Anyone Re-thinking Swimming With the Stingrays?

[Illinoisvacationeer]

I am not afraid to go to Sting Ray City... Very open area...

 

We went in May to Nassau and they took us a really small island during a storm....That was so dumb!!!! The sting rays were in a very small area fenced in.. We had the sand washing out from under our feet, waves pushing us over.. Then they added the water and juice from the calamari we were feeding them in the water... So guess what... The sting rays were right there fighting with each other, while we were fighting the water and sand... It was very unsafe.. We all got out of the the water saying we didn't feel safe.. After we got back and had my film developed...I notice the rays had the stingers up and not happy, we couldn't tell because the water was murky and wavey... guess who we went with for this tour... All other got there money backk.. I didn't and fought it several times then gave up... no not sure to us them for other tours now... :( that is sad!

 

 

I do plan to do the Sting Ray City TOUR here soon in Jan. Looks like a safer tour and have heard the private company we are going with will cancell if weather looks bad...Plus we don't have to pay before we go.. So if we chicken out we won't loose money... :)

 

 

 

REST IN PEACE STEVE!!! YOU CRAZY MAN! CROCKKYY

[Iceman-007]

We swam with the Stingray's a couple of years ago. My husband loved it but I didn't. I got back on the boat in a hurry, did not care to have them swim near me. A friend got bite by a stingray on the excursion.

 

It's is too bad about Steve Irwin.

 

what happened to your friend who got stung? Did he need to be taken to the hospital, was a chunk taken out of your friends leg? Was he in pain all day? How did it happen?

[Cruisin Kay D]

We have been 4 times to SRC -- once on a "cattle boat", once with Captn Marvins and twice with Sotos -- and we'll go again!!!!

 

What we liked about Sotos is how their staff explains everything (stand still, don't jump around, etc) before you get in the water and then while passengers gradually get in, several staff each hold a ray and let the passengers touch it or hold it. No food is brought out at this time!!! They let all of us get comfortable around the rays first! At first there weren't alot of rays swimming around us. To hold one, you extend your arms straight out, separated about 18 inches, then the ray is placed on your arms with ray's face toward your face. The rays feel like velvet! The staff holds the ray with stinger/tail away from the passengers & toward the staff person. Later the staff asks if you want to feed them & shows you just how to do it & what not to do. By that point there were alot more rays swimming around us. You don't need your snorkel or mask. You are standing in waist-deep to chest-deep water, depending on how tall you are. Surrounding the stingray area (size of ice hockey rink) are many boats & usually several hundred passengers. You stand near your boat -- I think there were about 40 on Sotos, but there were at least 6 other boats out there. Noone on our boat was wailing or screaming, but we heard this from other groups.

 

The explanation for Stingray City is that many years ago the location is where the fishermen cleaned their catch and the rays fed on the waste and soon the rays gathered out there waiting for boats & fish food. Later on it became a location for boats to bring tourists, though I can't say for how many years. Nearly every day of the week there are hundreds of tourists out there handling the rays, so yes, these rays are quite "used to humans" -- the accidents mentioned in this thread likely happened in more isolated locations where neither ray nor human were intending to mingle -- hence an "accident".

 

RE Irwin: I certainly can see how the ray in Australia felt threatened by the "thing" in front of him & the "thing" above him -- maybe that ray thought this big thing was a shark or other predator. Maybe this ray had NOT encountered humans before this. If Irwin was 3 ft. away/above from the ray, it must have been a rather large ray with a long long tail!!

[uspshooter]

I'm already booked and still looking forward to swimming with the rays. Not a chance I'd cancel.

[Zyzygy]

The video outtakes they showed during the Steve Irwin news stories showed giant rays, whose "wings" were at least six feet across.

 

Although some of the rays at sting ray city in Grand Cayman are somewhat large, they are only a third to a half the size of the ones depicted in the Irwin story.

 

The greatest danger from rays is stepping on one during a calm day at the beach. My brother stepped on a small ray (about a foot across) at the Florida panhandle once, and had a nasty lash on his ankle, which healed.

 

This is why beachgoers are encouraged to do the "stingray shuffle", shuffling their feet in the sand to scare a half-buried ray away instead of stepping on him and triggering an attack.

 

We went to sting ray city in Grand Cayman and would go back in an instant.

 

The rays are tame, so long as no one does anything really stupid to make them alarmed, and all they want to do is eat the fresh squid the tourists offer them. When feeding, their mouths exert a suction that is much stronger than a vacuum cleaner.

 

National Geographic did an article and video on the stingrays at Grand Cayman in the mid-'80's.

 

As our guide explained: "They have only one barb for a lifetime, and they don't want to waste it on you."

 

They are unbelievably strong, muscular creatures, though. I caught a large one (three feet across) at Amelia Island a few years ago, and I thought I was landing Moby Dick.

 

I can see how a giant ray could exert enormous force in attacking with its barb if it wanted to.

[Travelight]

I swam with the stingrays at Grand Cayman last summer. We asked many questions of the guides, therefore thought we knew what to expect. It still was awesome and somewhat unsettling to have them swimming all around and bumping into us. I definitely can see how someone could get accidently stung by one, though. I even stepped on one, but jumped off very quickly, When aggitated or excited they seem to flap their wings a lot. With those barbs all over the place, it seems possible someone could get stuck if they were flailing around too much or touched one in the wrong place. Even the most docile dog can become vexed occasionally and not want to be bothered. That's why I think it best that younger children not swim with the stingrays.

[Minn.cruisers]

We will keep our reservation to swim with the stingrays this October. It is a once in a lifetime adventure and has a track record of being safe. Thousands of people do this every year, and survive to tell the tale---it is one of the greatest moments in their lives. The excursions are with qualified individuals who have been in the busuness for many years, and are experienced in overseeing their groups. These stingrays are docile, and accustomed to swimming with humans. We wouldn't miss the chance to swim with them.

[Seal]

Been home a week--swam with the Rays on an excursion from Bora Bora--there were also a couple of sharks--not too large maybe 4-4-1/2 feet--could be more--don't really know

 

Lots of rays--we were told not to persue them--not to worry I wan't about to do that--although it might have appeared that we were pursuing because they were swimming in all directions--so any move you made could be persuing--just to get out of the way of a lot of them coming your way

 

We were probably not in the water much more than 1/2 hour--could have been much longer--just can't be clear about it

 

After our cruise we werre in Papette for a final night before going home in an OWB--we had rays there--not many--we had a great reef not more than 20' from our bungalow--better than any excursion that we took

 

This was at the IC by the large swimming pool--the #'s were in the 400's--we were the 4th from the beginning--great place to be for snorkeling

--we were very lucky to get that bungalow--John swam all over the area and determined that this was the best location at the Intercontinental

 

I'd probably think about these excursions now--but I don't need to give it much thought since we are back in Southern California

 

Nancy & John:D

[Seal]

One more thing--the excursion we were on dropped us at a spot that was only 4-1/2 feet deep in parts--so they were swimming between your legs at time--wierd feeling--made me want to get away

 

Nancy:D

[The Big Booper]

I took a second look at my underwater pictures of the GC rays taken on our recent Freedom cruise and most of them were scooting along on the bottom of the sea darting around the standing humans. I leave it to the guides to gather in the tame ones for the guests to hold.

[tropic cruisin]

To All,

 

I was stung (on the ankle) by a stingray while windsurfing at Catalina Island (Calif). When I fell, I must have startled the gentle creature. I was taken to a hospital in Long Beach for treatment. The stinger was removed, the wound lanced, and a cast put on up to the knee for 7 days.

The cast was to keep the area "quiet" to prevent any travel of possible infection. I recovered with only a small scar. My DH and I did the Cayman tour as well as swimming with the rays while in Tahiti. The rays in Tahiti

were very docile and would even swim over us as we sat in the shallow waters surrounding the motu. I was a bit fearful at first, but once in the water my fear subsided. I would do it again and again. I felt at peace in the water with the gentle creatures. What a wonderful experience for me in spite of being stung.

 

Maureen

[starsjohn]

Last week we had 12 stings from stepped on rays in one day alone! These are smaller rays than the ones in Tahiti and the Caymans. Frolicking in the surf without being able to see the bottom is the general cause. One proud surfer had a whole handful of burbs he had pulled from his ankles and lower legs.

 

As a diver, I have swam with thousands of rays all over the world including the Great Barrier reef and will continue to do so. I have seen thousands in the water on the excursions with the rays and never a sting. Your odds of a problem are far below getting a dog bite or cat scratch.

[marty30907]

I swam with the stingrays in 03 without incident. If everyone listens to the briefing from the captain, no one will be hurt.

[heymom32000]

Our family went to Stingray city in the GC last Oct and had a wonderful experience. The water was pretty murky since it had been raining the past few days and just stopped after we got out onto the water. I'm 5'4" tall and the water was a bit higher than my waist. The waves were rolling pretty good so it made it a bit hard to stand. Our guides were wonderful though! One allowed my daughter and myself to hold onto his arm for balance. They give you lots of instruction and information. We were to stand with our legs apart so that the rays could swim between them and not feel threatened if they bumped into closed legs. We were also told to shuffle our feet and not swim because their predators swim above them. We have a video of our time there and have watched it quite a few times. None of the rays in the video had their barb raised. So they must have been ok with us being there. It was neat to see/feel them as they past next to our legs. They would raise their fin and gently touch our leg. I would love to visit them again some time but would not go again with murky water.

[paulnohio]

We swam with them in the Caymons a few years ago. I would do it again if I had the chance. Yes these rays are pretty use to humans, kind of like puppies looking for food. I read in an earlier report that he swam over the ray and it was trapped between him and a rock formation. Sorry but a cornered wild anamal will always try and protect itself. It is a great loss to the world and the Irwin family

[mariah9999]

I've been thinking about this tragedy ever since I heard about it Monday after leaving the Carnival Victory. I am such a huge Steve Irwin fan and it's just so sad. It was about this time last year that I visited Stingray City with my DH. I keep asking myself would I still go on the excursion today after knowing what happened to Steve Irwin. Truth is, I'm not so sure I would. I am grateful that I went on the excursion last year as it truly was a one of a kind experience. Then I came across the picture of me on the excursion last year holding a Stingray that the tour operator put in my arms for a picture. If I only would have known I can guarantee I wouldn't be holding one - especially this size! I hope that I would have the courage to go on the excursion today but also to realize that these creatures are wild and should definitely be respected and given their space. I hope anyone out there trying to decide whether to go to Stingray City in Grand Cayman goes ahead with it. It definitely is something I'll never forget.

 

RIP Steve Irwin!

[Arubalisa]

I would have to agree with some of the other posters. Sting Ray City in GC we are talking about docile creatures who interact with humans (and lots of them) on a daily basis. Hate to say it, but would they "bite the hand that feeds them?"

 

Steve Irwin had a deadly encounter with a wild animal who evidently felt threatened.

 

To compare the two I think is comparing apples and oranges. Photos Grand Cayman Sting Ray City

[bleuseas]

We did Stingray City a couple of years back. The ship we were on cancelled their tours because of rough waters, but the private tour we booked with Captain Marvin took us out. I was so gung-ho about this tour after reading about it and seeing it on travel shows.

 

Well, I got in the water and freaked out. I think it was the rough seas and so many of them swimming between your legs. If you are there on a calm day and standing in a couple feet of water with your feet touching the bottom, it would probably be a much better experience. But when the waves are bobbing you up and down and you are worried about landing on top of them on the way down, it was too much for me.

 

DH had a good time, as he is taller and was able to stand a little better without going under, but the kids and I stayed on the boat and petted and fed the one they brought to the side of the boat. You can see a lot just from your boat, so it was worth it.

 

We did have one man on our tour who got out with a bloody leg because he got stung, so it does happen.

 

Would I try it again? Maybe if the seas were calmer.

[roxette]

You know, a stingray is not more dangerous today then it was a year ago. To let this scare you to not do such a thing is not to recomend.

 

It's like never walk near a dog, cos dogs has caused more deaths.

 

 

It's happened this year with a stingray, so now it won't happen again in 50 years, i think.

[AtA]

thanks I read your post, it would fully comfort a normal person heheheheeee. I really need to get out more. Question...do you HAVE to feed the rays? I think I might be ok if I didn't have to have them eat out of my hand. I've seen pictures from a website of a tour guide a friend swears by. I think I could possibly pet the top of the stingray if the guide was holding it. I think that would be as far as I could get. Last night there was a cricket in our house, somehow it was perched on the end of the sofa next to me...I completely freaked out screaming. Maybe there are some kind of classes I can go to learn to 'chill with the animals'

 

Please don't take this the wrong way as I'm truly trying to help. If you have such severe phobias the best thing would be to see a therapist trained in phobias. Usually the cause of such fears are deeprooted and need to be brought to the surface so you can start enjoying everyday things.

[Iceman-007]

I've swam with the stingrays twice at Stingray City. The last time we were there the guide gave us some food to feed the stingrays. The suction in their mouth is amazing when they take the food. Be careful where you put your hands after you feed them. I had my hands down in the water and a stingray came up and chomped down on my finger. It hurt like heck as their mouth is real bony inside. I'm sure the stingray still smelled the food on my hands and did not bite me intentionally.

 

If you feel afraid once you get there just stay in the boat and you can see them probably better than you can in the water. The worse thing is to have someone panic in the water.

 

when the sting ray bit your finger was it bleeding? did it let go right away?

[mjwelch]

It seems that this was a very rare event. I guess my "take home" lesson - as best I can tell - is not to swim to close above the animal. Perhaps the shadow above spooked it. I still intend to do it some day and expect that it will go fine as it has for thousands of other people.

 

Our sincere condolences to the Irwin's, their family, and their friends.

 

 

 

mj

[mjwelch]

I am grateful that I went on the excursion last year as it truly was a one of a kind experience. Then I came across the picture of me on the excursion last year holding a Stingray that the tour operator put in my arms for a picture. If I only would have known I can guarantee I wouldn't be holding one - especially this size! I hope that I would have the courage to go on the excursion today but also to realize that these creatures are wild and should definitely be respected and given their space. I hope anyone out there trying to decide whether to go to Stingray City in Grand Cayman goes ahead with it. It definitely is something I'll never forget.

 

RIP Steve Irwin!

 

Just a thought, but with such a wonderful experience, and such a very small risk, I would hope that you take the opportunity again if it arises. From the photo and what you wrote, it seems like it was a very positive experience - getting the rare opportunity to connect with such a wonderful creature in its own environment.

 

mj

[Jennygirl]

I swam with the sting rays a few years ago and it was one of the great joys of my life. My husband even bought me a 14K gold Sting Ray charm for around my neck. I loved the whole experience. That being said, as I held the food in my hand, one of the little creatures threw a lip lock on my wrist and would not let go. He was sucking the life out of my arm. I managed to push him off me by letting go of some of the food and believe me my arm was bright red. I let go of all my food after that and was content to have them swimming around the other people. Would you believe that one of our divers even let me kiss the creature - his name was Darth Vader - I'll never forget it. I'm telling you I'd do this again in a heartbeat and yes I do feel awful about Steve Irwin. He will be sorely missed. I liked the guy and can't believe he's gone at such a young age. :(

[MeganY]

I swam with the stingrays last September and it was one of the coolest things I have ever done- I highly recommend the activity even in light of recent and tragic events. The incident with Irwin was a freak accident, and scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef is very different than taking a guided tour to Stingray City where the animals are used to people and friendly. Every shore excursion has some degree of risk, but basing my opinion on my personal experience, you have nothing to fear. No worries- have a great time- and don't forget the waterproof camera- the shots are amazing!