Anyone dove with whale sharks
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They have been somewhat common around Pensacola, Florida. Around the Oriskany as well as the inshore wrecks.
StefanoDar
New
Snorkelled with them off Mafia Island, Tanzania, where you can find them every year from November to February.
Rythmmaker
Contributor
I also would recommend the experience at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta - as contrived as it may seem, the artificial environment is larger than a football field and more than 30 feet deep. It is the largest tank in the world at more than 6.3M gallons. The water is crystal clear (of course) and you are guaranteed to get to swim with 4 whale sharks, two mantas, hammerheads, blacktip reef sharks, sandbar sharks, sand tigers and zebra sharks as well as literally thousands of other specimens. While it may not be as "pure" an experience as a chance encounter in the wild, it is no less overwhelming and humbling.
There are many people who dive their entire lives hoping to encounter a whale shark and who just are never in the right place at the right time. At the opening of the aquarium, Phillipe Cousteau was on-hand and he reportedly was quoted as saying that in all his dives around the world, he has never had a close encounter with one.
The cost is about $300, and they supply you with all the gear (they don't want to risk any contamination by allowing outside equipment). It is a first-class experience and they treat you very well, the people are highly trained and very knowledgeable, and they have a professional videographer accompany each dive and offer a DVD of your experience.
I hope to encounter a wild whale shark on a dive someday, and I've barely missed seeing them on two occasions - one during a mass appearance of larval lobster krill in Bonaire earlier this year, and last year in Honduras. But a miss is as good as a mile.
Nevertheless, I have this controlled experience to remember, and they are as majestic and awesome as you can imagine!
There are many people who dive their entire lives hoping to encounter a whale shark and who just are never in the right place at the right time. At the opening of the aquarium, Phillipe Cousteau was on-hand and he reportedly was quoted as saying that in all his dives around the world, he has never had a close encounter with one.
The cost is about $300, and they supply you with all the gear (they don't want to risk any contamination by allowing outside equipment). It is a first-class experience and they treat you very well, the people are highly trained and very knowledgeable, and they have a professional videographer accompany each dive and offer a DVD of your experience.
I hope to encounter a wild whale shark on a dive someday, and I've barely missed seeing them on two occasions - one during a mass appearance of larval lobster krill in Bonaire earlier this year, and last year in Honduras. But a miss is as good as a mile.
Nevertheless, I have this controlled experience to remember, and they are as majestic and awesome as you can imagine!
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I got the chance to snorkel with them 10 or so years back. When my kids were young we would leave Freeport TX and go offshore for a long weekend. We would leave port on Friday and come back on Sunday afternoons.
On one of the trips we tied of at Stetson Rock, all of the sudden after a couple of hours their one of them noticed a " fish bigger than the boat" I called BS and looked overboard sure enough it was a whale shark.
I grabbed my mask fins and snorkel and jumped in. Although the experience lasted a couple of minutes it's still one of my favorite memories from that time.
Another note I've always been lucky about encounters with aquatic creatures, I've snokled with orcas, rays, turtles, and dolphins. Although its not hard to do this, but off the coast of Texas it's always been special to me.
On one of the trips we tied of at Stetson Rock, all of the sudden after a couple of hours their one of them noticed a " fish bigger than the boat" I called BS and looked overboard sure enough it was a whale shark.
I grabbed my mask fins and snorkel and jumped in. Although the experience lasted a couple of minutes it's still one of my favorite memories from that time.
Another note I've always been lucky about encounters with aquatic creatures, I've snokled with orcas, rays, turtles, and dolphins. Although its not hard to do this, but off the coast of Texas it's always been special to me.
Yes, Flower Gardens about 20 years ago.
Summer past, while on surface interval I had a large one swim under my Boston Whaler a few miles out of Destin.
N
Summer past, while on surface interval I had a large one swim under my Boston Whaler a few miles out of Destin.
N
Just did a snorkel trip to see them here in Mexico... I think the seasons ended now, but it was one of the most amazing experiences I've had in the water.
Whaleshark trip, Mexico 2010 on Vimeo
Whaleshark trip, Mexico 2010 on Vimeo
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