The coastal waters all along the Fleurieu Peninsula will soon become the playground of Southern Right Whales as they visit from their Antarctic waters to breed and raise their young, in this whale nursery area.

The most consistent coastline areas to see the whales are from Victor Harbor, Port Elliot, Middleton and Goolwa and anytime from now on you can be lucky enough to see them.

In celebration and to share the passion the Fleurieu community has for the protection and preservation of these creatures, as well as their marine environment and coastal landscapes, Winter Whale Fest will be on in Victor Harbor from the 26^th of May to 25^th of June.

A full program is planned during the month of the festival with some really special events and visitors including the incredible Valerie Taylor AM, ocean activist and ‘Queen of the Ocean’.

Valerie Taylor will be opening the ‘Water People’ art exhibition in the Coral Art Space in Victor Harbor which will feature visual arts, sculpture, written art and Ramindjeri/Ngarrindjeri stories in collaboration with Sydney based artist Timothy Johnston.

Valerie Taylor will speak on her recent work in supporting the protection of sea lions on Kangaroo Island and Hopkins Island and visitors will be able to buy signed copies of her children’s book ‘Melody the Mermaid: Adventures in the Kingdom of the Sea’ and her autobiography, ‘An Adventurous Life’.

Other events during the festival include screenings of movies including Free Willy and the Valerie Taylor story, walking tours of Granite Island, guided tours of the SA Whale Centre, paint and sip art workshops, citizen scientist programs, markets and more.

It’s bound to be a busy festival celebrating all things whales, so rug up and head down to the Fleurieu for whale watching and other fun activities.

The inaugural Water People exhibition opening is a free (booking needed) event on Friday 26^th of May at Coral Street Art Space in Victor Harbor from 5.30 – 7.30 pm. and all other events can be found on the program here.

Happy whale watching and I’ll see you out there!

Glenys