"I was swallowed by a whale and I thought of Pinocchio, of course."

“I was born in Valencia, Spain, but I grew up in the state of Amazonas, Venezuela. This trip was originally to celebrate my father’s forty-ninth birthday. We’ve lived in Chile since 2018 and he and I sometimes go on expeditions. My father has been packrafting (a very light inflatable kayak that can be carried in a backpack) for eight years, and I’ve only been for a year. I knew the Strait of Magellan ( located in Patagonia, in southern Chile) from having been there once or twice, but only by land. My father organized the trip in early February.

The goal was to bivouac on a small island called Nassau. The idea was to reach the island on the 9th, camp there, and wake up on the 10th, his birthday. My father had already tried to reach Nassau but had to turn back; this was his second attempt. Two months before his birthday, he told me about his plan. I prepared myself physically because I knew the route would be demanding.

On February 7th, we slept at Fin de Camino, the last place accessible by car in the area, about 70 kilometers from Punta Arenas, where we live in Patagonia. From there, a trail leads to Cabo Froward, the southernmost point of continental South America.

"I closed my eyes and felt a wave breaking over me and carrying me underwater. I quickly realized I was in the mouth of a giant animal."

The next day, we got up quite late and took our time over breakfast. We started trekking around 10 a.m. We walked for an hour, then put on our life jackets and inflated our two kayaks. We were off. We sailed along the San Isidro lighthouse and then ended up in Eagle Bay. It must have been around 3 p.m. We had been kayaking for two hours. We had encountered a few dolphins and were talking about the orcas that you can sometimes spot, with a bit of luck, in the area.

As we were leaving Eagle Bay, it started to rain. You have to know that the weather is very unpredictable in Patagonia. The sea started to get rough, with little waves breaking the surface of the water, and we couldn't see anything below. That's when my dad turned on his 360° camera. We created a YouTube channel ( mañoco chaNel ) where we document all our outings. In some videos, I'm barely 10 years old! He positioned the camera in front of him and then pointed it at me. That's when I felt something suddenly hit my kayak from behind.

When I turned around, I saw very dark blue and white rising all around the boat. I thought something was going to hit me, so I closed my eyes and felt a wave breaking over me and carrying me underwater. I quickly realized I was in the mouth of a giant animal. At that moment, I imagined everything and anything. I thought of Pinocchio, of course, and the possibility of surviving after being swallowed whole by something.

I took a deep breath, anticipating that I might run out of air. As a result, I didn't feel much. I must have stayed in there for a second because I realized pretty quickly that I was surfacing. However, it felt like it was taking forever to get my head out of the water. I could hear a kind of splash and a very high-pitched sound.

“My father kept telling me, 'Tranquilo, tranquilo.' He stayed super calm, which helped me a lot.”

That's when I really realized it could be a whale. My fear was that it would jump out of the water and hit us. If we had both been in the water, it would have been very difficult to reach dry land. I yelled, "Dad, be careful, there's something underwater that's going to pull you under!"

He kept repeating to me "Tranquilo, tranquilo" . He was super calm, it helped me a lot because I was in the middle of a panic attack. When I saw him so calm, I knew everything was going to be okay. I didn't even see the whale next to me, I just heard the splashing.

I didn't have any scratches or injuries from the collision. The water was cold, however, about 10°C, and I had to keep my head above water. I held my boat with one hand and my father's with the other. We continued like this for about 20 minutes. I moved my legs to help it move forward and keep my body active to warm it up.

I was scared, but we talked the whole way through and even laughed. He tried to reassure me. He'd also experienced something scary. Turning on his camera, hearing a big splash, and seeing me disappear underwater with my kayak... But once he saw me safe and sound again, all his fears dissipated. He helped me back onto my boat. We tied up our packrafts and continued for another 20 minutes before reaching the shore.

Video credit: DELL SIMANCAS

It was like I'd survived a shipwreck. I was shaken, I didn't really understand what had happened. My father didn't either, he was talking about something very big, probably a whale, but I wasn't sure. I just felt extremely lucky to be alive. And I saw it as a sign. Without that, maybe the trip would have ended badly with that weather. We couldn't continue because I'd lost my paddle in the process. So we decided to turn around and go back.

It was only the next day when I woke up that I saw the video. My dad had put it on the family WhatsApp group that morning. I wasn't even the first one to see it (laughs) . When my mom came across it, she almost fainted. It was quite funny to realize that I had actually been in the mouth of a whale.

“Even today, I feel nervous and a little scared every time I watch the video.”

I shared the video with a few friends and told my dad to post it that afternoon, tagging my account. A few hours later, I had nearly twenty missed calls and messages from journalists who wanted to come to my house to ask me questions. Since then, I've lost all control over the situation (laughs) . I've had to answer more than twenty interviews.

This year, I'm done with packrafting, or at least on rivers or lakes. With the cold season coming, the weather is very unstable and the practice is becoming dangerous in Patagonia. Especially in recent years, which have been accompanied by very long winters and very strong winds. But next summer, yes. Punta Arenas is a small town, I ride my bike every day, and it's quite easy to organize weekend hikes.

My dad and I will probably go to the Magallanes National Reserve soon. Months have passed, and I've watched the video many times. Even today, I feel nervous and a little scared every time I watch it. And to think, it was the first time my dad and I actually saw a whale!

Published weekly in L'Équipe's Breathe section, the "Personal Message" series provides a first-person account of an intimate sports-related episode. Do you also have a powerful or inspiring story to tell? Don't hesitate to contact us.