A 19-year-old adventurer had the shock of his life when a humpback whale momentarily swallowed him while he was packrafting off the coast of Patagonian Chile near the San Isidro Lighthouse.
Adrian Simancas was paddling with his father, Dell Simancas, when the unexpected encounter took place. As seen in a video of the incident, the massive whale surfaced directly beneath Adrian, engulfing him and his packraft in an instant. Just seconds later, both Adrian and the raft reappeared, as if the whale had decided he wasn’t on the menu after all.
Humpback whale swallows kayaker off Chile before releasing him. pic.twitter.com/UuUatMGUxN
— The Associated Press (@AP) February 13, 2025
Adrian later recounted his surreal experience in an interview with The Independent. “At first, I thought it had actually eaten and swallowed me,” he admitted. “For a moment, I even wondered if it was an orca, since we had just been talking about them. But when I resurfaced, I realized the whale may have just been curious or trying to communicate something.”
His father, Dell, who was also out on the water, captured the astonishing moment on film. “I turned around and suddenly Adrian was gone—no son, no boat,” he recalled. “I was shocked and worried. Then, I saw him emerge, followed by the raft, and finally, part of the whale’s body.”
While the experience was terrifying, Adrian emerged unscathed, left only with an unforgettable tale of an encounter few could ever imagine.
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