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BigV · 09-29-2011, 10:41 PM

Manta rays feeding... pretty cool. Stingrays feeding from your hand...AWESOME.

A few years ago we were on a cruise through the western Carribean I think, and we had a stop in the Cayman Islands. One of the shore excursions was to go "Swimming with the Stingrays". I'm game. We took a big catamaran out to the edge of the atoll and though we were very far from shore, the water wasn't very deep. I could stand up easily in many places. My kids had to paddle around and hang on to me though. We were instructed to shuffle our feet along the bottom, and NOT to raise our feet to walk like you would on shore. The point was we were intentionally shooing the rays from our path rather than taking a chance at stepping down onto one and getting injured for our trouble.

So, there we were standing in about five feet of water and stingrays were EVERYWHERE. Hundreds of them. The guides were able to give us little pieces of cut up fish or squid as treats to feed them. We were told to hold the food firmly in our fist with a little tag hanging out. The discouraged the fish from swallowing your whole hand to get at the fishy treat. The experience of the stingrays trying to bite/suck/grab/gnaw/hoover the squid from your hand was amazing. They don't have teeth, but they do have two bony plates where you and I have gums, and the surface is like a rasp. They inhale and then chomp down on whatever flows in.

The mean trick of the day was to rub the bait on someone's arm or buttcheek. Yeah... you guessed it. The stingrat would smell it, sidle up and WHOOOOSHCHOMP! OUCHGODDAMMIT!. It could leave a nice bruise on the tenderest skin, but otherwise harmless.

They feel very strange. I held my arms out just under the surface and one of the guides carried/lured one of them into my arms. The upper and lower surfaces could not feel more different. On the top, it was pebbly, even sandpapery or .. like sharkskin, if you've ever had the chance. On the bottom it was like lubricated velvet, so smoooooth.

It was an incredible experience and I highly recommend it if you ever get the chance.

Hey, they're on the intarwebz: Stingray City.

09-29-2011, 10:41 PM	#13
BigV Goon Squad Leader Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Seattle Posts: 27,063	Manta rays feeding... pretty cool. Stingrays feeding from your hand...AWESOME. A few years ago we were on a cruise through the western Carribean I think, and we had a stop in the Cayman Islands. One of the shore excursions was to go "Swimming with the Stingrays". I'm game. We took a big catamaran out to the edge of the atoll and though we were very far from shore, the water wasn't very deep. I could stand up easily in many places. My kids had to paddle around and hang on to me though. We were instructed to shuffle our feet along the bottom, and NOT to raise our feet to walk like you would on shore. The point was we were intentionally shooing the rays from our path rather than taking a chance at stepping down onto one and getting injured for our trouble. So, there we were standing in about five feet of water and stingrays were EVERYWHERE. Hundreds of them. The guides were able to give us little pieces of cut up fish or squid as treats to feed them. We were told to hold the food firmly in our fist with a little tag hanging out. The discouraged the fish from swallowing your whole hand to get at the fishy treat. The experience of the stingrays trying to bite/suck/grab/gnaw/hoover the squid from your hand was amazing. They don't have teeth, but they do have two bony plates where you and I have gums, and the surface is like a rasp. They inhale and then chomp down on whatever flows in. The mean trick of the day was to rub the bait on someone's arm or buttcheek. Yeah... you guessed it. The stingrat would smell it, sidle up and WHOOOOSHCHOMP! OUCHGODDAMMIT!. It could leave a nice bruise on the tenderest skin, but otherwise harmless. They feel very strange. I held my arms out just under the surface and one of the guides carried/lured one of them into my arms. The upper and lower surfaces could not feel more different. On the top, it was pebbly, even sandpapery or .. like sharkskin, if you've ever had the chance. On the bottom it was like lubricated velvet, so smoooooth. It was an incredible experience and I highly recommend it if you ever get the chance. Hey, they're on the intarwebz: Stingray City. __________________ Be Just and Fear Not.