On day 36 we went to Rockingham, which is the next town along from Mandurrah on the way towards Perth. We had booked to do a dolphin swim there the next day and basically we went there to check out how the get to the meeting place so we didn't miss it. We were going to be a bit tight on time and as they would take our money for the swim even if we missed it, we couldn't afford to be late. It was quite easy to find though in the end, and we managed to work out all the buses we needed to get and everything.

While we were there though we thought we might as well have a look around the place and some of the other things they had to do. They have a lot of 'wild encounter' things there, like the dolphins and also seals, but we decided to go and see Penguin Island. Luckily it was a nice day and quite hot already. We got the ferry across the sea to the island, and had a look around there for about an hour before we got the ferry back. We couldn't stay for long as the flies there were so bad they were driving us crazy! It's hard to explain as we don't really get anything like that in England, but there are hundreds of them everywhere and they keep flying for your eyes, mouth and ears constantly. They were much worse on the island than anywhere else we have been. Anyway, it was really nice there and good to have a look around for a bit. They have loads of birds and lizards, pelicans and, obviously, penguins. The penguins that live there are called little penguins, and they are the smallest kind in the world. Apparantly they are really shy though, and although loads do live in on the island, we had to go to the discovery centre to see them as you wouldn't get the chance to in the wild. They were really cute though. There were also some really nice beaches on the island too.

After lunch though we headed back to Mandurah. We decided not to bother spending the night in Rockingham as it isn't really that far away. We had to get up very, very early the next morning though to go back again. The bus we needed to get left Mandurah at 6.00 am, which meant I had to get up at about 5. It was a bit of a struggle to say the least. It was definitely well worth it though, because the dolphin swim was brilliant, and I had wanted to do something like that for ages. Also, the one we did seemed like a really good one to choose. It was called a wild encounter with the dolphins because none of the ones we swam with were tame or in captivity, like on most dolphin swims you see on offer. All of them were completley wild and they weren't fed by the guides, which was great because you knew when they came up to you it was because they actually wanted to. Also they said that dolphins in captivity live a lot less than the ones in the wild so it was good to do it that way.

We met the boat at the jetty at about 7.30. There were about 30 people altogether on the trip, which was more than I had expected but we still had loads of room as it was a big boat. There were quite a few members of crew as well, about 7 in total. They ran through a bit of saftey information and talked about what we might see in the water, and then we left. The tour didn't have a set time limit, as it depended how quickly they could find the dolphins. Obviously as they are wild, they have to ride around for as long as it takes to find some suitable to swim with. Our tour lasted for just over 4 hours, and luckily it was a good tour so we didn't have to wait long before we could go in the water. Some can last for a lot longer than that. I had to wear wetsuits though, which were a complete nightmare. I hadn't ever had to wear one before and they were so hard to get on. It made me all hunched over and hurt my back a bit to, but I think it was because mine was a bit too short for me believe it or not. They meant that the water didn't feel that cold when we went in the sea though so I'm glad I wore one.

The way the swim worked was that we were split into groups and we each had a dive guide with us. They had these motorised engine things, that they could hold in the hand and were sort of like the things on the back of the boats but much smaller. When we were in the water we had to make a line and hold on to each other's belts, then they dragged us through the water pulled by the motors. Basically the reason they did it like this was because a lot of noise and movement in the water could scare off the dophins. As we could all stay really still it meant they were much more likely to come close to us. We had snorkels on too so we could see underneath and watch them all really well. Also the water was really clear that day so we could get a good view. I know Justin wanted to go off on his own and didn't really like doing it that way, but if there were 30 people splashing around at once we wouldn't have much chance of seeing anything.

We did manage to see loads and loads of dolphins in the end though and it was so good! They have been operating the tours in that bay for years and years, but they have only just started swimming with the dolphins we swam with very recently. That didn't seem to stop them coming close to us though. A couple swam right underneath me a few times. We saw them feeding and chasing fish too, and generally messing around. Also there was baby one there too with it's mum! We managed to go in the water a lot, but even when we were taking turns we still managed to see alot of them at the surface from the boat. It was a shame I couldn't get any pictures of them but obviously I couldn't when we were in the water, and everytime I got my camera out on the boat I missed them so I gave up. I was a bit annoyed as I managed to miss the last swim. I went to the toilet and it took me about 15 mins to get my wet wetsuit back on. Once I was ready it was time to go back! On the way back the captain made loads of waves from the back of the boat, and we could see all the dolphins surfing on them. It was so much fun and I'm really glad that we did it. One of the best things we have done here so far - definetly!