Talk about a close call. Free divers had a very close encounter with a hungry whale. While a bit terrifying, it's a moment they will probably never forget.
The incident happened last November in the Pacific Ocean near Mexico. Emily Marzilli and her friends went free diving. That's when they encountered a Bryde's whale near a school of sardines. Marzilli shared the footage to her Instagram account. It shows her, her friends, and their diving instructor in the water. She captioned the post, "Nothing in my life could've ever prepared me for this moment."
The free divers noticed the school of sardines "started going crazy." A large whale suddenly appeared, guzzling down sardines. It was just a few feet from where the divers were.
"Then out of nowhere, the ocean gifted us this," she also wrote.
Marzilli reflected on the moment of seeing the whale.
Close Up To A Whale
"I have tears streaming down my face as I write this. There are moments the ocean chooses you, and I know deep in my heart this was one of them. I know it can sound a 'pick me'... but it is one of those memories I keep replaying again and again. The 0.0001% chance we experience this... and maybe never again," she wrote, adding later, "This will be one of those rare encounters that deepens the way I understand life and reminds me that magic is real."
It was a surprise to the group. They didn't go out into the ocean looking for a whale. But a whale found them all the same. Seeing the creature in the wild was an experience unlike any other.
"[I] was honestly in shock because you are expecting to see fish and then all of a sudden there's this 20, 30 ton whale that's right in front of you," Marzilli said.
