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Butandings or whale sharks are humongous gentle creatures that migrate to the plankton-infested waters of Donsol, Sorsogon every February to May to feed. They are the main attractions in Sorsogon around these months and are always visited by foreign tourists. Maybe around 4:1 ratio of foreigners to locals.

At the Tourism Office

It was a beautiful day and we were excited to swim with these peaceful sharks so we hurried to the Tourism Office after a quick breakfast. We arrived there at around 7:15 AM and there were already lots of people milling about, mostly foreigners.

Start early. The Tourism opens at around 6 AM especially when it’s peak season. At around noon, there’ll be less sharks to see since they would be finished eating. And if possible, time your interaction when there was a big moon the night before. Our interaction officer said that the moon affects the tides and the distribution of planktons. So full moon = more planktons = more whale sharks.

REGISTRATION and FEES

We already registered the day before (which is a big help) so we just had to pay for the registration fee of Php100 each and the 3-hour Butanding interaction fee of Php500 each. Foreigners are charged a much higher rate (+ Php100 I think).

We were quickly grouped with 2 Swiss nationals accompanied by a Filipina and 2 British couples. So our 7-man group is complete and we were asked to watch a brief video about the whale sharks before heading out.

Off to sea

After watching the video, we grabbed our things and headed to our boat with our BIO (Butanding Interaction Officer) Henry leading the way.

Life vests are provided on the boats for free. Masks are a must when you’re planning to swim with the sharks. Flippers are needed as well since the sharks don’t always take that path you want it to so sometimes you have to give chase. Masks with snorkels can be rented outside the Tourism Office for Php150. Flippers are also Php150 a pair.

Bring an underwater camera that can sustain at least 15 feet. We brought along a disposable Kodak underwater camera (Php525). The important thing is the ISO 800 film to take decent photos even on low light condition underwater. Problem with the camera is that it’s not automatic so you would miss time underwater while winding the film.

BUTANDING INTERACTION

On the boat, there’s a driver, two Butanding spotters and our Interaction Officer, Henry. Henry told us that he will alert us to get ready when they spot a Butanding. The boat will then move in front of the path the Butanding is taking. When your BIO says jump, you should jump immediately and follow him or else you’ll have a hard time looking for the shark underwater.

See the whale shark?

Barely 10 minutes out to the sea, we spotted our first Butanding. They swim to the surface when feeding and you could see the big dark shadow from the boat. Too bad my wife didn’t go on the first dive but I did.

The water was cool (not cold) under the heat of the morning sun and the first whale shark I saw was already pretty big. It was so close beneath my feet and I was able to take 3 shots before it swam past by me. Big sharks swim slowly but I regretted not wearing any flippers because even with them on, you can barely keep up.

Here are some photos that I got from my underwater disposable camera. You can click the images to zoom.

You can hand over your camera to your BIO so he could take a picture of the whale shark with you swimming by it. Although, keep in mind that his job is to look out for the other divers so don’t hog his time.

After the shark went underwater, we climbed back to the boat to search for another one. Basically, it would be a series of dives and climbs with a short to long wait in between. Fortunately, all the passengers on the boat can speak English so we had a nice time chatting with each other while waiting.

Bring refreshments and maybe a power bar or two. Diving and climbing back up is really tiring and you need the extra energy to keep up if you want to maximize your time.

All in all, I saw about 6 whale sharks. There’s a small speedy one that really moved like a shark. The biggest one I saw was about 9 meters which is really big! Probably bigger than a bus. Henry said that the largest one he saw was 18 meters.

We finished at around 11:30 AM which was more than the alloted time but our BIO aimed to satisfy our thirst for more time with the whale sharks. It was really a wonderful experience and I don’t mind doing it again another time.

Afterwards, we headed back to our resort for lunch and get ready for the next part of our trip, Rizal Beach Resort, which I will be writing about next.

If you have any questions/suggestions/corrections, please feel free to leave a comment. Thanks!

You might also be interested in:

• Touring Sorsogon Without a Car Part 2: From Legaspi to Donsol and the Fireflies
• Touring Sorsogon Without a Car Part 1: Our Plan
• Touring Sorsogon Without a Car Part 4: From Donsol to Rizal Beach Resort in Gubat
• Touring Sorsogon Without a Car Part 5: Destinations in Sorsogon

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