dolphins

Dolphin swimming in Japan

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Another opportunity to swim with wild dolphins, this time I got to go on as crew.

It’s pretty amazing to be able to swim with wild dolphins. It didn’t get off to a great start but in the end, we saw a lot. I got in one particular awesome jump.

At one point, we got so close to them, it was pretty incredible.

Coming straight for me:

From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016

A cool shot as they swam underneath me:

From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016

These dolphins were particularly playful and stuck around for a while.

From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016

There were about 5-7 dolphins in this shot:

From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016

And on a separate jump, we saw a mother and a baby dolphin, but they didn’t stick around to play.

From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016

Seeing dolphins from the boat:

From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016
From Dolphins June 2016

Swimming WITH dolphins in Japan

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Swam with dolphins yesterday. Dolphinitely an amazing experience.

So many wild dolphins. I could have spent the whole day chasing after them.

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Travel notes:
Overnight ferry from Tokyo to Miyakejima. Join the dolphin swimming boat tour. Boat takes you out to Mikurajima where all the dolphins live. Swim with dolphins. Chase dolphins. Repeat several times. The water was deliciously warm at 27 degrees. Air temp was 21 degrees. It got quite cold in and out of the water and on the boat as we chased the dolphins. Actually did this same dolphin trip last year but was unable to swim with the dolphins due to my burn injury. Was so happy to have been able to go into the water this year and actually swim alongside them and get lots of underwater shots this time. Got quite close to them as well.

Ogasawara Islands: Dolphin swimming

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Ogasawara Islands is known for whale watching and dolphin spotting. The marine life down there is pretty specacular.
There’s no shortage of boat operators there who take you out to the various islands for snorkeling, and whale and dolphin spotting. Winter months are whale spotting season, so I opted for a half day dolphin swimming and snorkeling tour in the afternoon that I arrived on Ogasawara.

I got to see lots and lots of dolphins. Oh, happy days!
They got really close to the boat and there were so many of them.

From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling

Mikurajima: Dolphin swimming

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Ticked off another of the Izu islands over the weekend – Miyakejima.
We camped on Miyakejima island, but went on a boat out to Mikurajima for some dolphin swimming.
Despite my burn injury I was determined to go on this trip. It had been in the works for a while and I had already paid for it, and I couldn’t not go and see dolphins.
We took the overnight ferry from Tokyo, and arrived on Miyakejima island at 5am. We got shuttled to the campsite, pitched up the tent, and after some bumming around and lunch, we went out for some dolphin swimming.

With the burn injury, I had resolved that I would not end up going in the water and would be confined to the boat which would have been a real shame. Much to my luck, I was able to rent a drysuit so I could at least get in the water for a quick dip.

I’ve never worn a dry suit before and geez, what an ordeal that was. It took TWO people to help me get into it. On top of that I had waterproofed up my burns. I did not want to think about getting out of the dry suit. I was afraid they might have to cut me out of it.

Anyway, the highlight of this camping trip was the heading out to Mikurajima to swim with dolphins. Mikurajima is a small island, home to only about 200 people, but what they lack in human numbers, is made up for with a population of about 100 or so dolphins that live in the waters surrounding the island.

From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming

Mikurajima island:

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From Dolphin swimming
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Feast your eyes (not your appetite) on these dolphins:

First up the underwater shots – which was a little tricky. It was pretty impossible to freedive in a drysuit. I was super bouyant and just floundering on the water’s surface. Some of the dolphins got quite close and even saw a couple of baby dolphins.

Mama dolphin and baby dolphin:

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From Dolphin swimming

You can very faintly see the dolphin:

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Two dolphins get close:

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Spot the dolphin:

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I couldn’t stay too long in the water, so eventually had to go back onto the boat. Got to see pods of dolphins.

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Why do dolphins have to look like sharks on the water’s surface. It’s deceptive!

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Seven dolphins in the one frame:

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From Dolphin swimming

Some of the dolphins got real close alongside the boat:

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Humans in the water:

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The dolphins come to play:

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Sun between the clouds:

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From Dolphin swimming

Will definitely have to go back there at some point, when I am burn-free.