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Dolphin Pictures |
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| I was lucky enough to go swimming with the friendly Dusky Dolphins in Kaikoura in March 2004. Here are some photos I took! | ||||
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We boarded the boat at 6:30am, and this was the sunrise! We got suited up into our wetsuits while the captain and crew searched for the dolphins, which didn't take long! When we found them, the captain positioned the boat so they would swim right by us. |
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It wasn't long before we were surrounded by dolphins.
The captain estimated over 600 dolphins! |
All geared up! We were given a very thick wetsuit, fins, goggle & snorkel and hood! To say the water was cold is an understatement, but was it worth it? I'll let you judge! |
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| All of a sudden, we were completely surrounded by dolphins. Their inquisitive nature meant they would come right up to you and eyeball you! | The dolphins love to do acrobatics and are very playful by nature. There were dolphins jumping out of the water everywhere! | |||
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| After swimming with the dolphins for a few minutes, they would continue on their way, so we would board the boat again to catch up to them. While we were on the boat, you could stand on the bow and look into the water below where the dolphins were riding the bow wave! | ||||
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| The numbers of dolphins is what really astounded me. They were jumping everywhere! | ||||
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| We got in and out of the water about 5 times! Each time was different, and each time I would try something different to get their attention, or to hold their attention longer. Making noises and swimming down in spirals seemed to work the best. The dolphins would mimic you and swim around you so quickly, it would make me dizzy! | ||||
If you are ever fortunate enough to swim with the dolphins in Kaikoura, don't hesitate. The smiles on the faces of all the other swimmers that day was enough to know that this is an experience to be treasured by all. The dolphins swim in Kaikoura is included in our Best of the South Island tour. To read about this trip, click here. If you would like to read more about the Dusky Dolphins, click here. |
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