Jim, it was a little scary to be so close to such a large animal in the water, but the whales were very gentle and never did anything aggressive toward us. The only time we really got worried was when the calf approached us at the surface (see next picture) and the mother started surfacing right underneath us -- we were afraid we would end up on top of her, but she and the calf moved a few feet away and we were never in any danger. All in all, it was a humbling and exhilirating experience.
Guest
22-Jun-2007 21:10
It must have been a bit nerve racking this close to them?
To answer your question, we spent about 30-45 minutes with this particular mother and calf; we alternated swimming with them with a BBC film crew that was also present and filming the whales. Also, we were not scuba diving, but snorkeling -- it is against the regulations to scuba dive with whales, or even to free-dive around them.
Guest
22-Jun-2007 20:59
How long where they around as you where scuba diving? A great moment captured.
