Here is my trip report from my most recent Trainer for a Day at Discovery Cove:
14th November 2007
This was the day I had been looking forward to for months. Not only was it my birthday, but it was also the day on which we headed to Discovery Cove. This was our fifth visit to Discovery Cove and this year we both did the Trainer for a Day package. Normally Graham just goes for the Non Dolphin Swim Package as he loves sitting in the aviary.
We got there nice and early and got checked in straight away. As we were there so early, we had to wait a little until we were met by the trainers. As the reception area is so beautiful, this was not a hardship. At 8:30 on the dot the trainers appeared. This year there were 22 people taking part in the programme and they split us into three groups. Last year I was all by myself and although this was an amazing experience, I actually prefer being with a group. We were just about to head off to the park proper when one member of staff came into the reception area with a sloth. So we stopped and met the sloth and found out a bit more about these strange, but cute animals. Then we were on our way. We had a complimentary photo taken and then it was off to breakfast. Over breakfast we had the chance to get to know the rest of the group and for our trainer to find out what we already knew about Discovery Cove. Then it was time to get changed into the wetsuits. First up was the aviary. This is normally one of my favourite parts of the day, but they had a photo shoot for Sports Illustrated in the main part of the aviary which meant that we could not get into there. Still, we spent some time in the large bird aviary and in the small bird sanctuary, before we were collected for a tour. This element was new. We had a water quality tour and learned a lot about the operational aspect of the park. This was really fascinating. 6 people in our group were adults and we had a teenager as well and I think all of this group found this really interesting. We also had a 6 year old girl and she was bored stiff. Throughout the day, I got the impression that 6 years is really to young for the Trainer for a Day programme. I think they should raise the minimum age to 13 in line with similar programmes at the Seaworld Parks. After the water quality tour we got to meet some of the less well know residents of Discovery Cove. We met a giant Tortoise, an Armadillo and a tiny owl. Those meet and greets took place on a secluded part of the beach. I much preferred this to what they used to do when the animal interactions took place in the animal care area behind the scenes. This was always quite cramped. All three animals were out at the same time so the group naturally spread out. I learned loads of interesting facts about the animals. Soon it was time to say goodbye to Owley the owl, Shermann the giant tortoise and to the cute Armadillo whose name I have forgotten. After a quick locker stop, it was then time for the part of the day I was looking forward to most: the dolphin swim! There were no great surprises as I have done this so often now and know all the behaviours that we got to experience. Still, it will always be an amazing experience to be so close to one of these wonderful animals. I could not believe my luck when I found out that we were going to be with Capricorn. Capricorn is their oldest (at 40 years) and biggest (at 800 pounds) dolphin and he is a real sweetheart. I swam with him back in 2005 and he is probably my favourite of the dolphins currently at Discovery Cove. Capricorn is a retired show dolphin and it is obvious how he loves to be with people and to perform. Doing the dorsal tow with him is absolutely amazing. He is such a powerful animal that he does not even seem to notice that there is a human attached to his dorsal fin and flipper. I have never enjoyed this part of the interaction so much before. I was absolutely in awe. Towards the end of our interaction we switched dolphins and got to meet Capricorns grandson Nate. At the end of the interaction proper, the other groups left the lagoon and we had the chance to have some photos taken with Nate and CJ. CJ is a special dolphin as he is half bottlenose and half common dolphin. He is cute as a button. Soon it was time to say goodbye to the dolphins and head for lunch. Lunch was a leisurely affair and a welcome opportunity to just chat as a group. After lunch we had about 30 minutes free time before we had to meet at the stingray pool. From there we went behind the scenes to meet the sharks. Before we always got to feed the sharks, but they have changed this part of the programme. Now you get to touch a Nurse Shark that is sitting on the lap of one of the staff at a submerged ledge. This is one experience I could do without. I am not overly keen on sharks and sitting on a higher ledge bending down trying to reach the shark did not fill me with joy. I know that the sharks that they have there probably do not pose any dangers to humans at all, but I was still glad once I had my feet firmly back on the ground. Then it was on to feed the stingrays. They are another animal that I have a bit of a phobia about. I can just about tolerate them swimming around me and touching me with their wings, but when I was offered fish to feed them with, I blankly refused. The next feeding session was all together more pleasant. We got the chance to feed the tropical fish in the corral reef. We suddenly had loads of colourful friends. After this feeding session we had about 75 minutes of free time. Graham and I slowly floated along the Tropical River and then lounged on the rocks in the resort pool. Soon it was time to meet up again on the beach by the dolphin lagoon for our enhanced dolphin interaction. We were given the choice of three different experiences: a fast ride hanging on to the dorsal fins of two dolphins, a belly ride and a double foot push. I have done the fast ride a few times and last year I had the opportunity to experience the belly ride. So for me there was no doubt that I wanted to try the foot push. We were equipped with life jackets and swam out to the deepest part of the lagoon. While we were waiting our turns, we got to interact with one of their younger dolphins, Kayleigh. Kayleigh has just started to do full interactions and is a real cutie. Soon it was time to say goodbye to Kayleigh and swim to the middle of the lagoon where I was told to just lie on my front with my legs behind me and the knees straight. Before I knew what was happening I could feel my feet making contact with the rostrums of two dolphins. This was quite an uncomfortable as the rostrums of the dolphins are very hard and they put enormous pressure on your feet. Still, it is a real buzz to move through the water at speed being pushed along by two dolphins. I would not have missed this for the world. After another photo session, I stepped back and got another chance to interact with Capricorn while the others did their enhanced interaction. This should have been the end of the structured programme, but two people had arrived late and missed meeting the sloth at the beginning of the date. Once they mentioned this, our trainer radioed the small mammal department and they arranged to meet us on the beach with a sloth and an anteater. After this we had about two hours left to enjoy the park on our own. We headed straight to the aviary where we spent the rest of the day feeding the birds and playing perch. Graham had made friends with a mouse bird last year and spent a large part of the day sat in the aviary with a mouse bird on his shoulder. The same mouse bird (Captain Jack) made a beeline for him as soon as we sat down and did not move for over an hour. This time he was joined by a cockatiel on the other shoulder. I also gained some friends. I was so peaceful to just sit there and get a real close look of the birds. We had an absolutely amazing day that was over all too soon. We picked up our photos and I got myself a souvenir and then it was time to leave. We will most certainly be back next year!
