Day 61. Albany

Thar be whales... (and a little bit of drama on the high seas!)

Our morning view


This morning we bid farewell to our new grey nomad friends who have left for Denmark - before working their way up to Perth. We had a good night last night sharing stories with our friends (Bec also helped them with their own blog pages), and afterwards Scarlett, Bec and I went spotlighting and found a couple of bandicoots running around the caravan park. (They are back again tonight - the bandicoots that is!)

Today we went exploring in Albany's Whale World - a former Whaling Station that closed down in 1978, and we didn't return to the van until 5pm this afternoon. We learnt about the whaling industry of Australia's recent past, and also a bit about whale conservation in the process. Although some of the films shown were a little graphic; which we ensured Scarlett didn't see, there was a really good 3D film experience about whale species in general that Scarlett loved.

I wont go into any details, but whaling really was a gruesome business that I for one am glad has been banned in this country. The information provided, the guided tours, the displays and the working machinery were a real eye opener. Bec and I really enjoyed the day, although there was one major incident that almost ruined the day for everyone.



Scarlett and I had just boarded the ex-whale chaser 'Cheyne IV', which has been restored and placed on display, and what should happen; Scarlett tries to go ahead and go down a set of ladders by herself to the deck below. (I think she felt comfortable doing this as she had done a similar thing on the Brig 'Amity' a day or two ago).

Bec with a skeleton of a 'Pygmy Blue Whale'



How cool do we look?

Unfortunately this is where everything went horribly wrong! Scarlett slipped and fell from the top of the ladder all the way to the deck below - head first! All I could see was her hanging upside down as her right foot had somehow gotten caught in the hand rails and she was left dangling! Scarlett was screaming, and I was beside her in a flash to take her weight, help her out and release her foot! A guide soon arrived and assisted me in checking her out to see what damage there was, and luckily she has only suffered bruising and scratches - but I'm guessing by tomorrow she will have some serious bruising on her lower right jaw, and her right ankle! She also had a bump to the head, but she has since bounced back remarkably! I was calm and very reassuring during this incident, which I am sure Scarlett picked up on as she handled the whole situation very bravely, but afterwards I think I went into a little bit of shock as it all hit home that something terrible could of happened to my little girl! I never want to go through anything like this again.

Just a little sore...

Bec wasn't with us when this happened, as she was getting our lunches from the car at this time, but as soon as she returned I carried Scarlett over to Bec and told her the whole story. Bec was beside herself, but 'mothered' Scarlett (as you would expect) and was very understanding... I couldn't believe how quickly Scarlett bounced back. I was probably acting a little over protective by now, but Scarlett was running around in no time and playing in the playground with another little girl! She promised not to run - yeh right!

Anyway, after we got over it all, Scarlett wanted to visit the wildlife park that is part of Whale World, so we all went for a walk and checked out the animals! Afterwards, we all grabbed an ice cream from the cafe and then slowly made our way back to our van at Middleton Beach Caravan Park.



We stopped off at a couple of lookouts on the way back - and saw 'The Blow-Hole' that wasn't really working at all, checked out 'The Gap' and viewed the 'Natural Bridge'. All very spectacular, but we were getting a little weary and tired by now as we just wanted to lay down and relax.

The Gap

To save Bec cooking again, I decided to stop at 'The Squid Shack' where we have discovered some fantastic local seafood. We had salt and pepper squid, snapper fillets, and fresh squid rings with a side serve of chips. Fantastic! Bec thinks she has now found a rival to the Narellan Town Centre salt and pepper squid! the seafood here is delicious!

The Natural Bridge

This evening, Scarlett is playing with 3 x other little girls from a van a few sites across. She is having so much fun that we couldn't say no. Other than a few battle scars, Scarlett is acting as though nothing happened today! I wish I could say the same...

Towards the end of the day...