An explorer paddling solo across the Atlantic Ocean was surprised to find himself surrounded by a bustling pod of pilot whales, leaving him both excited and fearful.
The bustling pod of whales Waddington encountered at sea.
On July 7, Tom Waddington was kayaking from Canada’s Newfoundland Island to England when he noticed he was surrounded by long-finned pilot whales, as he shared in an Instagram post.
“This is amazing. A pod of whales is swimming around the boat and playing. I love them so much, but I’m afraid they might hit my rudder. They are swimming so close, can you see?”, Waddington said in the video.
Tom Waddington paddling among the bustling pod of whales.
At one point, he was startled when a whale collided directly with the boat, causing him to drop his camera and temporarily stop filming.
When he resumed recording, Waddington’s voice sounded anxious.
“I have 2 hours to play with these thousands of whales,” he said when the camera turned back on.
“Earlier, one hit the boat, and I didn’t know what to do. I can’t believe it. It’s a stunning sight but also really scary,” he added.
The team monitoring Waddington’s journey from the mainland reported that the pod of whales eventually swam away, allowing him to continue paddling towards the shore.
Waddington is undertaking a challenging journey of over 2,000 nautical miles to raise funds for MindCharity, a UK-based nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting individuals with mental health issues.
