Swimming with Whale Sharks (Happy Tours)

My brother is here for a visit so Jay and I took him swimming with Whale Sharks on the weekend. All I can say is it was the most terrifyingly awesome experience I’ve ever had.

The whale shark, (Rhincodon typus), is a slow-moving filter feeding shark and the largest extant fish species. The largest confirmed individual had a length of 12.65 metres (41.50 ft) and a weight of more than 21.5 tonnes (47,000 lb)

We used Happy Tours which is based off Isla Mujeres near Cancun. I have nothing but positive things to say about the company and highly recommend them to anyone wanting to try this exhilarating activity.

We started our day at 7am with a pick-up at Punta Sam, just north of downtown Cancun. After the short boat ride to Isla Mujeres we had a quick breakfast and got all our gear ready.

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*** NOTE: I would recommend taking Gravol before commencing this tour as even those not prone to sea sickness will likely feel ill ***

We then took a 40 min boat ride out to the area where the whale sharks were feeding. There are many companies that do whale shark tours and I’d read bad stories of many boats jockeying for position and scaring the sharks away. Luckily our guides knew where to go, avoiding the other boats we could see in the distance. Due to our small tour group, the lack of other boats, and the large number of sharks in the area we all got double or triple the time allotted in the water!

With our snorkel gear on we slid into the water to find some sharks! It started off a bit slow but within 5 min everywhere you looked you could see a whale shark! They are slow and gentle creatures but their mere size is enough to make you tremble. The amazing thing was that they seemed oblivious to the divers in the water!

I was treading water looking down into the crystal clear blue water when suddenly a whale shark swam up from the depths towards the surface (to feed). It was coming right at me! I got the impression that if I didn’t move it was going to swim right into me! I managed to move out of the way a bit and it swam by within centimeters of me. It was the most breathtaking and peaceful thing I’ve ever experienced. I know they only eat plankton and small fish but the sight of a mouth open to a metre wide coming at you is enough to make even the most logical person momentarily freak out.

Exhausted and happy we all got back on the boat and enjoyed a sandwich as we rode back to the island. We also stopped part way back to watch some dolphins swimming in the ocean. We got some time to snorkel in the coral reef off the coast of Isla Mujeres while our guides prepared ceviche (fresh raw fish marinated in citrus juices and spiced with chili peppers) for us. They made it with grouper and it was excellent.

Pictures do not do this tour justice, but I will post some to give you an idea of what an awesome time we had!

Me, with Whale Shark in Distance

Going up to Feed
Divers on SurfaceSnorkeling with the Sharks
         
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I highly recommend Happy Tours if you want to experience swimming with whale sharks. Check them out!

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