Alas, they were forced to do this:

Mother Nature it would seem has a healthy sense of humour.

She surely saw that tourism operators wanted to honour her Port Stephens’ marvels… before she turned the whole show on its head with wind, drizzle and choppy waters on Thursday morning. 

Instead of opening Naturefest astride a whale cruise boat Destination Port Stephens marketing manager stood huddled in Crest Cafe at Birubi.

“We were meant to be over at D’Albora Marina but the weather we feared might come about has,” he said.

Windswept guests were at once disappointed and relieved given the conditions outside. Instead of salt spray, the air inside the cafe was filled with the aroma of freshly ground coffee.

The complimentary pastries spread across a vast table would offer further comfort soon enough.

“Our natural beauty definitely speaks for itself,” Mr Eather continued.

“Naturefest helps demonstrate that we are a year round destination and to recognise that we’ve extended it to six weeks this year.

“It allows us to say, ‘hey, we’re open to business during winter as well’.

“If you look very closely you might see a whale… if you don’t you might have to jump on a tour.”

One of Port’s living tourism pioneers Frank Future has chartered his fair share of those tours as the owner of Imagine Cruises.

The significance of the industry today wasn’t lost on him.

He’d sailed through Port Stephens in the 70s and not seen a single whale. It wasn’t until 1989 that a count could find 1800 off the humpbacks of the east coast.

This year 25,000 are expected to migrate through the Port’s watery playgrounds, past its favourite vantage points.

“There aren’t many conservation successes,” Mr Future said.

“Whales is one of the them.”

Whales have enjoyed the lion’s share of attention for Naturefest in past years but given the recent progress on a koala hospital and tourist centre, Mr Future was happy to share the spotlight.

“As Danny has said Naturefest has moved away from being a purely water-based event… it’s morphing into these land based attractions and tourism opportunities,” Mr Future said.

“Most people who live or at least work here know that the Bay is a special place.

“It’s something more and more visitors are coming to appreciate with more people than ever living cooped up in their inner city boxes looking at smog. Some of our international guests haven’t seen blue sky until they arrive here.”

Port Stephens Council acting general manager Carmel Foster said the koala hospital would open its doors later next year if not sooner, hopefully.

“It’s a facility we will be proud of and it will also be a very helpful educational tool to our visitors,” she said.

“This is not only a facility of national significance, it is an international attraction.

“Sadly we have one of the last populations on the east coast and this facility is vital to ensure the viability of that population.”

Until the hospital opens visitors to Port Stephens won’t be left underwhelmed. From an open day at Tilligerry Habitat to the WilderQuest rockpool scramble most ages and interests will be catered to. You will find a comprehensive list here.

“I know a lot of work goes into these events,” Cr Sally Dover said, on behalf of the mayor Bruce MacKenzie.

“But it’s worthwhile to see our visitors and guests enjoying the sights of Port Stephens.”