Whale Watching - Safety on the Water

During winter, countless whales are spotted heading north on the NSW coast.

About 8000 whales – Humpbacks and Southern Right Whales – are estimated to swim north to feeding and breeding grounds, thrilling those on and near the water who catch a glimpse of the majestic creatures.

One such whale disrupted a morning fishing trip on Sunday 13 July, just off Coffs Harbour.

About 10.15am, a 6m vessel hit a whale while travelling at speed in waters off Coffs. The impact caused all five people on board to be thrown into the water.

With a lightened load, the boat then righted itself and continued to travel – fortunately without further incident – until it was stopped by Water Police, who began an investigation into the incident.

The passengers were rescued unhurt from the water by a passing vessel.

Fortunately, no injuries were reported. It is unknown what became of the whale.

For those who are interested in whale watching from a boat, it is important to observe whale watching regulations:

In October 2005, the commonwealth, states and territories agreed to introduce consistent regulations for marine mammal protection in all jurisdictions so the same rules applied across Australia.

View the whale\dolphin watch brochure

View the whale\dolphin watch sticker

Definitions

Approach distance—see figures 1-3 (referred to as 'prescribed distance' in the Regulation): a distance beyond which a vessel or person may not approach a marine mammal.

Caution zone: a distance of between 100 m and 300 m from a whale and between 50 m and 150 m from a dolphin. In the caution zone, vessels must travel at a constant slow speed and leave a negligible wake.

Negligible wake: wake that does not create waves big enough to make nearby boats move.

Prohibited vessels: these are vessels that can make fast and erratic movements and not much noise underwater, so there is more chance they may collide with a marine mammal. Such vessels include personal motorised watercraft like jet skis, parasail boats, hovercraft, hydrofoils, wing-in-ground effect craft, remotely operated craft or motorised diving aids like underwater scooters.

Vessels: these are watercraft that can be used as transport including motorised or non-motorised boats, surfboards, surf skis and kayaks.