Victor Habour

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After a slightly scary night in the strangest campsite I have ever seen we had an awesome day at Victor Harbour.  We decided to splash out on a whale watching tour which turned out to be one of my favourite activties of the whole trip.  It turned out that we were the only people on the tour and we felt like we had chartered our own boat...very swish!

The captain took us to Basham Beach where a Southern Right Whale mother and calf were playing.  Apparently the whales stay for a few months so the babies can learn from there mothers in the safety of the bay.  They kept showing off the pectoral fins and doing fin slaps on the water.  Due to regulations we could only watch from 300m away but it was a breathtaking experience.

If you look really closely you just might see the whales!
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The boat sped out to Seal Rock so we could see the Australian Fur Seals.  The rock is a haven for the young and old males which have been chased away from the main colony on Kangaroo Island.  On our way top Seal Rock I spotted out the corner of my eye a pod of dolphins and we were allowed to go to the front of the boat and watch them play through the waves.  The dolphins were a mixture of bottlenose and common dolphins and they stayed with the boat, even when it really sped up, for around 10 minutes.  They were literally swimming 3 feet below us.  It blew me away and like a true Brown became very emotional.

The whales are just behind me!
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So much excitement for one day, but there was more.  When my Mum and Dad returned from there trip to New Zealand last year they gave me the most amazing glass penguin and my Dad couldn't stop talking about the little fairy penguins they had seen.  When I read about the fairy penguins on Granite Island I knew I had to go.  Penny and I took a penguin tour which showed us the fairy penguins returning to their chicks after a days feeding.  All the little chicks wait by the sides of the nests and the parents waddle in as the sun sets.  They are very loud, extremely smelly but super cute.

The first sight of the dolphins
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While in Victor Harbour I also hired a bike and rode along the Encounter Bikeway while Penny took her first organised tour ever and went to Kangaroo Island.  I saw the whales from the beach, cycled along the amazing coastline and took in the stunning views from The Bluff.  Unfortunately I only have one memory from that day...the crazy magpie! The magpie took a disliking to me (apparently it is nesting season) and dive bombed me!  So there I am cycling along shaking my head screaming 'No, no, no, no."  Not exactly the relaxing trip I had hoped for!