Book Review by John Hoopes

I have just finished reading a remarkable novel, The Dolphins of Oceanus by John Hoopes, which has kept me thinking and speculating about dolphins, whales and the ocean, in a way that I have never done, even though I have been a fan and student of dolphin, whale and ocean most of my adult life.

I am old enough to remember John Lilly’s experiments in the 1970s and 80s with dolphins, trying to establish a human-dolphin communication. As I recall, he didn’t ever quite achieve what he’d hoped and eventually gave up the project. But when I read about those experiments in books like The Mind of the Dolphin I felt akin to him in spirit: that is, he was going on the assumption, which I shared, that dolphins had a high order of intelligence, and perhaps, in ways we didn’t yet understand, they could use their large brains in sophisticated ways, comparable to ours, could we but somehow penetrate deeply enough into their psyches to discover that. And I remember a question that kept popping into my mind then: Well, if dolphins really are as intelligent and sophisticated as humans, what do they do with all that great intelligence? How does it manifest in their world? They cannot make material things. They leave no visible, tangible signs of intellectual or artistic creation. What then could it be? I admit, I am not essentially a deeply imaginative person, and I was never able to come up with any speculations that even remotely satisfied me, and I soon gave up speculating.

However, so many years later, when today I’d finished reading this amazing new novel, I knew that someone had finally accomplished, in spades, the imaginative leap that I had not been able to make years ago, and had created a vivid undersea world, full of intelligence and emotion, of spiritual awareness even; and in addition had populated that world with an array of individual dolphins who were all as distinctive and unlike each other as any such collection of humans could be. Quite a feat.

One of our biggest clichés about dolphins and whales, is that they are all gentle, benevolent beings, all apparently living in perfect harmony with each other and with their oceanic environment. The Dolphins of Oceanus also overturns that applecart: there are dolphins and whales we encounter in this novel who have tragic flaws, who can be devious, who intrigue against each other or against the colony for personal gain; there are others noble, spurred by high ideals and capable of great sacrifice for a higher good. In other words, the citizens of this undersea world are as psychologically and spiritually complex and unpredictable as humans. A rich involvement of character results from it.

So this novel has performed a great service for us by making at least a reasonable attempt at answering that important question: Well, assuming their high intelligence, what would their life be like? We as humans need an answer to this. The answer doesn’t have to be perfect, just something that will take us imaginatively inside that hitherto closed door, let us look around inside that amazing room; and then take that information back outside and use it to help reassess our own position on this planet. Do we already have a nearby, great, alien ally?

Something in this novel suggests that the answer to that old, old question—is there anybody like us out there?—could be very near at hand; has been here all the time; we just didn’t know where to look, whom to ask. Not outward and upward and into spectrums of light-year; but right here, down below, into the dark, mysterious depths of our own Oceanus.

You can read free the first several chapters on the author’s website at www.bellamagicbooks.com.

How to Pick your Dolphin Watching Tour

You are going to travel to one of those dolphin paradises and plan to take a dolphin watching or diving tour?

There are several issues to consider when picking a dolphin or whale watching tour or swimming with dolphins tour. At every dolphin watching or diving place, there are several tour operators therefore picking the right one is the starting step to have a wonderful experience.

Here are a few recommendations although the number one issue we are considering (and you should always consider) is your security.

Therefore, before selecting a dolphin watching, diving or swim with dolphins tour, please ask your provider:

What kind of boat are you using?

This question is mainly oriented to know if it is a boat or an inflatable, mainly ask how many feet the boat is and what material is made of as well as the kind of motors it has. Always ask if it is equipped with an emergency radio (this is the main question of all).

If the boat does not match the description you received when doing your research, refrain from boarding. Also, if you don’t feel right about the boat when arriving, do not board it. This is one of the important security issues.

The boat does not have to be a large boat or a yacht, but you should know in advance what will you get and where will you board.

Most of the diving I have done in the ocean have been on inflatables. They are very reliable an suitable for several applications. The last one I bough was a Sea Eagle inflatable. They have affordable and quality inflatables.

How long is the tour?

You should always ask your provider, how long the tour is going to be. It will be one hour? Four hours? All day?

This is important not only to get what you are paying for but also to take with you special items you might need in case the tour is too long, like food, glasses, sun protection, additional clothing, etc.

If the tour is longer than three hours ask if there is any food or drinks included, otherwise, it is advisable to take yours.

Where is the tour going?

It is another important security measure that you know where are you going and let know other members of your party. If everybody in your party is going with you to the tour, you should tell your hotel where you will be going, what company you hired and how long you will be away.

How many people are going?

This question is much related with the size of the boat. If the tour is shared with other people, make sure the boat is not overcrowded. If the boat is an inflatable, take additional care of the number of people going into the boat.

Don’t forget to count crew members as some companies take the limit boarding capacity of the boat but they additionally take 4 or 5 crew members, exceeding the boat limitations.

What shall we see?

Ok, this is difficult, but at least you will get some commitment from the tour operator.

We all who know the sea are aware that any decent tour operator will not be able to guarantee you watching dolphins or whales because even if they are at the same place every day, that day something could happen that they are not in the same place and you should be aware of this, however, is good to know what are your tour operator intentions.

Ask about how they contact dolphins or whales because some of them really buther dolphins by getting into their way.

How much will it cost?

Always ask in advance how much will the tour cost and what will be included for that cost. This should be one of the last questions after they have provided you the information above. Don´t forget to ask for child price if you are taking kids with you.

What crew is going in the trip?

Now is the time to get serious. Remember that there are two kinds of tours, watching and swimming with dolphins. Although in both cases you should be careful about the crew, in case you are diving, take extra care.

If you are not a trained diver (not only experienced…) make sure a trained diver is going with you. Hundreds of problems can arise while diving that only a very experienced and trained diver can solve properly.

If you are going with other people from your party, it would be a great security measure to leave one of them in the boat, in turns if necessary, so there is always somebody aware of your security on board. If everybody is going down, make sure to keep all together while diving and be sure to be noticed by the crew so they do not leave you in the ocean (it has happened…).

What equipment do you have?

This is also extremely important if you are diving or swimming with dolphins. If you are not taking your own equipment, ask the operator about the condition and the kind of equipment that you will receive.

For any kind of tour, watching or diving, you should be sure that they have a life jacket/vest for anyone boarding the boat.

If you would like to take your own equipment, I have got great prices and sevice for water sports equipment at Overton’s.

If you are planning your travel adventure to watch or swim with dolphins, don´t forget to print your destination miniguide.