When a man went diving in South Africa, he was probably expecting a whole new adventure. However, there was no way for him to prepare himself for what was going to happen next. Rainer Schimpf is an experienced diver by trade. He has been working with AB Marine Dolphin and Whale Watching for the past 15 years. He is also well known for leading diving expeditions.

He was out on the water and had a documentary filming crew in tow, when things took a turn that he never saw coming. In all of his years of leading diving expeditions, he had never seen something like this. Once it became dark and he started to feel the pressure that was being applied to his hip, he knew that a whale had decided to grab onto him.

Of course, Rainer did not panic. This was not his first rodeo, so to speak. A Bryde’s whale had gripped him and these animals can reach unimaginable dimensions. By the time they reach a full size, they can tip the scales at a whopping 90,000 pounds. Rainer knew that this was not a time to be afraid. He knows that these whales are not looking to harm any humans that they find.

They are actually gentle giants, by nature. With this in mind, Rainer knew that he was essentially at the creature’s mercy. There was precious little that he would be able to do. He simply had to hope and pray that the animal did not crush him. Resistance would be futile. He figured that the whale would eventually realize that he was not, in fact, a delicious fish.

The whale had to give him a taste, though. The team knew that Rainer would eventually be released because the animal’s throat was not large enough to swallow him whole. They were even able to get pictures of Rainer inside of the whale’s mouth. We have never seen anything quite like this. Rainer was washed out of the mouth after a few moments but we cannot imagine how nerve wracking this moment was.

If you would like to check out this incredible encounter for yourself, please be sure to take a closer look at the video below. We cannot believe that this man was able to remain calm during a moment of such duress. We would have been freaking out! Kudos to Rainer for keeping a cool head and realizing the inherent decency that whales possess.