Thierings on Tour

Of all the days to wake up with a hangover, today was not ideal! I felt rotten and very silly for not starting my 40s with a bit more wisdom and self-control to not drink so much the night before… silly mama! But nothing was going to stop me from finally swimming with the sea lions…

We packed up the van and headed out to Baird Bay for our long anticipated Baird Bay Experience of swimming with the sea lions and dolphins, which our trip besties the O’Bergs had recommended. It was a short enough trip and before we knew it we were getting suited and booted ready to go on the boat.

The girls had a thermal rash top and double wetsuits, because the temperature was said to be 15C. At least today wasn’t windy and there was even a bit of sun out. The adults just got thermal rash tops and thick wetsuits…

We were all excited and luckily there was only one other person booked in for the tour. After a short boat ride we were at the island, which is a sanctuary for the sea lions. Olivia helped us in the water and gave us some instructions on what to expect and shortly after we were in the water with the sea lions approaching in no time.

The big girls and I jumped in first while Chris stayed on the boat with Scarly. Luckily the water was crystal clear so she had a perfect view of the sea lions playing and swimming from the boat without needing to get in. You can completely understand why they are called the puppies of the ocean.

They were doing tumbles and flips underwater, zooming past us and chasing each other. It was so fun to observe and I felt incredibly lucky to be sharing the ocean with these cuties. 

The girls loved seeing the sea lions, but it was a bit harder for them to move around as the wetsuits made them so buoyant swimming was hard, whereas the adults could walk on the sea floor quite easily. Jazzy also got cold quite quickly, so was happy to jump out after a while and put her jacket & beanie on and observe from the boat with Scarly.

Chris got to check out the sea lions and we both got to see some of the bigger adult females and males as they made their way into the water. The baby sea lions have the funniest, high pitched, tone deaf call for their mums and we kept hearing it from the island. 

We learnt that the local colony is thriving and increasing its population compared to other colonies in the wild. Also, the difference between sea lions and seals is their ability to use their hind flippers as legs and to rotate their back fully as well as having flaps over their ears, rather than just ear holes. They also seem to be much more social & cute, which we certainly got to experience today!

Jumping out of the water was a scary thought as we knew it would be cold! Luckily there was some warm Milo and snacks waiting for us on the boat. 

Then it was time to head to the second location for the day, where we would be swimming with dolphins. We got a quick briefing and then it was back in the water, a much deeper location and the water was a lot murkier too, but the dolphins came and were so curious and playful too! Ahhhhh, so amazing to explore the water with all these incredible water creatures. 

The girls didn’t want to hop in the water here as they didn’t want to get cold again, but luckily once more, they had a great view from the boat and loved the dolphin experience nonetheless! 

Chris and I got to have two goes at experiencing the dolphins zooming past us as they feed in the channel. There were some baby dolphins in the pod and they were even cuter. You really had to be quick at looking in all directions as there were so many and they would zoom past in all directions. It was honestly so special! A very happy birthday treat indeed. 

Back on the boat we got to observe the pod a bit more and as we started heading back we witnessed a sea eagle and gull having a fight in the air, then a sea lion joining the dolphin pod as they swam along the boat. A successful day on the water!

We were so happy to have a warm shower back at the centre and to get out of our wetsuits. All rugged up we got treated to a delicious lunch cooked by the onsite chef. I can’t believe I forgot to take a photo, but the food was sensational… different types of dish, poppies, various gourmet salads and homemade three-times cooked chips. We ate and ate and then got to enjoy a delicious crème caramel for dessert. 

The tour itself is incredible, but the food honestly takes it to another level! We were so lucky to have had this magical day 🙂

Everyone was pretty tired as we got back into the car and we decided to not go as far, so we could just relax and chill for a couple of hours. We made it to Elliston and had an easy afternoon relaxing, catching up on some washing and drying and of course, more footy ball throwing and catching.

Kms travelled – 181