The Whale Watch Regulations

ese regulations were created for the protection of the Humpback whales and must be observed by all vessels in the Hervey Bay Marine Park.

In simple terms they are:

• Do not approach within 100 metres of any whale
• Do not approach within 300 metres if three or more vessels are within 300 metres of that whale,
• Do not approach a whale head on
• Do not herd, chase or otherwise prevent the free movement of whales and
• do not separate a group of whales or come between a mother and her calf.

And within 300 metres of a whale, a boat skipper shall:

• Manoeuvre constantly at less than 4 knots
• Avoid sudden changes of direction
• Allow motors to idle before stopping and raise outboards idle motors before moving off slowly until 300 metres away
• Abandon contact at any sign of a whale becoming disturbed or alarmed.

These Regulations simply add up to:

Do not harass, disturb or interfere with the whales, keep the required distances, don't "park" your vessel in the path of whales and don't "accidentally" drift towards them. And of course, don't try to feed them and don't throw anything overboard. There is also a 30 metres approach limit for swimmers, but a much sounder advise is NOT to swim with the animals.