Victoria Monk shares her whale shark encounter in the Maldives

Whale sharks, though daunting in terms of size, are harmless to humans

"Jump now!” shouted our guide, Ali. I stumbled down the deck trying to pull on my oversized fins and frantically scouring the floor for my misplaced snorkel. “Hurry, hurry!” he called again, more urgently. Mask askew, I leapt from the boat into the warm Indian Ocean. Spotting the tip of Ali’s snorkel up ahead, I plunged my face underwater, ready to begin a speedy, front crawl pursuit. And there, facing me – behind a haze of bubbles – was the looming head of a 20ft whale shark.

I was on a whale-shark safari off South Ari Atoll in the Maldives, with a team of local experts who know the waters as well as they know the land. Whale sharks, though daunting in terms of size, are harmless to humans, feeding mainly on plankton. Our guides stood atop the cabin, pointing out passing sea life – turtles, dolphins, manta rays – where before I’d seen nothing but a vast expanse of ocean. Read More

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