A drone has captured amazing footage of a woman swimming in the ocean only to be joined by a small pod of orca (killer whales). Judie Johnson was swimming at Hahei beach in New Zealand when she has what she calls a “life-changing experience.”
At first, she thought the shape under her was a dolphin. She was initially concerned the killer whales may mistake her for a seal in her wetsuit, but the three whales (one of which was a youngster) appeared curious and playful around her rather than menacing. But she aired on the side of caution and swam to shore just in case.
She told 1 News, “There was a shape that went under me, like a huge shape and I thought [it was] dolphins. I was quite excited, and then I saw the great white color on the back.”
She added the experience was amazing, “It was just sheer joy.”
The footage was shot by Dylan Brayshaw who said he was surprised when he saw Judie exit the water only to fearlessly return to the water to finish her swim. Dylan shares more about how he captured the unique drone footage, which went viral worldwide, in the video below.
For footage of Judie’s swim fast forward to 4:02.
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