Over 15 million people troop down the coast for an opportunity to encounter whales either at the shores or in the sea. Seeing these creatures in their natural habitat – the sea is a thrilling experience for millions of tourists annually. Whale-watching should be done the right way to avoid conflicts with sea mammals. Although they enjoy the company, they may feel the pressure if the encounter is prolonged. Think about their young ones and how they react to seeing strangers beside them. Besides, prolonged interruption means they will have less time to fend for their young ones and themselves.
How to ensure a responsible whale-watching experience
There are several tips people and whale watchers can deploy to ensure there’s minimal friction between whales and other animals in the sea and the human explorers. There is so much we can do to cohabit well with sea animals. Here are a few tips to keep in mind to ensure tranquility and harmonious interaction:
Be relaxed and less anxious when you meet
Whales can indeed read the mood around them and make judgments. If they feel stressed and pressured, they sink further into the sea to avoid further stress or shove away to areas without disturbance. But if treated fairly and gently, they even close in on you. You might be lucky to see them floating alongside your vessel or boat. At any one time, people should stop being selfish and ensure that the number of boats close to these animals at a particular time doesn’t supersede that of the whales. There is a way to approach a whale or a group of them. Your tour guide will know how to approach these super-friendly sea mammals. Capture the moments at the right time and make sure you move on soon to minimize the stress you are posing to them. Your boat or vessel should keep a safe distance because there is plenty to see yet. And if you are lucky, wait to see the theatrics these chic mammals can pull.
Remain on board all the time
Yes. Even when you can swim, please don’t swim along with the whales. It could be too dangerous to do so but also stresses them further. You don’t want to get hurt by their fluke or flipper! So if you want some underground shots, leave it to the researchers and professional researchers. But you are free to take shots while onboard but without causing too much noise due to the excitement of seeing whales do their thing. Seeing the whales while on board can be a thrilling experience.
Keep the whales wild, don’t feed them with anything
If they do not come closer at their will, don’t entice them to come closer by feeding them. If you came all the way to see them in their habitat, do appreciate them by keeping them wild. Simply don’t draw any food into the sea. If you see others doing it, talk to them about keeping the whales wild and letting them fend for themselves. And if you find locals advertising whale meat, don’t be tempted to eat too. You are a tourist and your business is to meet them and not to eat them. Besides, whale meat is one of the most contaminated meat.
Be sure to visit during the whale watching season so that you can make the most out of your tour.