🐋Whale Sighting Update – A Double Delight!

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📅Tuesday 15 July, 2025

An unforgettable afternoon on the water! On today’s 1pm Seal Island Tour, guests were treated to an incredible sighting of a Humpback Whale cruising near Seal Island—complete with spouts and surface glides.

Then, just an hour later on our 2pm Southern Ocean Adventure, a Southern Right Whale made a stunning appearance down towards West Island & the Waitpinga Cliffs!

Two different species, one epic day—winter whale season is well and truly underway! 👏🐳

🐋Excuse me, can we get through!

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📅Monday 14 July, 2025

Our very lucky crew had a Southern Right whale so close to the Causeway & Screwpile Jetty on Granite Island today that we almost couldn’t start our first tour! We had to wait until the whale had moved on before taking our vessel to our boarding location to begin the first tour of the day, making for an exciting morning!

Later on, we encountered another Southern Right Whale on tour as well, out towards West Island. Both our fingers and toes are crossed for more whales in the coming months, as whale season continues to ramp up.

🐋Southern Right and Humpback Updates

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📅Friday 11 and Sunday 13 July, 2025

Friday 11 July
A Southern Right Whale was sighted off Middleton near Miami Boulevard, just beyond the swell zone. Although conditions made viewing slightly more challenging, we were able to observe the whale surfacing several times before it moved further offshore.

Sunday 13 July
An action-packed morning near West Island! We encountered a Humpback Whale actively tail- and-fin-slapping, travelling alongside a pod of dolphins. A second Humpback surfaced nearby just minutes later. To top it off, we were treated to a rare sighting of an Ocean Sunfish basking at the surface — a real highlight for the crew and guests alike.

SUNFISH

🐋Weekend Whales

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📅Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 July, 2025

Saturday 5 July - A Southern Right Whale was observed moving slowly near the causeway. We maintained distance, gradually reversing away as the whale cruised toward the Bluff, making for a peaceful encounter.

Sunday 6 July - While on route to Port Elliot, a whale spout was sighted about 1km offshore. We approached at low speed and travelled alongside the whale for approximately 40 minutes as it moved toward Granite Island. The whale remained in the bay as we departed.

🐋Weekend Whales

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📅Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 June, 2025

Another spectacular weekend of whale activity along the coast.

21 June – A Southern Right Whale was sighted south of West Island during our 2:00pm tour, observed giving several strong spout blows.

22 June – A group of two Humpback Whales put on an impressive display of breaching seen from a distance. Additional Humpbacks were later sighted as we made our way back toward Seal Island.

The season is well underway, with more remarkable sightings each week.

🐋Humpbacks A'Hoy

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📅Saturday 14 and Wednesday 18 June, 2025

This week our tours were graced with multiple Humpback whale sightings! On Saturday, multiple whales were spotted, putting on a spectacular breaching displays and tail slapping that excited both passengers and crew. What a sight! Wednesday was another exciting tour, with a Humpback whale spotted cruising around near the bluff, before heading towards West Island.

🐋Lucky Early Sighting!

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📅Saturday 03 and Sunday 04 May, 2025

While it is not yet the official start of whale season, early whale sightings are a promising signs this year’s season will be a good one! Over the past weekend, we were lucky enough to have an early sighting of a humpback whale. It cruised about the Southern ocean waters and interacting with the local dolphin pod, creating much excitement about the months to come.

End of Whale Season 2024

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Unfortunately, our beloved mother and calf southern right whale pair, Shamrock and Paddy, haven’t been spotted since the 18th of August. It seems they have most likely begun their long voyage back to Antarctica for the warmer months.

While it’s unlikely we’ll see any more southern right whales this season, we’re keeping our fingers crossed for a chance to spot some humpback whales as they pass through on their journey from the northern parts of Australia.

Tricky Whales

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We're thrilled with the amazing weather we're experiencing right now! A big thank you to everyone who joined our tours over the weekend.

Here's your whale update for the week: Sightings have become a bit trickier as Shamrock and her calf, Paddy, prepare for their long journey back to Antarctica. Shamrock needs to move up and down the coast to help strengthen Paddy’s swimming abilities, which unfortunately makes it challenging for us to locate them during our tours.

We’re still offering Southern Ocean Adventure cruises, where we do our absolute best to show you the majestic Southern right whales. However, please remember that these are wild animals, and we can't control their day-to-day whereabouts.

Sightings over the week:

6/8/24 - Shamrock & Paddy at Frenchman rocks

7/8/24 - Shamrock & Paddy at Bashams beach

8/8/24 - shamrock & Paddy at Watson Gap, and 2x Humpback whales at Flat iron rock

10/8/24 - Shamrock & Paddy at Middleton (2pm cruise)

11/8/24 - No sightings

12/8/24 - No sightings

Keep and eye out on SA whale centre log for more sighting updates!

First Calf for the Season!

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On Friday locals spotted the first Mother and calf duo for the season!

Encounter Bay Whales (Facebook page) confirmed the mother is Shamrock! Records with the Encounter Bay Right Whale Study (EBRWS) show Shamrock previously calved in Encounter Bay in 2013 and 2018.

Tours on Sunday got to visit Shamrock and her calf, as well as our afternoon cruise spotting an additional 2 Southern Right Whales.