A Sunshine Coast teenager has had a lucky escape after a whale calf bellyflopped onto him, hitting his leg and sucking him underwater with its current.
Connor Lyons and his mate Regan were freediving off Double Island Point, north of Noosa, on Wednesday when a pod of whales were seen heading towards them.
Mr Lyons said the pod was about 200 metres away at that point.
"We didn't see them again, until about 10 seconds before the whales came up out of the water," he said.
"I thought the baby calf was going to spear me out of the water, but luckily it shot up vertical just before it got to me.
"It landed right on my left leg, like on my fin, and knocked my fin off.
"It was crazy."
The experience was captured on video — which has gone viral — showing just how close the animals came to the pair.
The calf rapidly comes up for air next to Mr Lyons, before jumping out of the water right next to him.
"It looked like slow motion when it was happening," he said.
"They're just so big, even when they look like they're going slow, they're just going so fast.
"After they went past, after the calf bellyflopped right next to me, there were currents that kept us under for a second.
"It was just the best experience, I'm going to remember this for the rest of my life."
The experience has not put the pair off freediving and hope to see more whales out on the water soon.
