BIG ANIMAL DIVER
21 divErthey were on the move, so it would have
made no sense to jump in and try to
follow them in the water. So we stayed in
the RIB and followed them for as long as
possible, an experience I will never forget.
In addition to searching for baitballs,
we spent some time trying to get into the
water with humpback whales.
The whales can be curious and playful,
but we often saw them breach and then
dive too far away from us to join them.
Still, we had some very close
encounters, thanks to Captain Louis’s
sharp eye for wildlife. When he spotted a
pack of humpbacks, he could tell whether
or not they were about to dive and if there
would be a chance to swim with then.
When he said “give it a go” we slid into
the water as quietly as possible, in the
hope that the whales would swim past or
just below us.
Everyone from both RIBs had some
unforgettable encounters with
humpbacks coming up just beside them,
or diving right beneath them at a very
slow pace, showing their full beauty and
grace. It was a momentous experience to
witness these giants in their own element.
One of our first days was very quiet,
with almost no wind.
We saw nothing that looked remotely
like the boiling water from a baitball, and
the few dolphins we did see seemed lazy
and not at all in hunting mood.
In his thick South African accent,
Captain Louis explained that “we want
the sea to be alive” when hoping to see
baitballs. He suggested that we sail closer
to shore to see how things looked there.
Often the current and visibility close to
shore make it impossible to scuba-dive,
but because it was such a quiet day, Louis
thought it was worth checking out.
He was right. The conditions were great
for diving at a site called Raggies, a
Above left: Orcas swim
beside the RIB.Above: The dolphins work
as a well co-ordinated unit,
blowing bubbles beneath
the sardines to keep them
close to the surface.Below: A sand tiger shark
patrols the reef at Raggies.FACTFILE
GETTING THEREDaily flights with BA and South African Airways to
Durban.
DIVING Kingfish Dive & Travel, which organised the trip, uses
various operators.
ACCOMMODATION The Creek close to Port St John’s has cosy huts and
a common-room where all meals are served, thecreek.co.za
WHEN TO GOThe Sardine Run usually occurs from mid-June through July.
Water temperature is around 20°C so a 5mm suit plus shortie with a hood is
recommended, and 3mm gloves. Some divers use 5mm open-cell freediver suits.
MONEYSouth African rand.
PRICESKingfish Dive & Travel has a group trip in 2020 with flights from London
on 28 June with nine days searching for baitballs. Including flights, transfers and
diving it costs £4050, kingfish.dk/expeditions.
VISITOR INFORMATIONsouthafrica.netnickname for sand tiger or raggedtooth
sharks. The reef where they usually hang
out starts at about 25m depth, and the
first 10m always has a bit of current.
We made a negative entrance to get past
the current and allow ourselves as much
time on the reef as possible.
While we dived I looked around and
initially thought there was nothing to see,
but as soon as the reef came into sight I
literally landed on top of a 2m sand tiger.
It swam away, and I began to enjoy the
many colours of the magnificent reef andthe resident sharks. I noticed a small
group just under an overhang, so I let
myself glide down to them.
Luckily, they didn’t need much time to
get used to me, and they let me get close
enough for some images. Despite the lack
of baitballs and whales that day, we still
had a world-class dive at Raggies.
This stretch of ocean off the South
African coast is fantastic. There are
enough amazing experiences to take your
breath away every day – no matter what
your level of experience!