Perth to Broome, Part 2.

The World Heritage Listed Ningaloo Coast is home to the 260 km long Ningaloo Reef.  One of the world’s largest fringing coral reefs and one of only two on the western side of a continent, the Ningaloo Reef boasts exceptional marine biodiversity (including some rare species) and is quite the colorful contrast to the arid and rugged coastline.  In many locations, the reef is close enough to the shore that snorkelers can easily reach it after a short swim from the beach.  No two hour boat rides to reach the reef, as you need with the Great Barrier Reef.  The Ningaloo Reef sees far less visitors than the GBR, and the environment remains largely intact. 

One of the highlights of Ningaloo Reef is that it draws the largest known aggregration (300-500) whale sharks for a few months each year.  The world’s biggest fish is this filter feeding shark.  Whale sharks visit Ningaloo Reef after the massive coral spawning around March/April and hang around until July, feeding on the abundant plankton (and perhaps some small fish that enter their astonishingly large gaping mouths).  Surprisingly given their size, not everything is known about the whale sharks, especially their breeding habits.  The whale sharks that visit Ningaloo are all youngish males, typically with lengths of 4 to 9 meters.  The largest observed whale shark (unofficially) was 18 meters long!  They are believed to live 70-100 years.  The white spot pattern on their grayish skin is unique to each shark, serving as an identifier.

Because these slow-moving gentle giants come close to the surface to feed on plankton and pose little threat to humans, it is possible to swim/snorkel with them.  Not wanting to miss out on this unique experience to see this vulnerable species, I booked the optional activity of an eco-friendly whale shark snorkeling cruise out of Coral Bay.  As it was nearing the end of the whale shark season, there was less of a guarantee of seeing one. 

We started off the morning with a ‘practice’ snorkel inside the reef.  The colors and diversity was quite impressive (perhaps even better than the GBR), and I regretted not having an underwater camera with me.  Although if I had one, I might have been too focused on taking photos and have missed the turtle that zoomed by me.  It actually took my breath away!  With all turtle-related volunteer work I did in Australia, it felt rewarding to finally see one swimming underwater.  Only a few minutes later, I noticed that some other snorkelers were trailing a different slow-moving turtle.  I joined the followers and witnessed it flying majestically through the water.  I’m sure I would have had a big grin on my face if I didn't think it would cause water to leak into my mask… it was awesome.

After that pleasing start, it was time to head out to the deeper waters in search of whale sharks.  With its broad head, the whale shark has a distinct body outline that can be seen from the air when it’s near the surface.  The boats (one each from two companies that day) employ a spotter plane that scans the waters and alerts the boats of the locations of any whale sharks.  One three occasions, the pilot gave us the coordinates, only each time we got there the shark had already descended and failed to return to the surface again.  Meanwhile, the humpback whales in the area were giving us an impressive show.  The crew said they rarely saw this much activity from the whales – heaps of breaching and flipper or tail slapping.  So much that it was almost becoming boring to watch… after all we were out there to see a whale shark.  As the day drew on with only failed attempts, we were starting to lose hope.  We had traveled to the most northern part that the boat will cover.

With time nearly out, one more communication came from the pilot.  Another whale shark had been spotted.  We prepared ourselves again.  Here is the first group waiting patiently at the back of the boat.

 

Only this time was successful!  This whale shark stayed at the surface.  I was little nervous that I might miss out as they let the other boat go first and I was already in the second group on my boat.  Once the boat crew spots the shark, they lined up ahead of it and drop off the snorkelers directly in its path.  Once we are in the water, we look in the water to spot the shark coming straight toward us and then split into two groups on either side.  According to regulations, we must be at least 3 meters away from the shark and 4 meters away from its powerful swinging tail.  Our shark was 5.5 meters long, accompanied by several remoras.  It was moving slowly enough that we could swim along with it for a few minutes before being collected by the boat.  On my second turn, we watched him fade into the deep blue abyss as he barely swam and slowly sunk. 

Back on the boat, we compared experiences and hung out a little longer in case he returned to the surface soon.  The humpback whales seemed to join in the celebration by putting on their closest show yet.

 

The shark came up again, and everyone had one final turn in the water.  Again, my group was lucky to watch the whale shark slowly disappear into the depths below.  Definitely worth the wait.  And to top the whole cruise off, we were briefly joined by some dolphins on our way back to shore.

The tour next headed up to Exmouth, the more common base for exploring the Ningaloo Coast.  Exmouth was started as an American submarine base in WWII.  In the 1960’s, the U.S. installed the Very Low Frequency (VFL) communications facility, consisting of 13 towers (shown in the photo below) in two concentric rings each 304 to 387 meters high (the Eiffel tower is 324 meters tall) .  I heard that when the facility transmits a signal, it takes a quarter of the energy used by the entire state of WA (though I haven’t verified the numbers).  The facility was renamed after Harold E. Holt, the Prime Minister who disappeared while swimming in the waters off the Mornington Peninsula (see previous post) three months after it was commissioned.  There has been some controversy in its existence, but now Australia and the U.S. have a bilateral treaty for joint use.

 

While that is an engineering feat, I think I was more impressed by the beauty of Turquoise Bay in Cape Range National Park where we spent the morning.  We snorkeled over the coral just meters from the shore for one more chance to experience the beauty of the Ningaloo Reef and soak up some sun before heading inland for a few days.