Nearly 300 whales were noted passing South West Rocks on whale census day.
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The count of the mammals is held as part of a citizen science activity hosted by the Organisation for the Rescue and Research of Cetaceans (ORRCA).
The census day provides information about the number of whales up and down the coast.
Members of the Gladstone CWA Evening Branch got together for another year of counting whales off the coast of South West Rocks as part of the ORRCA whale census.
On Sunday, June 25, the women gathered at Smoky Cape Lighthouse with prime conditions for whale spotting.
"We were extremely lucky to have absolutely beautiful weather," member Jaquie Brett said.
"We've been counting whales for three years now and it's a day we all look forward to."
The CWA members rose early counting their first whales at 6am with a final count of 239 marked down at 3pm.
Hat Head also saw a large number of whales on the humpback highway, with a few whales joining a pod of dolphins at one point. About 347 humpbacks and 44 dolphins were recorded in 10.5 hours.
The Hat Head crew recorded the first whale at 6.21am and the last whale at 4.43pm. The whales were reportedly still travelling north as the members left.
A record number of whales were sighted migrating up the NSW coast during the annual census.
More 5,092 predominantly humpback whales were reportedly sighted on Sunday, up by 1,847 from last year.
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