I like all marine creatures when I am standing on land or a solid boat. When I am out in the water I seem to be a bit more apprehensive. Over the years I have had a few encounters. I remember scuba diving off Heron Island of the coast of Queensland and hiding behind some coral watching some reef sharks attacking some prey. Our instructor didn't seem worried so that made me relax and enjoy the experience. I was probably one of the stronger swimmers in the group so that might of given me a bit more confidence too. On the same trip I got to see sea turtles coming ashore and laying there eggs at night. That was cool as when they started digging the ranger left us get pretty close. It was a pretty slow process I was keen to get in there and help dig to speed thing up. The sea lions at Kangaroo Island in South Australia was great too. One of the pups was so play full and came right up close before we were told to back away slowly.
Way back in late 1980s I got to visit Monkey Mia in Western Australia it was such a long drive but well worth it. You used to be able to buy food and feed dolphins that came by regularly. I have heard it still happening, but it is a lot more controlled now.
It was amazing how close they came. There is no way I would be that trusting in a random group of strangers even if they did had free food. These photos were taken with an old standard cheap film camera.
