Article:Swimming with sharks

Saturday April 25, 2009

Stories by ROSE YASMIN KARIM

Getting into the water with a giant shark sounds like a crazy proposition but not if it's the whale shark, the largest and probably gentlest member of the shark family.

Sitting on the edge of the 9m banca (outrigger canoe), we nervously checked and double-checked our snorkels, masks and flippers.

All six of us — dive instructors and journalists from Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia — were ready to jump into the deep blue of Donsol, a municipality in the province of Sorsogon, the Philippines, for an adventure that Time Magazine rates "as the best animal encounter in Asia: swimming with the whale sharks".

Plunging in at a moment's notice.

We had booked our tour through the Donsol Municipal Tourism Council (DMTC), the regulating body for whale shark interaction, at a cost of 3,500 pesos (RM263) per boat, plus a registration fee of 100 pesos (RM7.50) per person.

The WWF guidelines recited to us stressed, among other things, that "touching and riding the whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is prohibited."

That we shouldn't block its course, and maintain a distance of 3m from the head or body of the whale shark and 4m from its tail. Flash photography and any kind of motorised underwater propulsion machine are not allowed.

OK, no playing the fool then.

The boat chugged away from the shore and, a mere 20 minutes later, the guides had spotted a shadow just 60m away.

"Whale shark!" they shouted.

Whale shark lookout.

I hurriedly pulled on my mask and tightened the strap. There was a rush of excitement since we didn't think we would see one so soon. The Butanding Interaction Officer (BIO) brought the boat to a stop. We scanned the horizon as we waited anxiously for the cue to jump in.

We waited. And waited. And nothing . . .

"Sorry, it dived down," one of the crewman finally announced, to disappointed sighs all around. The BIO laughed when he saw our faces.

We chatted idly as the boat bobbed along. Every time we passed snorkellers, we couldn't hide our envy. Only six swimmers are allowed per encounter, so we weren't able to tag along on these. Suddenly we heard the BIO yell: "Go! Go! Go!"

I had been told that whale sharks were gentle creatures, but then so are cows — until they charge at you.

It wasn't its gaping mouth or the fact that a full-grown one could weigh up to 15 tonnes that troubled me. No, it was their vision. Would they be able to see us in the murky, plankton-rich water?

But the time for hesitation was over.

The gentle giant (AP PHOTO).

I plunged into the water and spent the first few frantic seconds in utter confusion. My heart was drumming away against my ribs. Through the bubbles, I followed the movement of flippers and searched for my first glimpse of the whale shark.

And there it was, 1m below the surface, like a submarine torpedo swimming straight towards me. The gaping pigeonhole shape of the whale shark's mouth was big enough to take me in whole. I frantically twisted myself out of the way while trying to expel copious amounts of saltwater which I had inadvertently swallowed through my snorkel.

Sure, our BIO had warned us to keep our distance, but had anyone told the shark?

Mesmerised, I hovered as it slipped by underneath me, taking in the elegance of its body as it finned through the water. But the thing that awed me most was the size of the fish.

At 9m, it was by far the largest thing I had ever encountered in water.

I began paddling as fast as I could to keep up. That slow-moving tail was deceptive. The shark went up a gear and pulled ahead. I tried to keep up but it was hopeless. Seconds later, it began to submerge. Catching my breath, I dived after it, but my lungs soon protested and I gasped for the surface.

For about one minute, the creature was visible until it finally descended into the sunless depth beyond our reach.

As we climbed back overboard like spirited seals, my limbs continued to tremble and my heart to pound. We settled ourselves back along the edge of the deck. Same grind: spit on mask and rub it around, shove feet into flippers half a size too small, take deep breaths, and back to waiting.

"Okay, go!"

At this next signal, we swam madly in the direction of the shark. This time the whale shark was smaller than the last, at 6m long. I got a great view of the head, broad and flat like a catfish, with leopard spots and stripes over the grey body.

It seemed almost ironic that this fish, which can grow as large as a bus, eats plankton. I finned over as close as I dared, and the creature filled my entire vision.

An entourage of remora and other housekeepers joyrode on its side, feasting on parasite and the shark's leftovers. I badly wanted to touch the shark and feel the texture of its skin but that's a no-no in the rulebooks.

After eight minutes, the whale shark decided it had had enough of us and ducked.

In a moment it had faded into the blue water.

By afternoon, we were all beat. The sharks don't swim that fast, but after six encounters, we didn't have much energy left.

Our three hours of absolute wonder were soon up. Eight sharks had graced us with their presence that day. We got to swim alongside the world's largest fish while doing minimal environmental damage.

All the way back, I was grinning like a village idiot, and I saw my feelings of euphoria mirrored on every face on the boat. It was time to spend some pesos on a celebratory boca (fresh coconut) or eight.

Cebu Pacific Air flies daily to Legaspi from Manila and the flight is less than an hour. From Legaspi, it is an hour's drive to Donsol. Log on to www.cebupacificair.comfor flight schedules.

Related story:
Save the sharks

This article was taken from: The Star Online: Lifestyle: Living 25 April 2009