The Secret Life of Whales?

One of the books I'm reading right now is Herman Melville's 'Moby-Dick'.

I had no interest in ever reading it until a few years ago when I saw Ron Howard's movie 'In the Heart of the Sea', about the inspiration and events that led Melville to write the novel. 

'In the Heart of the Sea' stars Byron Bay local Chris Hemsworth as Owen Chase (Get it? OWE & CHASE?-).

Looking back now, it was seeing that movie that set me off on my trip to Tasmania and a visit to the ex-whaling town of Eden in the south of New South Wales -
The Killers and Whales of the New South Wales Coast

It was while visiting Eden that I learned of the town's history as a whaling town and the legend of the Killer Whales that helped local whalers hunt for whales.
Of course, there is no hunting for whales in the modern whale watching town of Eden now, though the history and bones of the Killer Whales can still be seen in the fascinating museum in Eden.

The thing is that Byron Bay was also a whaling town until last century and Tallow Beach got its name because whales were cut up on that beach.

You won't find this in Eden though:-)

My souvenir from the Eden Whale Museum

The more I read about whales and whaling the more the story of 'Moby-Dick' fascinated me until I decided to go out to sea and see a real whale for myself -
Successful Whale Watching Thought Experiment ... or Just a Big Coincidence?

Whale watching off the coast of
Redcliffe, Queensland, Australia

Not satisfied with just seeing any whale after my whale watching day on the bay, I vowed to go after the big white one, Migaloo the albino humpback whale that travels up and down the east coast of Australia, and get a good firsthand look at it.
Then I see yesterday in the news that Migaloo has snuck right by me.
And to add insult to injury I'm spending the next weekend down in Byron Bay.
Doh!  

Now I'll have to catch him on his way back down the coast.
Then I see this sad Killer Whale news story today.

And I can't help thinking about a podcast I listened to a few months back about a lady who saw some whales actually giving birth -
What the whales know: how humpbacks thrive in Australian waters

Great another book about whales that I'm sure is going to end up next to my copy of 'Moby-Dick' on my bookshelf.

At least there was some good whale news I saw this week with Iceland stopping its Minke whaling.

"The controversial hunt for minke whales in Iceland has come to end after declining profits led to the local industry closing, the International Fund for Animal Welfare said on Friday.
Only six minke whales were caught in June and none in July - usually the peak month for hunting - out of a quota of 262, the IFAW said in a statement.
It was the smallest number since Iceland resumed whaling in 2003, with 17 animals caught last summer, and 46 in 2016.
The head of whaling company IP-Utgerd Ltd, Gunnar Jonsson, confirmed to AFP that hunting has stopped.
"We need to go much farther from the coast than before, so we need more staff, which increases costs," he told the Morgunbladid newspaper."

Migaloo the white whale

But rest ashore ... I mean rest assured Migaloo that after I've read 'Moby-Dick' I'm coming to lock my eyes on you, if it's the last thing I do;-)

I kept wondering why a ship sailing under a full moon on the back of my 'Moby-Dick' book looked familiar then it clicked.

A street artist I saw when I was down in Byron Bay last year painted the above piece of art in front of me -

An Arrow, I Awake

If you see a Storm-trooper on the streets of
Byron Bay it means it's going to rain;-)

You just never know what white things you'll see walking around the streets of Byron Bay on a winter's night ... or swimming around off the coast.

And while there are plenty of whale stories in the newspapers about saving the whales, maybe we should consider the lobster, too?-)

Consider the Lobster

I wonder if anyone has ever caught a white lobster before?-)