A whale of a time in WA
This article is brought to you by Coral Expeditions.
As one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, Western Australia’s south-west is a must-visit destination for anyone interested in nature and conservation. So, when long-time Australian Geographic supporter Coral Expeditions invited me to be a host on one of its voyages through that part of the world, I naturally jumped at the chance.
Taking up opportunities like this also provides the chance to discover people, places and events that I think might be worth delving into further for possible feature stories for this magazine. And that’s exactly what happened when, last October, I joined the Coral Adventurer on a voyage called Whales and Trails.
From the moment we set off from the port of Fremantle, steaming south along the coastline and eventually eastwards towards Lucky Bay just past Esperance, whales seemed to be everywhere in the waters around us.
I grew up with the mantra ‘Save the Whales’ ringing in my ears, an all-encompassing catchcry that embodied efforts to meet the biggest conservation issues of our time head-on. As this trip revealed so spectacularly, we have, in fact, managed to Save the Whales – well, to some extent.
When we set sail, humpback whales were on the Antarctica-bound part of their annual migration, and for much of our journey we saw a steady stream of mothers and calves followed by eager males looking for a chance to mate. There were many sightings of breaching and fin-slapping. We even saw the now much-rarer southern right whales and pygmy blue whales close to Australia’s southern coastline. Mich, our onboard whale expert, noted that on one of her previous voyages, a rare Antarctic blue whale had been seen in Southwest Australian waters, reinforcing the rich biodiversity of the region.
Mich is Micheline Jenner AM, wife of Curt Jenner AM, both Co-Principal Investigators for the WA Centre for Whale Research. This couple has played a massive role in whale research and conservation in Australia for more than three decades, and the knowledge Mich shared with everyone onboard made the journey an extraordinarily insightful travel experience. A master communicator, every one of Mich’s onboard lectures was packed out by guests.
It was a similar story for onboard botanical expert, Kate Cranney. Not only was Kate particularly knowledgeable in her field of expertise, but – like Mich – she was also a master at communicating serious science in an accessible way.
Other valuable educational insights provided onboard the Coral Adventurer included talks by the chief engineer Syed Zaidi in the engine rooms, and on the Captain’s Deck with Captain Matthew Fryer. These sessions were also fully attended and offered further fascinating insights into navigating such a rugged coastline.
Plant hotspot
Back to the biodiversity hotspots. Identified and designated by Conservation International, there are 36 of these special places recognised worldwide, including two in Australia: Southwest Australia, in WA, and the Forests of East Australia, in Victoria.
Plants and the communities they form are key features underpinning what makes these places significant. The biodiversity hotspots have quite precise defining scientific features but, essentially, they are places of extraordinarily high biodiversity, much of which occurs nowhere else – and they face a very high level of threat. These places are of huge ecological value not just to Australia but also globally.
The Southwest Australia hotspot, for example, contains more than 7320 different plant species, 80 per cent of which are found nowhere else on earth. By way of comparison, the whole of England contains some 1500 plant species, about 47 of which are found only there.
(Boronia alata), right, were also seen on the walk. Image credits: courtesy Coral Expeditions
Our voyage offered guided walks on land almost every day, and Kate found and identified key plants for us to see along the way. This included several species of ground orchid (Caladenia sp.), the carnivorous Albany pitcher plant (Cephalotus follicularis) and pink rainbow sundew (Drosera menziesii), winged boronia (Boronia alata), scarlet banksia (Banksia coccinea) and many more.
We travelled during wildflower season, and by the end of the trip we had seen most of the 30 different species of wildflower blooming at that time in this part of the world. Our land-based hikes included part of the famed Cape to Cape Track at Augusta; a regrowth karri forest at Harewood Forest, near Albany; and a hike to Thistle Cove at Cape Le Grand National Park.
Foodie haven
Not surprisingly, all this rich biodiversity underpins a rich human culture. At the town of Albany, famed for its whaling history, we had the option of visiting the state heritage-listed Historic Whaling Station, one of WA’s biggest tourist attractions. While some members of the tour visited the station, others were given an insight into local Indigenous culture by local Menang people on a walk to nearby Quaranup.
Of course, this part of the world is also a true haven for foodies, and our voyage on the Coral Discoverer certainly celebrated that culinary excellence. Much of the food and wine onboard was supplied by local producers. On one particularly memorable afternoon we dined on the foreshore at Augusta, where we ate freshly shucked Margaret River oysters and drank superb local wines.
On our final night before returning to Fremantle, we boarded the tenders for one last excursion to the shore. After pulling into the Old Dunsborough Boat Ramp, we hopped on a couple of coaches and headed for a gala dinner at the world-renowned, historic Leeuwin Estate for an exquisite final meal featuring local gourmet delights.
The adventure may have ended, but the lessons and memories from this incredible region will stay with us long after our return home.
