Monday 19th May
I was up about 06.15 to get ready before the 'Ningaloo Reef Dreaming' bus picked me and a group of other people up from the campsite to take us out for a day of 'whale sharking'. There was already a crowd of people gathered at reception, waiting for the various boat operators to pick them up and take them out to Ningaloo Reef for the same purpose as me. My bus picked me up at 07.30 and we stopped at a few other hostels before driving out to the beach where we would transfer onto the boats.
I had bought a package the previous day for AUSD735, part of which was the whale shark day trip. I had decided to go with NRD as they had a few selling points that convinced me to go with them. The main reason was that they had their own spotter plane; this meant that we would get the chance to swim exclusively with any sharks spotted by the NRD plane. Other companies shared a spotter plane and took it in turns to swim with a shark (or sharks), and they share a strictly imposed swimming time of a maximum of one hour per shark or group of sharks. They also had a 'no spot' policy which meant that, in the event that no whale sharks were spotted over the course of a day, you were guaranteed a place on a boat at a suitable time thereafter. All things considered, it seemed like the best option for me, and the ticket was combined with seven scuba dives, so there wasn't much competition from any other company.
There was a group of about twenty people on the bus that day, and we were taken out to NRD's whale shark boat (which they boasted was the best boat in Exmouth). We were briefed on what was going to happen once onboard, and we had a brief snorkel in the deep waters off the reef so that the crew could assess our swimming abilities and comfort levels in the open water. We were split into two groups and went with a 'spotter', a member of the crew who would lead us in groups when swimming alongside the whale sharks. On this trip, I saw my first reef shark swimming about twenty metres below us, and another turtle; I also received small, prickly stings from the tiny jellyfish that floated about in the water.
Once we were back on the boat, we were given further instructions on how we were to conduct ourselves when getting into the water when a whale shark had been located, and what we were to do when we were swimming alongside it. The main things we had to observe included keeping a distance of at least 3m away from the shark at all times (or within 4m of the tail); not to swim in front of it as this would spook the shark; and we weren't allowed to touch it. We were to follow the spotters and stay behind them as we swam. I was in the group that was drawn to go first, once we had a sighting of a shark. We got ready and waited for the word. It was very exciting to think that we would soon to get the chance to swim with such a large creature, and one that was guaranteed to be totally harmless.
When we got the signal from the spotter plane that a whale shark had been located, the boat took off at high speed and we were told to prepare ourselves for a quick entry into the water once we were alongside the shark. Our 'spotter' was called Fran, and we were also to be joined by a cameraman called Markus who would film us in the hope of selling a DVD of the day. The whale shark that had been spotted was 3m long, still a juvenile. I had hoped to see something bigger, or maybe a couple of sharks, but it was at least good to have the opportunity to swim with one whale shark.
The boat slowed down and pulled up in the water close to where the shark was swimming. I couldn't make out where it was, but I was also more concerned about actually getting into the water; this nervous feeling had nothing to do with the idea of this huge shark being in there, but more an anxiety to make sure I observed all of the rules that we had been told about. Fran and Markus jumped into the water and located the shark, and the crew onboard gave us the signal to get ready to jump in.
It was all happening so fast, the boat was bobbing up and down, and the crew were prompting us to get in the water, that it was difficult to think straight. I jumped into the water and my first reaction was to swim as fast as I could to get on the correct side of the spotter. Most of the people in our group did the same as me, but we had obviously made a mistake as we could hear the shouts of Fran and Markus to 'get out of the way'. We had swum in front of the shark, just as we had been told not to. However, I don't think anyone actually saw the thing, as we were too busy trying to get to the spotter. As a result, the whale shark got spooked, dipped down from the surface, descended into the water and out of sight.
When we stopped and treaded water, Fran told us firmly that we had made a big mistake, and that we might have ruined the trip for everyone if the shark was too scared to come back. Meanwhile, Markus slapped the water with hands hand, and yelled at us, asking us what we were doing. It was quite a disappointing outcome really.
Once back on the boat, the lead guy asked us whether it had been 'awesome', and it was far from that, we were all quite deflated after that experience. We were reminded again of what we had done wrong, and Markus didn't try and hide his emotion of being thoroughly pissed off. We knew we had made a mistake – a completely innocent one – but it just felt like we were being scolded, and I hadn't paid over 300 bucks to feel like this. It really took a lot of the enjoyment out of it and I didn't feel like going back in the water if this was what was going to happen.
In the end, the shark surfaced again within about ten minutes and the second group readied themselves to get into the water. And this time they did exactly what our group had done. Again, Markus pouted and shook his head, and told us all that if we continued to carry on like this then we would jeopardise their whole operation, which could lead to them losing their licence. We were told that the main concern was for the wellbeing of the shark, and we could completely understand this, and none of us would want to harm the creature. Maybe all twenty of us were just a bit thick, but we were certainly complete novices at swimming with these creatures, and I felt that this had more to do with it.
We managed to get it right after that, and I swam alongside it about five or six times (the boat would pick us up when we tired and drop us off again at a suitable point). The whale shark is a beautiful animal, and the fact that it was still a juvenile meant that it was slower, and therefore easier to swim with. However, the fun had been taken out of it for me after the first swim. I was pissed off at how this 'experience of a lifetime' had turned out. Sure, we had clearly swum in front of the shark, but the reaction was over-the-top, at least in my opinion. Maybe the fact that both groups had made the same mistake suggested that they were doing something wrong. I don't know but reports from some of the other companies sounded a lot more fun (and they are still in possession of their licences, so they obviously have as much of a regard for the whale sharks as anyone else on Ningaloo Reef).
Shortly after our hour with the shark was up, we had lunch and chatted amongst ourselves. Markus came around with a big friendly smile on his face, asking us whether we wanted to buy a copy of the DVD he was going to produce of the day. I decided to fork out 60 bucks as I knew I might regret it at a later date, and I may not get the chance to do something like this again. It was also mentioned to us – after we had to ask the lead guy – that there were to be no more opportuities to swim with other whale sharks as the spotter plane had disappeared for the day. So, a single 3m shark would have to do us.
We had some time to kill, so we stopped near the reef and got into the water to do some snorkelling but saw hardly anything. We got back to shore and were dropped off at the hostel at around 16.00. It had been quite a letdown, and not worth the $350 that I had forked out for the trip. I was glad that I had done it, and very grateful that I had the chancce to do it in the first place, but it didn't live up to my expectations. To make matters worse, when the lead guy wished us all goodbye at the end of the trip, he asked those of us who had had a good time to spread a good word about them, but for those who didn't, he joked that we should just 'leave town quietly'. I thought this attitude sucked, and veered on arrogant, to think that they wouldn't consider even constructive criticism, that somehow their operation was beyond this.
Later in the afternoon, I met some of the guys who were hanging out by the pool, had a swim and then got changed. Emer cooked dinner and we played a few card games of 'Shithead' before I turned in for the night at 22.00, as I had another early start the next day to go on the first of my dives. I just hoped that the diving outings with NRD would be better than the whale shark trip.
