After listening to the nearby night club thump and bump nearly all night long, we all finally got a great night’s sleep. The 3 mini-splits were all chugging away with cold air filling our 2-bedroom villa.
I woke up 30 minutes before my alarm and, convinced I would return to bed, I ended up instead just starting my day. While we bought some basic supplies, mainly 3 gallons or water the night before, we forgot to get milk for our morning coffee. Against all my previous self-induced rules for Mexico Travel…I grabbed my phone, wallet and house keys and headed out in search of OXXO, their universal convenience store.
The morning was pretty standard, we left the condo with plenty of time for the group meet up – The Whale Shark Swim Trip!
The Malecón was quiet and local businesses were sweeping the floors and setting up for the day. You imagine the state these restaurants and bars must have been left in as workers and patrons likely stumbled home just a few short hours earlier.
Alternatively, the usual mix of walkers and joggers and cyclists were crowding the paved boardwalk. Turns out, this Sunday was some sort of large La Paz road race! Tons and people cheering on cyclists, most donning the requisite cycling jerseys, white with red and green accents for the Mexican flag. 🇲🇽
Checking in for Alonso Tours we were met by a happy organizer (Amalia) who quickly got us set up with wetsuits and reef-friendly sunscreen. As the whale sharks are endangered, the sunscreen is important to keep their environment safe and food abundant.
As the crowd gathered we were faced with the classic Geissinger Dilemma. We learned that there were to be 17 on our 9:30 tour. A little background will help to explain why this is a dilemma. Per regulations, only 5 swimmers may be in the water at a time with the whale shark. And the boat may only be in the preserve area for 2 hours so there can certainly be limited opportunities for those in the water to be YOU! We learned that the 11:30 tour currently only had 6 scheduled. We made the decision to delay and be a part of the smaller group.
To pass the time we wandered up and down the Malecón and found a bite to eat and did some research for Tuesday’s planned activities. Upon our return – more had joined our 11:30 tour and we were indeed back up to 16! Oh well, we tried!
So we boarded the boat and left dry land hopeful to see the world’s largest fish. As we entered the preserve area (special licenses required, of course) our friendly bi-lingual guide pointed out the first sighting – an enormous black shadow slowly gliding just inches below the surface…..often with the dorsal or tail fin slicing through the waters surface.
Other tour operators were in the area but there are rules of “engagement” to keep their fish from being startled or stressed. On our boat, the Geissinger’s were to be the first group in the water. (Naturally!).
With butts on the side of the boat and flippers dashing in and out of the water from dangling legs, we waiting until the boat had maneuvered generally in front of the approaching shark. With his bearing understood and a distance of about 30 yards set, we slid into the water (about 70°) and started swimming towards “nothing” with visibility around 15 feet.
Then the moment arrived…..the familiar spots. The familiar flat head. Eyes much like Sid’s from Ice Age. The strong ridges and edges running down the animal’s flanks. The enormous tail sweeping left to right as it powered its way……..right past us.
Wait, what???!!!
Now we were in a full on race to catch up. With GoPro in hand (meaning I have 1 less limb to help me, clearly at a disadvantage to this creature) I make it back to its left pectoral fin. So beautiful and graceful. So fast! Before long, as I fail to keep up, I look through my mask above the surface and see Tara and Owen working hard to keep up. Then I see Kaia trailing behind and she and I decide to waive the white flag. We’ll have more turns.
Back on board we quickly got ourselves situated so as to not fall prey to seasickness. Those left on the boat had little to do except hope for those in the water to have an epic experience. As the last of us climbed the stairs, the next group was already seated on the boat’s gunwale.
Group 2 included 5 younger adults, one carrying a large professional style underwater camera! They managed just fine. But Group 3 was 4 older adults, 3 women and 1 man and they were ill prepared for the swim they were about to experience. Group 4 was even worse off – 3 young, small ladies, one of which immediately panicked in the water. Poor thing.
As the Geissinger’s prepared for our second jump into the Bay of La Paz – Owen offered to take theGoPro as he and Tara were better swimmers on the first encounter. This was much worse. As if the shark sensed our arrival and said, very casually and cool……..”nah, peace out!”
It wasn’t so much that they were disturbed by us, really more that they either weren’t actively feeding or not that hungry. Can’t blame them for just cruising around.
Our third trip into the plankton filled waters was better. A bit more time trailing the mighty shark. But we had no idea what was about to happen. At this point, we’d been in the water 3 times and generally just keeping up with “Wally” was the objective!
As Groups 3 and 4 were now growing weary of this adventure, the group composition began to change and open slots (5 at a time) started to appear.
Kaia and Owen decided to quickly join another “team in the water” and the magic happened! The whale shark was actually feeding. Totally different behavior than we had seen prior. Now holding his entire bus-length body at an angle, head and mouth nearest the surface – this beast was barely moving at all…..just gulping buckets-full of water sending clean water out of its flowy five gills and sifting pound after pound of microscopic plankton towards its stomach. This is the experience we were hoping for and Kaia and Owen were thoroughly enjoying it AND recording it all on the GoPro!
Tara and I watched from the boat – beaming with excitement and joy for them and their experience! When the boat’s captain called out for the next group to ready themselves, many were already resolved that their last dive was indeed their last dive.
Tara was first to say, “I’ll go!” I paused. I was very tired. Not in a “I’ve been scuba diving today” kind of tired…..just “I’m a little tired!” Something inside me reminded me that of this incredible opportunity and experience and while there was still room for 1 more on the swim team, I looked right at the captain and said, “I’ll go!”
Now it was our turn to experience this majestic creature up close, fully distracted by his hunger and feeding behavior to even care about us. For all we know, he thought we were just a few more remoras hanging around.
We stayed back, as required by Mexican conservation laws, but we were also so close. Gills were pumping, mouth was slurping. I even saw a water vortex from the powerful suction his mouth was creating, like a tornado of water from the surface to his upper lip.
We managed to get great videos of the shark and of us alongside the shark. Then after about 4 minutes, the massive fish decided to seek plankton elsewhere and with a few tail swishes he was on the move – at a pace we would dare to attempt. Bobbing in the water I gave Tara a triumphant fist bump, then back to boat one last time.
On the relatively short ride back to the Malecón pier we learned that the spots of the whale shark are the unique equivalent of a fingerprint. We learned that most sharks in the Bay of La Paz or males. And we learned that La Paz is nearly the only place in the world that maintains a seasonable population of these enormous creatures.
This was why we created this trip and we were not disappointed! In fact, it is more fair to say it actually ended up exceeding our expectations!
After regrouping at the condo for a bit that included perhaps some gentle short napping we pulled ourselves together and ventured out for dinner and sunset. We gently strolled along the Malecon, enjoying the setting sun and the sites and sounds of La Paz walking further than we walked before. We eventually reached a new pier with a beautiful park built on the side of the waters edge complete with a long boardwalk for local fisherman and a variety of statues and places to sit. We had fun watching a crazy friendly pelican, who sat right on the railing and let strangers come up and take photographs and we looked towards the west to see an amazing sunset.
It was time for dinner and we had a place picked out — It had good reviews online and we were there for the tacos. We got a rooftop seat and continued to watch the sky turn magical shades of orange and finally read before it disappeared in tonight below as cars rolled by cruising along as they would in Fort Myers Beach or Key West. We enjoyed a great dinner and then finished with ice cream and then made our way back to finally hit the sack after a long day.
