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Video: Kayaker has rare encounter with a blue whale
Stretching for over 90 feet in length, and weighing more than 180 metric tons, the blue whale is, to the best of our knowledge, the largest animal that has ever lived. The creatures were hunted to near extinction in the early part of the 20th century, but appear to be making a comeback now.
A kayaker at Redondo Beach, California recently had the rare opportunity to see one of these magnificent creatures up close and personal, and lucky for us he was wearing a GoPro helmet cam at the time. The footage he captured is stunning, with some fantastic views of the whale, both above and below the water, giving viewers a true sense of the size of these animals.
I have to say, this guy is definitely braver than I am. Watching the whale from a kayak would be a humbling enough experience, but getting into the water, and seeing it pass by underneath, would be equal parts terrifying and awe inspiring.
Check out the video below.
A kayaker at Redondo Beach, California recently had the rare opportunity to see one of these magnificent creatures up close and personal, and lucky for us he was wearing a GoPro helmet cam at the time. The footage he captured is stunning, with some fantastic views of the whale, both above and below the water, giving viewers a true sense of the size of these animals.
I have to say, this guy is definitely braver than I am. Watching the whale from a kayak would be a humbling enough experience, but getting into the water, and seeing it pass by underneath, would be equal parts terrifying and awe inspiring.
Check out the video below.
Filed under: Paddling, North America, United States, Video
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 7)
Sean Oct 19th 2011 3:48PM
It's actually just a wide angle lens, not the actual curvature of the Earth, but yeah, cool effect.
Wayne Layman Oct 19th 2011 10:02PM
That's the effect from the camera lens not the round of our planet. Are you high or what?
Jo Oct 19th 2011 7:00PM
Magical!
Annette Oct 19th 2011 12:55PM
Amazing just amazing....
Bill Oct 19th 2011 12:55PM
How majestic are these animals? What a wonderful and awesome experience this man saw and documented. Thanks for sharing your experience !!
Mike D Oct 19th 2011 12:55PM
Man you one brave motha!
EIC Oct 19th 2011 1:03PM
That was amazingly beautiful! Thank you so much for sharing it.
Brian G Oct 19th 2011 1:01PM
Brave dude...having fun.....wow...to actually get in the water with the critter...yowser....as for being illegal...they can't bust the whale and the dude was just in that place...good going
Sun Oct 19th 2011 12:59PM
So COOL! I can image his feelings by seeing a rare blue whale up so close! Neat and rare that it would be one of few rares that he have of video of this blue whale out there. Amazing!!
Kay Oct 19th 2011 1:02PM
Is this cool or what? What an experience...glad he photographed it for all of us to share.
Almanor John Oct 19th 2011 1:48PM
Power boats are leagally required to maintain a safe distance between themselves and the whales. In this case, since he is not in a power boat, he is under no such restriction. The whale chose to come close to his kayak, it is much faster than the kayak, so he really had no choice but to be close to the whals.
nature lover Oct 19th 2011 1:03PM
Isn't it against the law to approach beyone a certain distance, and certainly against the law to chase it or follow it? At least that's what I learned on other whale watching trips. He looks to be only a few feet away.
Tenebrae Oct 19th 2011 1:36PM
Yes, in many places it's illegal to exceed a specific distance from whales, but it's more for human safety than that of the whales and most people ignore it.
JT Oct 19th 2011 2:49PM
I believe you are right, based on my understanding of the Marine Mammal Protection Act. If he was just paddling along and the whale surfaced next to him, no violation, but he clearly paddles in pursuit of the whale, which, I believe, given the distance involved, is a violation of the Act.
Mateo Oct 19th 2011 4:29PM
We went out in a sailboat last year to see if we could find the pod that was reported in Santa Monica Bay. We drifted through at least 10 separate Blue whales for over two hours. They always came up from feeding at least 100 yards away from us in a moving circle. After leaving the pod, a small (35 or so feet long) Blue whale surfaced behind us and then followed us back to the entrance to King Harbor. We were about to abandon our plan to actually re-enter the marina because of our concern that it would keep following us, when he broke off and disappeared. It was a great experience to have him on the surface a few feet from our boat for about at mile or so. We did not chase these, our fellow creatures, anymore than they chased us.
Amanda Oct 19th 2011 1:08PM
That was amazing!
tim Oct 19th 2011 1:18PM
Beautiful sighting. Luckily the whale didn't surface in Zanesvilloe Ohio where it would have immediately shot to death by overzealous police officers.
Lei Oct 19th 2011 1:10PM
What an awesome clip thank you so much for sharing this for all to experience. It was just fantastic to see. You not only were in your kayak but also went under water to film. Wow!!!
Brian Gauci Oct 19th 2011 1:10PM
The person writing the headline was so excited they spelled kayaker wrong
n Oct 19th 2011 1:25PM
EFFIN amazing. What a pair of onions that guy has.
Scared the bejeebies out of me though.