Diving with Great White Sharks

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by
Nathan Maurice

Our destination was the Neptune Islands about 2 hours south of Port Lincoln, South Australia in the southern ocean.

Our appointment, was hopefully with at least one Great White Shark.

Why? Because we paid quite a lot of money and secondly because there is something fascinating about seeing such a fearful and awesome creature to see if every myth we’ve been fed was true. And to finally see face to face what I often dreaded.

As a surfer travelling various parts of the world, no matter how good the surf may be in a spot there always entered in the conversation with a local the brief mention of “anything to look out for” whilst gathering info about conditions.

A fear none of us need toy with in Britain except for those who remember everything from a certain shark centred film.

However in the area of South Australia shark attacks are a real concern, not to Australians so much as they are quite blasé about it but to me who had done a lot of googling on the subject, it was. On previous visits to Australia I had surfed every day in various spots up the East coast and denial and ignorance got me through that time.

The summer that had just past brought a number of attacks in spots I had surfed which made the reality of it all too close.

I was living in Adelaide for a while and the gulf waters around this area are frequented by White sharks.

Aldina Beach near Adelaide was the site of perhaps the most notorious shark attack recorded because Rodney Fox survived with horrific injuries in 1963. Look it up, you’ll see what I mean.

Surely after seeing a real white pointer I would be less worried as often our imaginations make us more scared of something we haven’t seen?

Our day trip began before first light from port Lincoln Harbour.

The boat pulled up and alleviated our first concern that “we’re gonna need a bigger boat”.

Whilst boarding we walked past our new best friend. A solid and well built steel cage with a viewing gap between the bars that was smaller than the head of a shark. Phew!

My googling and youtube-ing on the subject found a number of videos where sharks had poked their nose in through the viewing window and then tore the cage apart.

I advise you not to type the words “Great white shark attack cage diving” into youtube.

During the 2 hour journey to the Neptune Islands on the very comfortable boat our conversation with other customers turned from scenes from Jaws and shark attacks to why are you here? In most cases it was to see something that you can’t see in many places in the world and a strange sense of curiosity to face your fears and see what it is that you’re scared of.

Some lovely breakfast scoffed and a quick snooze later we arrived at the islands. A breeding ground for white sharks due to the location, water temp and all you can eat buffet of “seal” platters.

I had been quite worried about seeing the shark not so much because it was scary but that the trip cost $500 AU and if we didn’t see one, we were entitled to another trip half price. Something I could not afford plus the cost of air fares and accommodation and taxis to get back there, was all too much to bare loosing.

They had seen sharks everyday over the last few weeks so I offered to go in the cage first, mainly to ensure I saw it as the cage held 4 people at a time for 45 mins.

About 5 minutes after anchoring there was a call from the captain. A 4.5 metre Great White was circling the boat. I looked over the side and the saw the fin and the body of the biggest darkest and swiftest thing I had ever seen.

2 metres away was something that could end me very quickly. She (it was a female apparaently) swam past the boat slightly turned so as to look at us with her black beady eye, lifeless and soulless. The size and girth of the Shark was difficult to believe, just huge.

It almost didn’t seem real but soon enough I had donned my wetsuit and the cold waters of the southern ocean had embraced me.

I was first in the cage out of the 4 of us that entered first. I suddenly felt exposed and rather out of place but a quick grab of the rail and duck down into the cage made me feel safe. Except that now there were just centimetres between me and big momma.

The cage floated on the surface and we wore weight belts so we could stand on the bottom of the cage and breath from Scuba regulators attached to the cage. If needed we could come to the surface in the cage but I preferred hooking my toes under the bottom rail to keep in position, camera ready.

Constant scanning of the horizon and depths for 10minutes saw nothing.

Then as if from nowhere a shape cruised gracefully towards us and past the cage less than 1m away. The shark filled my view then descended disappearing into the blue.

It almost seemed strange there was no sound and no music. I had half expected there to be , dum, dum, dum, dum, dumdumdumdum, danarnarrr, danarnarnanarr!

Great white shark

Moments later, she was back, a quick surge from the depths and had chomped the bait line right in front of the cage. Extending her upper jaw from her gums to bite down hard. That was the moment I imagined that’s what it would be like if I was on my surfboard waiting for a wave and that she could bite through me like a hot knife through butter.

She made a few close passes by the cage looking at us, then taking the bait line hung from the boat and dragged towards the cage so we could get a better view.

She made a number of close passes, gracefully with intent but no real aggression to us. I did at one point duck down from the viewing gap as she turned and came towards me!

I tried to absorb and remember as much of it as possible but the 45 minutes passed and the next group had to get in the cage.

The shark disappeared for about 3 hours and no other shark was insight and one poor customer thought he wasn’t going to see one after 45 mins in the cage and no sighting.

Just before leaving he got a treat to remember. A larger 5metre shark arrived, very aggressive and interested in everything, right up at the cage, the boat, the bait and wanting a good look at us on the deck.

A truly magnificent sight seeing such creatures in the wild and with the humans behind the bars.

Great Whites really are apex predators and I could see why after this.

Almost unimaginable how someone could survive an attack but if they really wanted to eat us I got the feeling that the cage wouldn’t be much of a barrier it would just delay the main meal while they opened it like a tin.

This was one of the best things I have done. Thousands of years of evolution and instinct played out right in front of my eyes. Put it up there with skydiving and bungy jumping and it surpasses it, not so much for the adrenaline rush but I think because its not everyday and everywhere that you can see a white shark which made the experience more unique and special.

It made the 2 hours surf near Adelaide the following week very interesting and more exciting than the 3ft waves really offered. Although it was the last surf I had in South Australia before leaving for less dangerous waters.

So, after seeing a real white pointer was I less worried than my imagination had made me?.... I think slightly less but this time I knew exactly what its mouth would look like before my leg would be in it!!!

Nate Maurice

http://www.sharkcagediving.com.au

Shark Cage diving, Port Lincoln South Australia.