I have always been jealous of some of the films I have seen on youtube of scuba divers getting seal hugs and wondered what the main differences are. Is it the fact that the divers are deeper and more static? That they are in a location where the seals are friendlier? Or just the familiarity of constant exposure to scuba divers? Well I have just returned from an incredible dive with a new seal at one of my favourite spots. He was a young male and was MUCH more friendly than any other seal I have yet encountered.
I had spent some time hunting (and failing to find) Bass and was frankly surprised not to have bumped into one of my regular seal friends. It was only when I returned to the shallows along the shore that I noticed I was being tailed by a seal I didn't recognise. I unloaded my gun and turned on my camera and waited to see how this newcomer was going to react. It was quickly apparent that he was extremely inquisitive, he glided elegantly around me and straight away decided my fins looked tasty. Unlike the other seals he was happy to swim right underneath me and was attracted rather than nervous when I dived down.
I began to realise this was going to be a special dive and I wasn't wrong. The seal played with me for over an hour, getting bolder and bolder, clearly completely unphased by close proximity he would pop up right next to me and look around turning his back on me. Or swim right underneath me, even sniff my hand and let me scratch his chin. It was like playing with a friendly underwater dog :)
I will let the video do the talking. Suffice to say it was a magical experience! (HD Fullscreen and chuck me a like on youtube if you er like it!)
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