Seals by Sea, and slides by land

(Yesterday) 

What another perfect day... we rose late and cooked up pancakes for breakfast then chatted more with Maggie Pye for a while.  Then it was off to Cape Bridgewater for a RIB tour out to see the seals with Seals by Sea.

Cape Bridgewater was about 20 minutes past Portland and a sleepy little town. We arrived about half an hour early which gave us time to go to the Petrified Forest and Blowholes before meeting the boat.

The first of these attractions looks like trees have been drowned eons ago, leaving cylindrical holes looking like trees. Truth is, trees had nothing to do with it, and it is more about different rocks and minerals, but the name stuck and it certainly fits.

It a 15-minute walk to the dock where we met out boat which followed the cliff with lovely views. We didn’t see any wildlife on the way, although we kept looking. At the dock, however, the water was extremely clear and we chatted to abalone divers and learnt about their catch. Then Daniel arrived with our boat and we jumped onboard for a short ride around the headland to the Australian Fur Seal colony. What a magic thing this was... even though the smell was pretty bad! We watched fights and games, and saw very young seals on the rocks.  Then we headed around the next headland where another colony lived... this time New Zealand Fur Seals which are slightly smaller and blacker. They also have quite a different crying sound rather than the bark of their Australian counterparts.

When the swell and smell became overpowering we headed out to sea in search of dolphins and it wasn’t long before we had three playing under the bow. Amber let out a squeal every time one surfaced! What a magic experience!

It was a 40 minute drive back to Yambuk Lake where we chilled a while, then Amber hit the giant slide and I paddled the lake spotting herons. More chilling, talking, dinner and now Amber is drawing and I am blogging! Tomorrow off to the Grampians...