The Tour Specialists Tour Blog

Dwarf Minke Whales have been spotted!!!

  Head shot of a Dwarf Minke Whale courtesy of Mike Ball Dive Expeditions.

Once again the Dwarf Minke whales have returned to the Tropical Waters near Cairns.  This very exciting time is a part of the whale’s annual seasonal migration.

Dwarf Minke Whales spend up to 3 to 4 months on the Great Barrier Reef each year.  Mike Ball Dive Expeditions has been the first operator this year to spot the whales back in April.  All on board were treated to the whales display of close passes and roll overs, which is all part of there typical behavior.

Mike Ball has been running Minke Whale expeditions since 1996 to the reefs north of Cooktown.  In conjunction with leading cetacean researchers, government agencies and other operators they have evolved a Swim with the Minke Whale Programme. This programme has minimal impact on the whales and allows them to approach people within the whales comfort zone.  Minke Whale’s have a natural curiosity and this provides for a close and spectacular encounter.

The dwarf minke whales usually start there annual migration from Victoria to Northern Queensland from March to October with the maximum sighting on the Northern Great Barrier Reef in June and July.

In June and July Mike Ball Dive Expeditions conduct special Minke Whale Expeditions with the second day of the trip devoted to finding and snorkelling and or diving with Minke Whales.  Since 1996 Mike Ball’s trips have had a 98 percent success rate. The largest pod they have seen was 28 whales and the longest encounter was 10 hours.

Mike Ball Dive Expeditions provide both a 3 and 4 night Minke Whale Expedition and according to Mike Ball are only 1 of 9 operators that have Whale Permits in the world to swim with these magnifcent mammals.

For further information about these great trips please email us at info@thethourspecialists.com as these trips are very popular and an amazing opportunity to see these wonderful creatures so close!

For more about tours to the Great Barrier Reef, please visit The Tour Specialists