Victor Harbour

We left Hahndorf with a heavy heart.  But our hearts were pumping with joy for what awaits us today.

South Australia is home to acres of rolling vineyards.  Sadly, this is not the right season to visit the orchards and winery.  Nevertheless, we enjoyed the gorgeous views along the way.   Roughly an hour and fifteen minutes scenic drive from Hahndorf, we arrived at Victor Harbour and stopped by at McDonald for lunch.  This was our first McD in Australia.  

While waiting for our tour to begin, we saw this famous horse-drawn pram heading towards Granite Island.  The horse is gorgeous!!!

 

Excitement was in the air as we were about to embark on a spectacular ocean adventure - whale watching.  Unfortunately, Audrey could not join us as she is prone to seasick.  The tour departs from Granite Island Causeway.  There were 10 of us on the speedboat.  As we headed into the open water, everyone was in high spirits and eager to set sail.  The speedboat plunges into the sea and glided effortlessly through the wave.  I was already feeling chilly before that.  Now with its high speed, every bit of me was fighting the icy breeze as the cold wind caressed my face.  However, it was not so with my two kiddos.  They were overwhelmed with exhilaration.  Well, if you are a lover for some thrill ride like roller coaster, I am sure our ride by speedboat is similar to it.  The kids simply loved it!  

Our first stop was the Seal Rock where you may be up close watching the seals and sea lions as they bask on the rocks.  It was difficult to spot them though as they camouflage so well amongst the rocks.  The wave was pretty rough and it was a good 10 minutes before we proceeded to the next stop.  The cold, the wave... Now I was glad that I didn’t have a heavy lunch at McD. 

The boat circled slowly at that vicinity for awhile, covering Wright Island, The Bluff, West Island and Waitpinga Cliff.  The boat often came to a complete stop, allowing us plenty of time to get giddy (Of course, that’s not the purpose!!!).  But the choppy oceans wave and the rocking boat was certainly getting on my nerves.  As for the rest, it was a perfect time to snap hundreds of photos.  The tour guide cum driver enlightened us with interesting information about these marine mammals.  

Our tour carried on in search for dolphins.  However, they were no where to be found.  That’s the thing about searching for these creatures in their natural habitat.  It is never a guarantee that they will show up and say ‘hi’ to you.  Our exasperation soon turned into joy when we finally caught sight of them.  We got out from our seats and stood along the side of the boat, trying to catch a glimpse of these lovely aquatic mammals.  Every time these stunning creatures surfaced, there was a ripple of ecstasy amongst the passengers.  They swam around our boat as though they knew we were there for them.   Hubby took over as the cameraman as yours sincerely was feeling really nauseate by now. 

We spent quite some time watching the dolphins and finally back to the harbour as there were no whales spotted that day.  It was rather disappointing.  This would probably be our very first and last whale watching tour.  Not only it is quite pricey, the rough wave is terrifying enough for me not to venture into this kind of exploration again.  Nevertheless, we were privilege to spot seals, dolphins, seabirds and sea lions.  We even sighted a wild mountain goat at a rocky island.  Wonder how it got there???

We had lunch at Original Victor Harbour Fish Shop.  While waiting for our food, there was a shower of rain.  This was the first rainy day after we landed in Australia.  How blessed are we!!  We ordered three plates of fish and chips.  After all, it’s a Fish Shop right?  There are different types of fish to choose from.  Honestly, we are not an expert in fish.  But one may easily gauge the quality of the fish by its price.

Next, we visited the Whale Centre.  We thoroughly enjoyed every single minute there.  There are plenty of educational material on whales and marine life.  Kids are given a leaflet whereby they needed to find answers to the questions.  And upon completion, each of them gets a small gift.  It was a washable temporary tattoo with the logo of the Whale Centre.  Of course, this was not done without Daddy’s help.

HELP!!!

Look how gigantic it is - the tail bone of a whale

Captain Erwyn

This arch is made from whale's bones

Archeologists in the making

Finally, we retreated to our ‘home’ at Victor Harbour Beachfront Holiday Park to rest and chill.  The 2-bedroom cabin is fully equipped with all necessities.  The park offers fantastic facilities like jumping pillow, heated pool and a waterpark with slides.

Our neighbours - lots of caravans

laundry time

Last but not least, we had dinner at Caffe Primo.  Audrey and I had pizza and I enjoyed every bite of it.  Children had chicken snitchzle and Andrew some chicken dish with cheese (he will order anything with cheese).

With that, we retired for the night