There is always a luck of the draw element when going out to sea, and this day we certainly hit the jackpot! We started off our tour by hugging the coastline and taking a stop at Slashfin, the boat of our sister company Marine Dynamics. Here, we got a few views of a Copper Shark who surfaced in front of their cage. We spent some time waiting for the shark to come up and after catching a couple of sights, we decided to head off towards our island systems.
On the way, we picked up some kelp with a juvenile Cape Rock Crab taking refuge between the fronds. We spoke a bit about the kelp forests growing along the reef systems before travelling into an area called Sponge Bay where we got to see some African Penguins. We watched through our binoculars as one little guy did some waddling up the pebbles before cruising into Shark Alley. In Shark Alley, we were greeted with the sight of 60 000 playful ocean Labradors and spent the next while here, taking in the expanse of Pinnipeds.
Once we’d had our fill, we set out in search of some more wildlife in deeper waters. We traversed the outskirts of the bay before beginning to make our way back towards the harbour. This is when the magic started, with an Ocean Sunfish. With great visibility under the water, we were able to watch as this massive bony fish drifted past us, most probably in search of some Box Jellyfish. We’d seen some Box Jellies a little earlier on in the tour, so we were hopeful that he might find a meal.
As we were watching the Sunfish, Kira’s eagle eyes spotted something even more spectacular. A pod of around 50 Common Dolphins began to make a b-line for the boat, ready to have a whale of a time hanging out with us. Once these stunning creatures caught up with the boat, they began to bow ride and whistle, to the elation of all aboard. As we travelled with the dolphins, we were also witness to the incredible sight that is echolocation in action. We watched as the dolphins caught up with 2 small schools of fish, obliterating both within minutes and sending fish scattering, some through the air. As a guide, I’ve never seen a hunt quite like this before and it is safe to say that by the time of our return, we were all on cloud 9.
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