Terrifying moment an almost COLD diver with a baby whale as they swim with the giant creature

THIS is the terrifying moment a diver nearly collided with a baby whale as they tried to swim with the massive creature.

Mitch Brown, 27, and his girlfriend Yanna Xian, 24, received the shock of a lifetime when they were approached by a humpback child during a whaling excursion in Tahiti last year.

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The curious two-week-old calf swam close to Yanna before plunging to the bottom of the sea.

However, due to its enormous size and the movement of the water, it almost pulled Yanna along, forcing her to swim frantically upwards to keep herself from falling.

Mitch, from Hawaii, USA, said: “In the past, whales were almost always close to us, but they always had a clear sense of direction and were almost always away from us.

“This one might not be able to see Yanna, that’s why it raised its head before touching her.

“As it swam away, that’s when I realized we’d just made a memory for life.

“It’s like a real connection between humans and whales.”

Avid visitors were on the final day of a whale-boat excursion in Moorea last September when the magical encounter took place.

Frequently, boats will stop and they can go into the water to see the whales in their natural habitat.

Photographer Mitch said he and Yanna were swimming on the water when they spotted a “mama whale” with its young resting on the ocean floor.

He said: ‘As we calmly watched them from the water, this curious baby whale decided to come check us out.

The baby creature caught on camera was swimming to the surface of the ocean and rolling around as it played, before deciding to dive just a few inches from Apple Store employee Yanna.

“It was a beautiful respect for both of them,” Mitch said.

“The whale clearly didn’t want to jump at Yanna and Yanna tried to swim back with her hands instead of her feet to avoid kicking the whale.

“I was more worried that the whale would accidentally hit Yanna, and it happened so quickly that I had time to react when the whale changed course.

“After that, we all swam for each other and showed each other videos and photos and laughed and punched.

“We were all very surprised to see that. There was definitely some bonding moment between the two of them.”

Yanna had been cleaning her goggles as the curious creature approached, and when she turned her head below, she found it directly in front of her.

She didn’t touch the whale, but the experience left a huge impression.

Mitch said: ‘She couldn’t believe she had just come into contact with a baby whale up close.

“It’s definitely a bucket list item she didn’t even know she had.”

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