My friends and I all piled into the Animal Ocean boat to head out to go snorkeling off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa. We had been told previously that plenty of seals would be present to snorkel with once we got to our location amidst the kelp forests. I was excited, being a biologist and a lover of both animals and the ocean. Animal Ocean was the perfect company to take us on our snorkeling adventure!
The crew from The Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS) get kitted up
My friends and I had been studying in the Kruger National Park, so we were eager to experience another side of South Africa and to enjoy the beautiful city of Cape Town and what it had to offer. Steve, the owner of the company and our guide, was not only really helpful when it came to fitting us to our wetsuits and goggles, but also really friendly, informative and knowledgeable about diving, the ocean, and the wildlife.
The weather was perfect and the skies were clear – a perfect day to spend on a boat and in the water. We headed out to a place just off the coast with the mountains in the background and stopped where hundreds of seals were congregated basking in the sun on the rocks and being slashed by the waves. We got our goggles and snorkels on and were instructed on how to enter the water. Getting a chance to swim and get close to them was something I was anxious to do.
Diver gets a nose full of seal :)
It was incredible in the water. The seals were so playful and curious about us, looking at us with their big brown eyes. They’d swim towards us spiritedly, before quickly changing course and darting below, trying to decide just who we were and what exactly we were doing in their surf with such big, odd eyes ourselves! I loved holding my breath, diving down, and swimming amongst the kelp with the seals as they encircled me. At one point, a large seal came up behind me, close enough for me to reach out and stroke its soft fur. It quickly dashed away and observed me again at a distance, rolling around on its back and enticing me to swim towards it again. Few of us were ready to leave by the time we had to get out of the water and back in the boat. I am a huge admirer of the ocean and sea life, so I would have loved to stay out there all day making friends with the seals and enjoying the ocean. Overall, it was a great experience that our time in Cape Town would not have been complete without.
Cape Fur Seal diving - Animal Ocean
