Archive for Wednesday 28th August 2002 - Swimming with Dolphins
Out of the depths of an unfathomable blue ocean, six dolphins flashed past me in exhilarating style – grouped in perfect symmetry and swimming in unerring harmony.

This was my first mid-Atlantic encounter with dolphins, off Pico, one of nine islands that make up the Azores. A sense of delight, shock and privilege welled up within me. This amazing synchronised swimming display, I was sure, had been put on exclusively for my benefit.

Over ten days I spent nearly 20 hours in a superfast inflatable craft skimming across the ocean that stretched at least a thousand miles in every direction. On some days, the dolphins would swim along with us for half an hour in calm seas, on others when the wind whipped up the waves it was an exhausting, and sometimes fruitless, roller-coaster ride in search of these sleek sea mammals.

The Azorean ‘ethical code’ allows only two people to swim with the dolphins at any one time. Sharing the boat with eight others meant just a short wait, time to put on flippers and mask, as a childlike impatience and excitement gradually took over.

Meeting dolphins in their natural environment immediately challenged my belief in the supremacy of humans. What’s more, the reactions from my fellow adventurers were of unmeasured delight. Several women had come in the hope that dolphin encounters would help them through their bereavements; and each was convinced that they did.

Pioneer of dolphin watching in the Azores, Frenchman Serge Viallelle, who has been organising tours in Pico since 1991, told me that most people who visit his centre, Espaco Talassa, come from countries where stress is a way of life. It is only natural that swimming with such graceful creatures in flawless surroundings causes people to relax and appreciate life more. Viallelle says: “If to be intelligent is to be able to live together in complete harmony, and communicate successfully, then dolphins are very intelligent.” By my reckoning, on this basis alone, they have more than a thing or two to teach us.

For more information about swimming with dolphins in the Azores, visit www.espacotalassa.com

Mark Winter