A Swim to the Fin-ish
This was one time 8-year-old Emily Kasmer was glad to get pushed around by a couple of older, much bigger kids. In fact, Emily can’t wait to see them again.
That’s because the two older kids--10-year-old Santini and 12-year-old Elita--are dolphins at the not-for-profit Dolphin Research Center on Grassy Key, Fla. The center is home to a colony of bottlenose dolphins from the Gulf of Mexico.
To celebrate her dad Russ’ birthday, Emily and her father swam and played with the magnificent 8-foot-long animals, hanging onto their fins as the 250-pound mammals sliced through the water.
“They felt like rubber hard-boiled eggs,” said Emily, who lives in Fort Lauderdale and is a star member of her school’s swim team. “It was so fun!”
Since then, “the dolphins are all Emily talks about,” said her mother Sue. “She watches the video over and over.” Emily has since adopted Santini, sending a donation for the animal’s care.
Too bad my 6-year-old daughter Melanie wasn’t as thrilled by her chance to join Emily and the dolphins in the water. Too bad I’d paid $90 (nonrefundable, of course) for her spot, reserved weeks ahead. At least my husband, who took Melanie’s place, had a good time.
The hope is, of course, that such carefully crafted interactive experiences--the Florida Keys offer more of these than anywhere else in the continental United States--will inspire kids and adults to treasure and better protect the marine ecosystem. The Dolphin Research Center ([305] 289-1121) is known internationally for its efforts to treat sick or wounded dolphins, as well as for its educational and therapeutic programs, including those for disabled adults and children.
Naively, it never occurred to me that our usually fearless first-grader, a strong swimmer, would be less than thrilled to cavort with fast-moving creatures who outweigh her by more than 200 pounds. “Too scary,” she said, though I was in the water waiting for her. “Too much seaweed.”
Up the road at Hawk’s Cay Resort’s Dolphin Connection, a for-profit educational and research facility open to the public ([305] 743-7000, Ext. 3030), President Cheryl Messinger, who is the mother of two young children as well as a longtime dolphin trainer and former president of the International Marine Animal Trainers Assn., had predicted Melanie’s reaction. That’s why Messinger offers a 45-minute Dolphin Detectives program every afternoon for kids age 5 and older. The program gives the kids a glimpse into a trainer’s world, from helping with preparation of the dolphins’ food to assisting in their training, getting splashed plenty in the process.
Also in Florida, Dolphins Plus on Key Largo offers different in-water programs for children age 7 and older (starting at $100 per person) and for those age 10 and older ($145 for a half-day), who are accompanied by a paying parent. Call (305) 451-1993.
Sea World of Florida in Orlando and Sea World of California in San Diego also offer programs in which guests get into the water with the dolphins and their trainers. The program costs $150. Children must be at least 11 years old and those under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Call Sea World of California at (619) 226-3903 (the dolphin program will reopen in April 1998 with a new facility) and Sea World of Florida at (407) 363-2380.
Elsewhere, Dolphin Quest offers various in-water programs at the Hilton Waikoloa Village in Hawaii, the Moorea Beachcomber Park Royal Resort in French Polynesia and at the Southampton Princess Hotel in Bermuda. Prices typically start at $45 for the children’s program. For more information, call Dolphin Quest at (540) 687-5958.
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Taking the Kids appears the first and third week of every month.
