 10,000 mile migration. Minke whale dive expeditions with mike ball dive expeditions from cairns to the ribbon reefs. One of my girlfriends has been wanting me to come to port douglas for a while, instead of noosa which is our usual girlie long weekend away. Governmental regulations limit any whale watching tours to this time period. The smithsonian magazine names port angeles, washington as one of the countrys top whalewatching destinations. Port douglas whales see them with wavelength reef cruises. Mirissa is a lovely coastal village on sri lankas south coast situated between the galle and matara. Bring your binoculars and watch for their spouting. Dominicas whale and dolphin species can be found year round in the islands crystal blue waters.
Gray whales and dolphins along the coast condor express. Visiting the caribbean for whale watching in adventures is just a fun way to enjoy sailing in the islands. To prove it we are matching all online pricing on the tours we offer. The southern migratory season is september january as the whales make their way to baja. Brydes whales can be seen off the south african coast year round, albeit further out. Being a tropical location, port douglas essentially has two seasons. Whale watching cairns port douglas call 07 4059 5959.
Please note that whale watching is not available all year round. For more information on port douglas weather please visit the bureau of meteorology web site. Whale watching is done in hervey bay which is the gateway to fraser island, this is a long long way from port douglas every year the humpback whales make their migration and while some do get up to the whitsundays it is hervey bay that is the whale watching capital of queensland with over 5,000 whales making a stopover for a rest port douglas is not known for this which is probably why no. Moonshadow tqc cruises and imagine cruises offer both whale and dolphin cruises, as well as sunset dinner cruises and snorkelling tours in the calm blue waters. Its prime time whale watching season on the gold coast so dont miss out on the opportunity to get up close to witness the gentle giants of the sea. Before the summer was out, the 65yearold actor announced he. Various species you may encounter include, spotted and spinner dolphins as well as pilot and orca. Whilst cairns and port douglas do not offer daily dedicated whale watching tours visitors just may have the chance to see the humpback whales whilst they are. Calypso reef cruises were on their tour when they encountered the whale shark at.
The boat is decked out with brand new gear, the guys are super relaxed, really catering the trip for the group on board and we were one of the only boats out on. Hoist a sail with blue water sailing and glide with the whales and dolphins without the motor running. The waters around port mcneill, especially johnstone strait, are worldrenowned for viewing orcas killer whales in their natural environment. Port douglas is very lucky as the whale watching season has started with sightings of the famous minke whales playing around our beautiful coral reefs this week. Its humpback whale season in tropical north queensland with humpbacks recently spotted by guests staying at thala beach nature reserve. The bureau of meteorology is responsible for the functions of a national meteorological service including the provision of monitoring, research and services in the public interest.
Thats because whale watching in olympic national park offers the unique opportunity to see majestic gray whales as they migrate from their breeding grounds in baja california up the coast to the bering strait, and back again. But you can watch them for free from the coast, and some of the good lookout points are grassy hill in cooktown, captain billy landing lookout, and ussher point bring binoculars. Large cetaceans, such as humpback and gray whales, annually migrate over great distances from the cold waters. Whale watching kalaloch lodge at olympic national park. On feb 19th 2017 i went whale watching in monterey bay. Kalaloch is among the best places in the world to watch one of natures biggest attractions. Whale watching tours cairns swim with whales cairns. Carl hiaasen kelby has created a crazyquilt of unforgettable characters. There are a number of different destinations that offer fascinating water sports adventures, but when it comes to whale watching there are a few spots in that caribbean that stands out. Newsport dailyswimmers had a whale shark of a time off port. When i joined cape ann whale watch in 1991, i knew i was joining the premier whale watching company in gloucester and beyond.