Here is the Video of the Dolphin Pod Protecting a Swimmer from a Great White:
What happened during Adam Walker’s swim?
In the video, you can see around 10 dolphins swimming next to Adam Walker. They get really close to him at times and surround him on all sides. Dolphins can swim much faster than humans, but these dolphins clearly were swimming at Walker’s pace, but why? Walker said during his open-water swim a dolphin pod showed up and started swimming next to him. You can see in the video that the dolphins are on both sides of him and swim out front, almost paving the way. He thought it was very cool and was enjoying it but then looked down to see a Great White shark lurking below. He figured the dolphins had known the shark was there all along and was swimming with him to protect him. If you are a shark you are more likely to attack a single prey vs. a group of prey, so the dolphins created the illusion that Walker was part of their group!
When a dolphin pod protects swimmer Adam Walker, why was he swimming in the ocean?
Adam Walker was swimming as part of the Oceans Seven mission, where long-distance swimmers are challenged to swim specific routes as a fundraiser for conservation. The best part is that Walker was swimming to support the Whale and Dolphin Conservation group Stop Whaling. What an amazing coincidence that the dolphins were now helping him!
Did the shark ever try to attack Walker?
No, the shark did not attack Walker or the dolphins. The dolphins did stay with Walker until the shark finally lost interest, or felt overwhelmed, and left.
What did Adam Walker have to say once he safely reached land?
Walker posted on social media, “Swimming with dolphins on my 6th of Oceans 7 swims ‘Cook Strait’ open water swimming doesn’t get any better than this!! Dream come true!!!” Instead of focusing on the danger of the shark he was ecstatic to have had the opportunity to swim with the dolphins. He went on to mention, “I’d like to think they were protecting me and guiding me home.”
Where did this event take place?
The dolphin pod protected Walker in the Cook’s Straight in New Zealand on April 22, 2014.
Did Adam Walker complete the Ocean Sevens challenge?
Yes! The Cook’s Straight swim in New Zealand was the 6th of 7 swims and he finished the 7th swim on June 8, 2014! The Oceans Seven was created by Steven Munatones as an endurance challenge for long distance swimmers. It took Walker 7 years to train and complete the 7 swims but he did it, despite encounters with sharks, Portuguese-man-o-war and strong currents. Here is an overview of his seven swims.
1) English Channel
Date: July 14, 2008Time: 11 hours 35 minutesDistance: 21 milesStruggles: Walker had to postpone the swim 4 days due to bad weather. The weather seemed to die down so he attempted the swim but about 3 hours the waves got very choppy and made Walker sick. The trouble became keeping down enough calories from the carbohydrate drink to give him enough energy to make the swim. He pressed on and completed the swim in 11 hours and 35 minutes.
2) Straights of Gibralter (Spain to Morocco…and back!)
Date: July 5, 2011Time: 9 hours 39 minutesDistance: 19 milesStruggles: Most challenging part of this swim was the high tides. Walker thought they would have to cancel the trip but he pressed on. He became the first British person to complete the swim and the 6th person in the world.
3) Molokai Straight, Hawaii
Date: June 21, 2012Time: 17 hours 2 minutesDistance: 26 milesStruggles: This time he ran into bad currents that kept pushing him away from the ending point. A swim he thought would take 14-15 hours kept getting longer since he couldn’t get to shore. He kept going and finally finished the swim in 17 hours 2 mins.Animals/Wildlife encountered: Unfortunately, he got hit by a Portuguese-Man-O-War which can deliver a venomous, painful sting. They are strange-looking jellyfish-like creatures with long tentacles and often swim in large groups. The stings are painful but not deadly to humans.
4) The Catalina Channel, Southern California to the Santa Catalina Island
Date: October 16, 2012Time: 12 hours 15 minutesDistance: 21 milesStruggles: The biggest challenge with this swim was the temperature. Walker said he was cold the entire swim. He was also discouraged by the heavy fog which made seeing the encouraging land on the other side difficult. He completed the 4th swim in 12 hours 15 minutes.Animals/Wildlife encountered: Walker said near the end of the swim he had a few seals follow him!
5) The Tsugaru Straight, Japan
Date: August 12, 2013Time: 15 hours 31 minutesDistance: 15 milesStruggles: Again he faces strong waves and sea sickness for much of the swim. He got pushed back near the end of the swim with strong currents, but finished in 15 hours 31 minutes.Animals/Wildlife encountered: He said, “I got stung in the face with jellyfish that were so small I couldn’t even see them!”. Later during the swim as the sun started to set Walker was concerned about sharks coming out and later he saw a 6 foot long shark. No dolphins to help him this time, he just kept swimming and luckily avoided any problems. His next swim is when a dolphin pod protects him from a Great White!
6) The Cook Straight, New Zealand
Date: April 22, 2014Time: 8 hours 39 minutesDistance: 14 milesStruggles: This was the trip where he saw the Great White Shark and was protected by the pod of dolphins!Animals/Wildlife encountered: Great white shark, dolphins
7) The Northern Channel, Ireland
Date: August 6, 2014Time: 10 hours 45 minutesDistance: 22 milesStruggles: The first problem was leaving early in the morning meant there would be Lions Mane Jellyfish, and there were! Walker said, “What I was not prepared for, was quite how big they can be. However, after a few stings, you realize their bark is worse than their bite!” Similar struggles with strong current prevented him from breaking a world record but he made good time. Adam was ecstatic to complete the 7th of 7 swims in 7 years, an amazing accomplishment!Animals/Wildlife encountered: Lions Mane Jellyfish, Pilot whales
