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Hervey Bay a prime spot for hobnobbing with Humpbacks
By Robyn Holland
AP Hervey Bay, Queensland AP
As the humpback whale surfaces at the stern of the boat, Mimi Macpherson leans out over the bright blue water, tosses her hair and smiles broadly.
It's a perfect day aboard her 25m catamaran, Discovery One, with scores of tourists on board.
The weather is warm, the sea is calm and two awesome young humpbacks have spent 90 minutes playing next to the boat, to the delight of the excited passengers, cameras and videocams in hand, experiencing their first close encounters with whales.
Macpherson has been operating her whale-watch cruises in Hervey Bay, 300km north of Brisbane, since 1989 when a marine park was established here.
As the younger sister of supermodel Elle Macpherson, Mimi received an extraordinary amount of publicity when she started her business. She used it to her advantage, and, along with her business prowess, created a successful operation which has won tourism industry awards.
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Discovery One, one of 15 whale-watch boats on Hervey Bay, takes out up to 270 people each day from 10am to 4pm during the whale watch season. The cost of $85 for adults and $39 for children includes a buffet lunch.
There is a full bar and a "child's corner" with toys, books and educational items.
"It was really a fluke – excuse the pun – the way I got into whale watching," Macpherson says. "I was working for a charter boat company in Sydney Harbour and its owners decided to take it up to Hervey Bay when the marine park was set up, so I just went with them."
"I started by scrubbing potatoes and cleaning the galley, then eventually the boys let me put the sails up and I made a really good decky. Then I did administration and marketing for them and it just flowed from there. After two years I had developed a well-rounded knowledge of the whole industry.''
An estimated 1500 to 1800 humpback whales migrate annually 5000km from Antarctic waters to the warmer tropical waters of the Great Barrier Reef in June, where they mate and give birth. Between August and November, many of these whales are seen in Hervey Bay, where they rest before heading south again.
Experts believe the whales may choose Hervey Bay for its calm, shallow and warm waters, which helps give the calves time to develop a layer of protective blubber in readiness for colder waters, Another theory is that the bay provides a haven for the whales who are stressed after birthing and mating.
Luree LeFrancis, a naturalist and educator for the Pacific Whale Foundation based in Maui, Hawaii, spends the whale watch season on Mimi's boat. She says the humpbacks are believed to be returning at an increasing rate of four to five percent a year.
"I think tourism, if it's done anything at all, has raised awareness of whales," LeFrancis says. "Whale watching is a big part of helping save the humpbacks."
The estimated population of humpbacks in Australian waters before large-scale commercial whaling began in the 19th century was 10,000. When whaling ceased in 1963, the species was under threat of extinction, with only a few hundred believed to remain. Now, the estimated population is thought to be 1800.
LeFrancis says Hervey Bay is a unique whale-watching location.
"This is one of the best places I've ever come to watch whales doing different types of behaviours," she says. "People can get a really neat close encounter with them here. It's the only place I've seen the humpback whales get really curious about the boats," she explains.
"In Hawaii, they tend to be more aggressive and they're not as relaxed as they are here. They're on the surface more here because the water is only 66 feet deep, which is often the size of a whale."
Macpherson adds: "From a commercial point of view we know this is the best location in the world for seeing whales."
Living in her sister's limelight has created opportunities for her, Macpherson says, but it's also worked against her at times.
"A lot of people think I've been given the boat just because Elle is rich – that I haven't worked for it, which is not true," she says.
"But it does help in one way to be Elle's sister because people feel like they know you," says Macpherson, who last year landed a guest role in the TV series Baywatch.
"There's a sense of knowing the quality is going to be there because the name has quality attached to it."
She says she never loses enthusiasm for her work. "The people I meet are just as interesting as the whales,'' she says. "It's the people who make it special. I love being part of the experience with them. Some people come up to me at the end of the trip and say: ‘Mimi, I could die happy now, because I've done what I've wanted to do. Thanks for making it happen.’ "
IF YOU GO ...
GETTING THERE: Direct flights into Hervey Bay are available from Brisbane Airport on Qantas or Ansett Airlines (45 minutes). Hervey Bay is a 3-1/2 hour drive from Brisbane.
LODGING: Accommodations in Hervey Bay include caravan, self-contained apartments, resorts, three- and four-star motels, and bed-and-breakfast inns.
TOURS: There are a number of whale-watch tours available, full day or half day. Prices range from $55 to $85 for adults and $30 to $39 for children. Family prices for two adults and two children are around $170. Mimi Macpherson's Whale Watch tours can be contacted year round at (07) 4124-7247 or on the Web at
www.whalewatch.com.au.
WEATHER: The average temperature during whale-watch season is 20 to 28 degrees Celsius.
INFORMATION: For information about all tours and accommodations phone the Whale Watch hotline at (07) 4124-0400. For general information on Hervey Bay, phone the Hervey Bay Tourist and Visitors Centre on 1800-649-926.
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