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Published: September 15th 2006
So...... I spent the past two days on a boat with loads of Great White Sharks! Well, the sharks weren't on the boat, just we were. It was fantastic! What a thrill. We arrived in Hermanus, a most beautiful seaside town about and hour and a half outside of Cape Town. My instincts were right that I would absolutely love this place, I just knew it all along. It was so refreshing arriving in Hermanus after spending one cold night in Swellendam, the armpit of South Africa (from my experience anyways). It was so beautiful travelling along the highway when the ocean came back into sight, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. We arrived at Hermanus backpackers which was a fantastic hostel. Upon arriving, we saw the three girls from England that we had stayed at the same backpackers with in Plettenburg Bay and in Outsdhoorn. What a fluke, there they were again. They were three young travellers that went to university together and they were quite nice and amusing. Just when we got over laughing at seeing each other again at Hermanus, and all down the coast, Adam and Lisa arrived. Adam and Lisa are also from
England and they had stayed in Plettenburg Bay at the same hostel as well. We were all reunited some 5 hours down the coast. This made for quite a good evening with lots of wine and good conversation. It is amazing how precious familiarity can be so far from home. Hermanus backpackers has quite a pool room with good music and a good atmosphere. Jordan was in his glory playing it up until almost one in the morning while we all chatted and had some wine. I wish I had thought of the early morning wake up to get on a boat, but that would have only spoiled the fun.
The alarm went off at seven o'clock and it was the loudest, rudest alarm I have ever heard. Funny, it didn't seem so rude all the other mornings, but I was excited to go and see the Great Whites. Funny this was, when I got up I already felt like I was on the boat - my head was already swimming and I was already a bit sea sick, lol. Hermanus backpackers works in conjunction with "The Shark Lady", but I had been recommended to a fellow named
Brian McFarlane so I decided to book seperately with him. It was definately the right choice. He is the guy they featured on Shark Week on the discovery channel. He has been working with Great Whites for years and really loves what he does - you can tell from the atmosphere he brings to the day.
We all met at Brian's place in Gansbaii for breakfast and coffee and a quick briefing before heading out onto the boat. It was quite nerve racking to think of going out to the most infamous place for Great White sharks. There is an island called Dyer Island that is home to over 40,000 seals and this is what keeps the sharks around. There is another island beside it and path between the two is what is world known as "Shark Alley". This is the place where Shark Week is filmed and it felt really neat to be there.
After breakfast and the briefing, it was time to head on out to sea. It was such a rush on the run out, crashing over the surf and the breakwater. I was unnecessarily worried that Jordan was going to fly like
Brian McFarlane
He is quite the legend in his field.a feather right out of the boat and go cage diving with the sharks without the cage. I was still hoping I would have enough balls to get in that cage in the 14 degree Atlantic Ocean. Out to sea we went.
On the way out Brian stopped so we could view some Southern Right Whales. There are 170 Southern Right Whales in the bay in Hermanus. You can walk along the shore of the city and see many, many whales all day long - they are fantastic to watch. They may have been exciting on some other day but, hey, we were going to visit Great Whites, who really cares about the whales at this point. There we were with the guy from the Discovery Channel going to cage dive with Great Whites in Africa in the most infamous waters in the world for sharks - I felt very lucky to be there. On the run out I thought about my house and how much it had provided for me, I was also very thankful for those days and that house. It really just felt good to be alive.
So the boat slows down and
Predator II
The boat we went out on. we eventually anchor - we have arrived at our destination. Brian starts telling us how he is going to attract the sharks and starts chumming the water to get the scent line drifting. Everyone on the boat is anxiously awaiting their first sighting of these amazing beasts. About a half hour goes by and then holy smokes.....there it is - a Great White. I know it sounds repetitive if you have read any of my other blogs, but it takes your breath away. We are all excited but Brian tells us that it is just a baby (at about 8 feet long). Soon enough there are more and they are HUGE. One in particular was gigantic. Not only was it about 12 feet long, but it must have been about 3 feet wide. All you could do is watch in silence as it swam by and commanded the utmost respect. Brian started "working" with him to get him to stay and circle the boat. Brian knew how to play with him to make him jump, to make him want to stay, to make him slow down and many other actions that would make cage diving a memorable experience.
With the "working" shark circling and others swimming by, it was time for people to get in the cage. I did NOT want to be in the first group. So I sat and watched from above as the others got their wet suits on and actually got in the water with these creatures. There was a moment in time that I realized that these people actually chose to do that, they were not forced or tortured - they actually paid money and were willing participants. The water was freezing and the sharks were huge. I watched for a half an hour as Brian baited the sharks to attack the bait as close to the cage as possible. Sometimes the shark actually bashed into the cage trying to get the bait it was so incredibly close. With the first group almost done, Brian announced it was time for the second group to get their wet suits on - that meant me and Jordan. I chose not to even think about it, I just did it. I just blanked my mind so I didn't have time to change it. I chose not to think about why I was getting the wet suit
on and before I knew it I was standing in front of an empty shark cage with my name on it. In I went with Jordan next to me. All of a sudden the lid closes and I see the bait in front. Next thing I hear is Brian saying "divers down!" and down into the water I went with my mask. All I see is the incredible large, jurassic Great White face to face with me. His eyes were so grey and they wreaked of death but he was so placid and beautiful at the same time. To be on his turf, in his waters with him was the most exhilarating feeling I have ever imagined. I felt so incredibly safe out there with Brian McFarlane with all his years of experience and knowledge that I could just enjoy the experience of swimming with these mysterious creatures. Pass after pass, these Great Whites pass within inches of our faces. At one point the bait was about 6 inches from my face with the Great White attempting to catch it. I am underwater holding on to this bar as this shark, mouth wide open, teeth ready to catch his prey,
comes straight for my face and bashed the cage with the side of his mouth in an attempt to miss a collision. Holy shit. I will never forget that moment. Looking him straight in the eye six inches away. If it were air, I could have smelled his breath. That half hour in that cage was undescribable. I am so glad I did it.
After everyone was out of the cage, Brian made the sharks jump for us by switching to a tuna bait. To see them out of the water was awe inspiring. We watched them for a while and then it was time to pack it in and call it a day. We all had lunch together on the boat and talked of our experiences and then headed back to shore after circling Dyer Island and the 40,000 seals. Man does that place ever stink. It was a half hour boat ride back to shore and it was incredibly beautiful. The coastline of Africa and Hermanus Bay - really a dream come true. We all went back to Brians place and had coffee and kind of debriefed our experience. Everyone talked about how it was not
scary at all. The scariest thing about shark diving is the thought of it before hand. Once you are out there with Brian and start to understand these animals you see that you are of no interest to these sharks whatsoever. Actually, in hindsight, it feels like you would be a fraud to say it was daring at all, once you understand the logistics of the dive itself and mentality of these sharks. In a strange way, they were very mellow and peaceful. It was nice hanging out with him at his place after, he is very funny and charismatic.
We were one of the last ones to leave and on our way out the door as I was saying good-bye, Brian said to me "Do you want to come back tomorrow and do it again? No charge for you. You can think it over." I told him I didn't need to think it over, consider me there. It was one of the best experiences of my life and I was not going to pass up an opportunity like that. So the alarm clock went off at 7:00am again the next morning. This time it did not sound
so rude as I had not been drinking wine the night before - I was too busy dreaming of that Great White shark that was 6 inches away from my face. I got up, had a shower and drove off to go see Brian McFarlane and the Great Whites again.
Family Portrait - Pink
No Fear - Terri Clark
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Damian
non-member comment
Shark Bait
You're shark adventure is amazing!! I think we'll have to nick-name you shark bait!! Have fun!!