Look! We’re on top of a whale! Kayakers lifted by southern right whale in Puerto Madryn, Argentina

IT may sound like a whale of a tale, but a pair of kayakers had an extremely close encounter with a southern right whale when it lifted their boat — twice.

IT may sound like a whale of a tale, but a pair of kayakers in Argentina had an extremely close encounter with a southern right whale after it dipped under their boat and lifted it — twice.

The kayakers were paddling near Puerto Madryn, in Patagonia — a marine sanctuary known for its whale watching — when they spotted a pod of whales and paddled towards them.

They were soon surrounded by the massive marine mammals, with one dipping beneath the waves and sliding under the boat lifting it above the water.

User gisela6652 uploaded the GoPro video to YouTube on Sunday, with a post saying: “An incredible evening, lots of sun, kayaking and whale watching.

“As we watched from the top of the kayak, one of the whales turned and came towards our direction and lifted the boat twice!! Incredible, everything in this video!”

The video, quickly shared by Reddit, has attracted more than 173,649 views in just three days.

WATCH THE FULL VIDEO HERE:

The commentary recorded in Spanish translates as:

Male: I’m filming. Look, that one is coming over here. Can you see her?

Female: Yes.

Male: Look. (whale growls) That one got angry at you. Look, here you have another one ... that one’s going to crash into us, eh?

Female: Take pictures of them, take pictures of them.

Male: I’m filming them.

Female: But I want one for Face (Facebook)

Male: I’ll get one later.

Female: Aahhhhh!

Male: Look! It’s coming to bite your oar. Look! Look! Look! Look! Look! Look! Look! Look! Incredible, incredible, incredible! Loooooook! It touched us. We’re on top of the whale, we’re on top of the whale, we’re on top of the whale. Look, look, look, we have two. Maintain your balance, maintain your balance only. Look, look, look, look. Incredible. Look, look. Look look. Look.

“It’s coming to bite your oar” ... The kayak is now raised above the water on the whale’s back.

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While some viewers were concerned the kayakers had breached laws, both national and international, that prohibit such contact with whales, others were clearly amazed by the footage.

WtfVegas702 commented: “I just wanted him to touch it with his hand. I know there are restrictions but he was already there. How many people can say “I touched a whale with my bare hands.”

Synaps4 said: “I’ve been this close to a whale on a kayak and it’s TERRIFYING. These are huge, powerful animals the size of a car or a bus, and you’re there on your little floaty plastic bit hoping they don’t bump you.”

Another said: “I would have loved to experience that — Amazing huge creatures. The adrenalin rush must have been intense!”

Southern right whales are largely populated near Australia, South Africa, and Argentina, where the footage was reportedly captured.

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