Today (Thursday, 26 September) is my Dolphin Feeding and Whale Watching Day. We boarded our catamaran out to the resort island and departed around 10:00am. It was a nice cruise, especially because I ended up sitting next to Judith (also traveling along this day) and we chatted pretty much the entire way.
Tangalooma Island Resort was originally a whaling station on the west side of Moreton Island. The work tangalooma is the aboriginal word meaning "where the fish gather". It lies on the eastern shore of Moreton Bay and is known for its resort, its sand dunes, its wreck diving, and its dolphin feeding program. Moreton National Park covers 98% of the island, and the waters nearby are protected as the Moreton Bay Marine Park. The island itself is, according to our guide, 98% sand covered. It is also on the migration path of the humpback whale, and I am lucky to be here during that period of the year. We arrived about 11:15, and got off the boat.
About 20 minutes later we got back on the boat to leave for out whale-watching cruise. We saw quite a few, starting while actually still in the bay. I got a kick out of the Kookaburra, who landed on the sign just as I was walking by!
After a couple of hours, we returned to the resort, and those of us on the day trip had about 4+ hours to enjoy a bit of 'island life'', sitting on the beach, or walking, or checking out the Eco-Center, or grabbing a bite to eat or a drink....
Then came a true highlight of the day. Fun for children of all ages - wild dolphin feeding! (Make sure to bring clothes you don't mind getting wet in, and maybe some dry clothes for after.) We lined up in several spots on the beach, and multiple wild dolphins showed up. We learned that the maximum amount of feeding they get at this event is 20% of what they need to survive, so they still continue to hunt their food to survive. Because of the number of people doing the event, on this day 2 people shared a fish to feed one of the dolphins.
Once the feeding starts, a staff member for each line of guests took two people at a time out to the feeing area (up to our waists for many of us) and the dolphin comes up and takes the fish. It was kind of amazing and fun!
After the wild dolphin feeding, it was time to get back on the boat and then home to Brisbane, and in my case a taxi to my hotel.
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