Cruising Day 6 - Swimming with the Dolphins

Our last adventure in Cozumel, Mexico - the Royal Dolphin Swim at the Chankanaab park.

The dolphins are only one area in the park - there's a sandy beach, botanical forest and snorkeling available, making this park a popular destination for vacationers.

But we were there for the dolphins.

This was our second time interacting with dolphins - our first time was a dolphin encounter in the Bahamas, where we petted the dolphin and gave them a kiss while standing in waist deep water. It was an excellent program, but left us wanting more. So, if you ever have the opportunity to interact with dolphins, I highly recommend paying the extra money for deep water swim program - you really feel how strong and magnificent these mammals are.

We started out with the tamer dolphin interactions - like dancing with them:


And the cheek kiss:


Holding them in your arms - and they are really long!


Then we moved on to the more exciting portion - going for a swim while holding on to their dorsal fin:

Wow, they can swim really fast and you feel all that power when you are hanging on.

The foot push. Truly, I had no idea what this would feel like. We were instructed to float in a prone position, with our feet flexed, toes down, legs locked straight and arms reaching forward. The dolphins come from behind and place their noses in your feet and propel you forward. Sounded really tame until we watched...

The dolphins approach....

As they propel you forward, they end up pushing you up out of the water:

Scott starts to emerge out of the water....

Here's a picture of Erica coming out of the water:


Brian out of the water before crashing back in:


Me, coming up out of the water:


A totally amazing encounter with amazing animals.