A Rare Encounter

Whilst I have noticed a decline in the fish life in Moreton Bay in recent years, I have still been surprised by the diversity of wildlife I have come across.

On one of my first Sea Kayaking trips on Moreton Bay, a friend and myself went out for a Sunday afternoon paddle and came across a fully grown Leatherback Turtle less than a kilometer off the shore front at Nudgee Beach. We didn't know just how rare these sightings were at the time and that these turtles are an endangered species in Australia.

We had no idea what we had come across and it took us a while to decide to paddle over for a closer look.  All we could see in the setting sun was a gaping pink mouth, followed by some barnacle encrusted ridges.  The pink mouth/esophagus we could see turned out to be something from a horror movie (I think George Lucas might have borrowed this look for his Sand Worms).

Photo: Karumbé

According to some research I have read, these turtles can grow to 2 meters, but I have read reports of them in excess of this size.  They are the oldest of the marine turtles as well as the largest. They primarily eat jellyfish, and can dive in excess of 1,000 meters in depth.  Those flippers get a work out as they have been known to swim 6,000 kms between breeding and feeding grounds.

Photo: Scott R. Benson, NMFS Southwest Fisheries Science Center

I feel privileged to have seen and paddled with one of these creatures, not to mention amazed that we did so in our local waters. It was this sighting that convinced my that I needed to get a waterproof camera to capture these once off encounters.

Unexpected Company

Sea Kayaking in remote locations in Australia, generally means you will be interacting closely with the local wildlife.  On the ocean, we are an oddity and many sea creatures are inquisitive which leads to some amazing experiences.  In the ocean is no different - I'll share a couple of stories of encounters with the larger pointy teeth variety.

We were off for a snorkel in some deeper water to look for some Manta Rays that frequent the area and the photo below captures one of two Grey Whalers that came over and started circling near us when we scared some fish off a bommie (coral outcrop)  in about 25 metres of water - southern end of the Great Barrier Reef.  They came up to investigate and moved on after a closer look or maybe that was because I stuck my camera in its face?  This was a beautiful stream-lined shark - built for speed.

I had been snorkeling along the reef edge in a lagoon on a remote coral atoll and had just seen the grand-daddy of Gropers in a huge sea cave. I dived down and was holding onto the reef trying to get a shot of him when I got the feeling I wasn't alone.  The lagoon keeper (pet name for the Tawny Nurse below) had come over to investigate what I was doing - sufficient to say I missed getting the shot of the groper I was looking for.

This shark was like a Labrador (i.e. fat dog that wants to be friendly - always in your face). I wasn't that familiar with sharks and their behaviour and this one wouldn't leave us alone - I think it was lonely but it could easily have been telling us to keep out. I was a bit nervous of an overly friendly shark in a remote location over 80kms off the coast.

For the main part, most of the sharks we come across on the reefs are black or white tipped reef sharks.  They generally keep out of your way, though we fed one once and it must of told its mates as every time we went in the water, they came from everywhere like a pack of hungry dogs! Note to self - don't feed fish frames to the sharks.

So sharks are okay, though they sometimes will come and give your rudder a nudge if it is making like a wounded fish and occasionally they might nibble on your paddle blade to keep you on your toes.

A Southern Visitor of an Unexpected Kind

In Winter 2012, I took a group of local paddlers out to North Stradbroke Island.  As we were passing Peel Island we noticed a strange object floating on the surface of the water - as we paddled over to investigate it disappeared with a splash and we were left speculating as to what it might have been.

On landing at Adder Rock on North Stradbroke Island we were surprised to find a New Zealand Fur Seal had come to visit.  We had a number of further sightings during the trip, including a seal pup we came across playing in the waves.

Over that winter there were a number of reported sightings of New Zealand Fur Seals within Moreton Bay and the islands .  Not sure of the purpose of their visit but they were a rare treat in these warm waters.

This one wasn't too concerned with all the attention.

Following Whale Footprints off North Stradbroke Island

Between July through to September, we have the opportunity meet some of our southern 'cousins' as they migrate up to warmer waters. For those of us living near Moreton Bay, we have the opportunity to head out to the outside islands to view the Whales on their migration North, and then again as they head south with their new calves.

Viewing whales from water level is a fantastic experience.  Most whales are inquisitive and will check you out, either by coming up under your kayak or by coming to the surface beside you, or in front of you as you will see in the video below.  Whilst we are dwarfed by these creatures, they seem to have a great awareness of their size and I haven't felt at risk at any time during the encounters, even when they have popped up in the middle of a pod of kayakers.

This year I noticed that a number of the Whales we saw were seemingly being shepherded by dolphins, like a local water pilot service. Listening through a hydrophone was picking up the constant chattering of the Dolphins as well as the Whale Song.

I took a group of fellow paddlers over to North Stradbroke early in the season this year for a long weekend of Whale Watching.  A couple of us got away a day early as the weather was looking perfect - the video below shows us paddling along with a couple of whales off Point Lookout.

What's in a name?

Ever get a nickname you couldn't outrun? Well it happened to me about 3 years ago and now all my paddling buddies call me "sharkbait".  Not a name to inspire beginners to push their boundaries and come off-shore with me.

I should state that sharks are inquisitive creatures and don't usually need to give your gel-coat a touch-up to determine that you are not food (i.e. repeat after me: Kayakers are friends, not food....).  I blame the skeg on my brand new Nordkapp flapping around like a wounded fish and not my paddling imitating a wounded seal!

In defense of the shark, it was prime feeding time, the water was murky and the shark may have been vision impaired.  What you are looking at in the picture above is where two rows of the said sharks teeth broke through the gel-coat and embedded themselves in the fibreglass.

The shark attacked from underneath the boat, hitting behind the cockpit and lifting the boat and myself out of the water.  It held the boat firmly for a few seconds before allowing me to paddle out of its mouth (had a nice set of scratches down both sides of the kayak).  I didn't get a look at the shark as I was making sure that I was going to stay upright and all my paddling buddy saw was the large swirl of the shark disappearing back to the depths.

So what can you take from this experience?  It was a mistaken hit and the shark let me go after realising this, the likelihood of this happening again is very rare, and a name...

'The Jetty', Boreen Point

Had a relaxing weekend away with the extended family at Lake Cootharaba, just a short drive North West of Noosa.  'The Jetty' accommodation is on the shoreline at Boreen Point, and apart from weekends and school holidays, it is a sleepy lakeside village with picturesque views of the tea-tree lake.

Whilst mainly home to the sailing fraternity, this lake offers some great paddling with access to the Noosa Everglades and the Upper-Noosa river which hosts a range of secluded campsites for those wanting to get away for a weekend or longer.

After an early morning training paddle on the lake, we loaded the boards and headed for the Eastern Surf beach for some fun small waves.

Another classic winters day in SE Queensland!

201308 Boreen Point from Paul 'Sharkbait' Wilton on Vimeo.

Moreton Island Day Paddle

There aren't too many parts of the world where you can be in the water all year round, but here in South-East Queensland is one of them.  I surfed through winter this year using a long-sleeve 2mm wetshirt.  I cycle every day and only used long fingered gloves once.  The video link below shows some shots from a day trip to Moreton Island taken during winter this year.

The only problem with a day trip to Moreton, is that you don't want to leave.



2013 Moreton Day Trip from Paul 'Sharkbait' Wilton on Vimeo.