We’ve recently returned from Cape Town where we had our annual SABBWWA (South African Boat-Based-Whale-Watching Association) AGM, the next day a meeting at MCM (Marine and Coastal Management) discussing the future of boat-based-whale-watching, and then the 3^rd day Danie saw Mike Meyer the whole day and was trained about what Mike and the research team wanted Danie to do throughout the season on the Humpback Whales.

It’s an intricate very interesting subject, and I’m first trying to get hold of a graphic designer so that I can ask that person to draw the continents and explain how scientist and marine biologists have taken data from various areas over 10years (Danie contributed 93% of all the data ) on Humpback whales’ slooth skin, DNA samples and photographic identification etc., put this together and within the next 5-10years they want to establish from the breeding ground of the Antarctic where exactly which family group of Humpbacks migrate too.

This research project is headed by the IWC (International Whaling Commission), and Danie together with the scientists from Marine and Coastal Management, Mike Meyer, Deon Kotze and Herman Oosthuizen will be co-authors in this research project.

WHALE WATCHING will start in about the next 3-4 days as soon as we have confirmation of the first Humpback Sightings.

THROUGHOUT THE SEASON PLEASE SUPPORT A LEGAL-BOAT-BASED-WHALE-WATCHING, as in the event of any accident whatsoever no client has any claim if he/she was booked on an illegal operator. The client is entitled to sue the establishment who booked him/her on an illegal vessel in case of any accident. We cannot stress enough the fact that throughout whale season so many so-called ocean adventure activities start running tours out to sea who haven’t been operating between December and now, and they attempt to approach whales up close.

In our offices is brochures of the other legal boat-based-whale-watching operators along the Cape Coast if you need to direct a client in that direction when our weather turns fowl.

DRESS CODE for the winter’s whale trips:

• warm jacket for the upper body ( we do supply additional raincoats and life jackets )
• comfortable shoes ( or bare feet )  - please DO NOT arrive on the beach with expensive shoes
• bottle of water/juice and packet of biscuits
• towel
• tissues ( you often find you have a runny nose whilst on the boat )
• seasick tablet ( if need be )
• we do guarantee splashes and sea spray ( he he ), so please no jewelery, cell phones, watches – camera and video camera’s on own risk ( we do make a DVD of your entire trip, which you can purchase from the WHALE OFFICE about an hour or two after your trip )

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO KEEP IN TOUCH IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS – I bought an awesome informative book on whales, whale watching and whale hunting that was banned in the 1970’s , and as soon as it arrives from London I’ll be making copies of the educational wall in the WHALE OFFICE and the ADVANTAGE TOURS office. There is SO much very interesting information which you never thought of, but this is also part of the educational information given to the clientèle on board the Whale Watching Tour by Danie, Bien or Berno whilst they’re conducting the tours.