June 2, 2018
Today is the day we have all been looking forward to, swimming with whale sharks!! Exmouth Dive & Whalesharks Ningaloo picked us up bright and early for a full day of fun.
The dive boat we were on was very nice, larger than what I expected and very comfortable. We started out with a snorkel just to get everyone comfortable in their gear and getting on and off the boat. Then we spent some time going over how the swimming will work. Which group we are in, how they alternate groups and how to swim alongside them. They have strict rules as to how many people can be in the water with them at once (10), how long you can be with them and how close you can get to them.
The first time we jumped in was exhilarating! The adrenaline starts pumping, then you actually see it and you lose your breath. It’s enormous and graceful at the same time. You just can’t believe you are a few feet away from this majestic beast. These pictures were from my iPhone.
The one above is from a GoPro.
By the end of the day we swam about 10 times with 5 different whale sharks, about 27-30 feet in length. But never got tired of it!
These pics are from the professional photographer who was with us.
Our last swim was with a Manta Ray! It was about 9 feet across its graceful wingspan. Another experience that can’t be described!
After we were done swimming, we went looking for whales. We saw Humpbacks and even saw one breach. There were a lot of dolphins cavorting all over and jumping out of the water. We also saw a Dugong and her pup, which is kind of like a Manatee.
The day could not have been any better!!
We had dinner at Whaler’s Village, an excellent restaurant less than 5 minutes away from our resort. We were all tired but hungry from our adventures. All the local seafood was excellent, I learned about and tasted bugs! They are tasty little crustaceans like slipper lobsters that are very popular here.
Another night of sleeping well…..