Birds and Things

4.45 Up and out – pick up R & S at Rob’s place. Unfortunately I woke early and arrived at Rob’s at 4.15 instead of 5.15… no lights on?? Oh Shit – back home & to bed again - not a very intelligent start to a day that just got worse…
Once again up and out and off we went at 5.15. Stopped at Mackers at Southport for breakfast - at the dock at 6.20. Onto the boat, wait for a few late arrivals and out through the seaway at 7.00. The forecast is for ‘increasing winds 25-30 knots early afternoon’. Not too bad heading out – much more cloud cover than expected, which kept the heat down. A few Wedge-tailed Shearwaters as we travelled and, unusually, several kms out to sea, a pair of Whistling Kites flying landwards. Further on a black and white shearwater was spotted sitting on the surface, motoring slowly over we managed to get within camera range and it was eventually diagnosed as a Hutton’s Shearwater after some extended debate relating to the amount of white v black on the armpit and underwing. the final decider was the amount of white on the flanks in front of the tail and how high up it came. It always seems to be more difficult to identify shearwaters at close quarters than when they are at a distance!
We headed on a slightly north-easterly direction and stayed just within sight of Q1 – not as far out as we normally go. Drifting and burleying with chunks of the biggest shark liver we had ever seen, we had a fly past Wilson’s Storm-petrel, a few (4) Black-bellied Storm-petrels and finally about 6 Providence Petrels. In the distance a couple of Hump-backed Whales breached and tail slapped and a probable Minke Whale also jumped heading in the opposite direction.
The birds were a bit thin on the water so we headed south for some unknown reason for over an hour, stopping again to burley more liver and other offal for very little result.
Finally at 13.00 it was announced we would head in and that it would take ‘3 hours at 7 knots’ and that it would be wet and rough. At this stage most of us were comparatively dry, but it was already clearly rough with the boat standing on one side on several occasions. It only became worse and within 30 minutes 4 people were vomiting and most of us – unable or unwilling to crowd into the stuffy cabin - were soaked.
I was among them. I haven’t been so sick since the early eighties – well sea sick anyway…
I just wanted to die. I curled up in a corner of the deck, soaking wet, my stomach clenching and unclenching until there was nothing left and then clenching again. Whenever I lifted my head above the gunwale, land was still distantly vague with the wave tops alternating with the sky. I threw up, threw up and, again, threw up. I contemplated a helicopter - I would have paid the $900 to get off the bleeding boat. Waves irregularly broke over the bow and across the roof, to spill down onto my recumbent shivering form. My head, braced against the side of the boat, lifted and banged down again as the hull twisted and turned. Why we had stayed out so far for so long was beyond me.
A Brown Booby and a couple of Gannets raised some interest, but after a bleary-eyed look I succumbed once again.
We finally passed through the entrance to the seaway at 16.15 and I swore I would never go on another Southport pelagic. Others elsewhere – maybe, but land based seawatching it is for me if I can avoid the boat trips.
We staggered off the dock, light headed and queasy. R & S had not been sick, but R had been very close and he joined me in swearing off any future trips.
We filled our empty stomachs – mine especially – with thickshakes, cheese burgers and fries – thank God for Mackers, its quick, its easy and you know what you’re getting – and headed home.
Seabirds are my favourites but, I won’t be going on anymore Southport pelagics.