As mother and calf humpback whale pairs made their slow way towards the Antarctic, an Illawarra family of the land-dwelling variety looked on, in wonder.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Albion Park photographer Glenn Fenwick has been photographing the whales’ annual migration for the past five years.
On Sunday he was at Bass Point with wife Michelle and children Sam, 12 and Ashley, 9, when a humpback and her calf gave a 15-minute lesson in synchronised swimming.
The Fenwicks spent two hours at the point, observing five different whale families from breathtakingly close distance.
”This is the most we’ve seen for quite a few years and it’s the closest that they’ve been coming to shore,” said Mr Fenwick.
“When the whales are in their southern migration, I drop everything to follow them and try to get the perfect shot. We can go from Hill 60 at Port Kembla to Barrack Point to Bass Poing and even to Kiama in a day, following particularly active pods. But some days we will just sit and picnic on the grass at Bass Point and marvel as these wonderful creatures pass and put on an awesome display for us.
“My wife’s as crazy about them as I am. The kids enjoy seeing them close and enjoy seeing them breach but otherwise they’ve seen them so often now they go, ‘oh yeah, another whale’.”