HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – One of the ocean’s largest creatures made a surprise appearance off West Oahu, and the incredible encounter was caught on camera.
The morning of Nov. 21, about three miles off Makaha, a tour group looking for dolphins spotted a massive whale shark.
Photographer Keely Knauff told Hawaii News Now the giant fish circled him and his crew from ‘Dolphins And You’ for about 15 minutes.
“(It was a) surreal experience to be able to swim with such a gentle creature, really, because it swims so slowly,” he said.
The 23-year-old Kaiser High graduate estimated the whale shark was about 25 feet long.
Despite being dwarfed, Knauff said he was too excited to be afraid.
“I know it has the word shark in the name, but I always knew whale sharks were just super gentle, and fear didn’t even come across,” he said. “I was just so too in the moment, just staring. I couldn’t rip my eyes off of it.”
Knaufer said he’s only been with the tour group for five months, and this whale shark sighting was a first for him.
His captain, who’s been on the water for 15 years, said they only see a whale shark about once every three years.
Copyright 2025 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.