Blogs from Gansbaai, Western Cape, South Africa, Africa - page 3

"So I started into the water. I'm not going to lie to you people, I was terrified. As I got past the breakers a sudden calm came over me. I dont know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living creatures but I tell you Jerry, at that moment...I was a marine biologist! The sea was angry that day my friends, like an old man trying to send back soup in a deli. I got about fifty feet out and suddenly the great beast appeared before me. As if sensing my presence he let out a great bellow, I said "Easy, big fella." From where I was standing I could stare into the eye of the great fish. Mammal. Whatever." -George Costanza, "The Marine Biologist," Seinfeld. Just as the e-mail said, by 9:30 ... read more

This is probably the most spontaneous thing that we've done on our trip so far. We had initially planned a few days in the Hermanus region for whale watching and never even considered diving with the sharks. When we met a really nice couple at the backpacker's lodge in Oudtshoorn, they had just come from Gansbaai and they couldn't stop talking about it. We immediately went online and booked accommodation and a diving trip following their recommendations. We're so happy that we did, because it was one of the most amazing experiences that we've had (so good that we actually went two days in a row). It's not possible to describe the feeling when you're under water staring at the largest predator of the sea and it comes right at you bumping the cage with it's ... read more

Fog and Rain hampered any views of table mountain for 3 days in Cape Town. This problem was smoothed over with the fact that beer turned out to be less than 90p a pint and a massive steak was around £8. Picked up our rented car and had to pick up the Sat Nav system for it at another place, needless to say we got lost twice to pick it up. Having found the Sat Nav shop it turned out we were at the wrong one - 5 mins away we eventually picked up the right one. Onwards to the Great White Shark diving capital of the world, and the centre of the universe for Sea Sickness in my case anyway - Jill was bounding all over the boat jumping in and out of the cage ... read more

Against all initial advice (well from everyone save Freeman) I decided to go cage diving with the GREAT WHITES in a small town not too far from where we were staying in Hermanus. And damn....what an experience. There is actually not that much to talk about just check out the photos. Haley, Freeman and I all decided to go (Natalie was not feeling so hot). The small fishing village of Gansbaai (where we would dive from) is only a short drive from Haley's parents house in Hermanus. Dyer and Geyser Islands, just off the coast, are home to a large colony of over fifty thousand seals and are thus a favorite feeding ground for the Great White shark. The deep channel between these two islands is known as Shark Alley and is acknowledged as one of ... read more

Up at 5 and off to see the sharks! The anticipation was great - we all knew Adam was in for the shark cage, Dan was at about 80% sure, Dave, Amanda and Cathy holding at 50/50, and Pat a solid 0% chance. But we were in for the boat ride out at sea on what was supposed to be a sunny day. We all tried to not have spirits spiraling as we drove out in a driving rain. But we arrived and the sun seemed to come out, so we were all psyched. Our main guide, Rob, was a trip - throwing out jokes left and right as he explained the safety aspects, etc. with a shark video going in the background. I had a moment where I thought no way, but then, I said, ... read more