” I am afraid of Sharks”.
Growing up this is what I would say to anyone who asked me my greatest fear or why I jumped out of a pool suddenly. I had convinced myself there were sharks in the lakes at the cottages I was lucky enough to visit or the deep ends of the swimming pools I would dunk in. I never saw Jaws or any shark movie; I think it was just the idea of something unknown creeping up underneath me that was enough to make me get hop out of the water. This fear was present for a good decade until somewhere along the line my fear of sharks started to become more of an infatuation. Over time I found myself seeking out shark shows (thank you Shark Week), going down YouTube shark spirals, reading up on the latest research and also, shamefully, attacks and with every step gaining an appreciation for their beauty. Fast forward a few more years and I found myself on my Honeymoon in South Africa face to face with a Great White Shark.
I’ve always wanted to go to Africa – Serengeti above all. It was a trip I had saved for over years. When I was married and had an “excuse” to take a long vacation from work (which by the way I now know you don’t need an excuse to take a long vacation…just take that long vacation!) my husband and I decided it was time to take the trip of a lifetime. You see his lifelong trip dream and my lifelong trip dream just happened to fall on the same continent. He had always wanted to swim with Great White Sharks. With all my obsessions I had with Sharks in its various forms, I had never, not once, even considered getting into the water near them. Nevertheless, we said our “I dos” and spent our Honeymoon in various parts of Africa, starting in South Africa. Beautiful South Africa. This section of our Honeymoon is a post in an of its own as I have to stay focused on my sharks here but please check out “Romance and Adventure in South Africa”.
At the end of our time in South Africa, just before heading to Uganda, the fateful day had come. We drove ourselves to Gansbaai, South Africa which is found on the southern coast and is known for its dense population of Great White Sharks thanks in large part to Seal Island which is located just nearby. We arrived on a cool day in July reading to take a leap of faith into the big blue.
Before boarding the death ship that would take us to the sharks, we had to take a course in how to breathe underwater and how to keep our hands in the cage. Let me paint the picture of this cage before you watch the video. The cage bars are spread out so wide that calling it a cage is pushing it. The bars are 2 -3 feet apart, so really any small shark or shark with a sense of adventure could easily jam something in there. Teeth, tail, teeth. Whatever it pleases. I didn’t know in the training however that the sharks we would be meeting would never be small enough and they were all “sizeable” aka 14 feet minimum. Ok back to training. As I mentioned we were trained to breathe underwater. A simple hold your breath and dunk your head training i.e. pre-school swim A. Sharks are top feeders, meaning they feed on the top few feet of water so the best place to see them is just beneath the waters surface. Science guys.
So at this point. What do I know? It’s all feeling very safe. We will be in a cage attached to a boat. Safe. I’m sure there was a waver of sorts we had to sign but at this point my biggest fear was seasickness. Getting onto the boat however, into the scuba suit that screams “I’m a seal” and heading out to sea… Holy hell it gives me shivers just thinking back on it. We went a ways out into the ocean and finally made anchor to the east of Seal Island. I’d love to know exactly how Far East but it wasn’t like we could see the seals or anything, we just were in the zone. The shark zone. The boat had two levels. Robin and I headed to the top level of the boat immediately hoping to get a vantage point. See that dorsal fin. We knew activity was happening just under the surface but it wasn’t until we actually got into the water that we saw just how many sharks there were. Watching and imagining the unknown at the top of the ship I can say we were in a state of disbelief paired with true genuine excitement and a sustained tone of fear underneath it all.
After about 30 minutes at the top of the boat the anticipation was almost too much to manage. We were full of jitters. Then from down below we were told it was time to head into the “cage”. Robin’s lifelong dream was about to come true. My never thought-of-before-but-doing-it-because-why-the-heck-not-but-now-I’m-terrified was finally here. We headed down to the main level of the boat, put our masks on and went into the cage. This was it. We were going to see Great White Sharks.
There is no lid to the cage so we would keep our heads above water until they told us “quick, shark! dive!”. The Sharks master as we called them would chum up some delicious raw fish and toss it into the water. They also had a giant tuna head tied to a rope which they tossed into the water over and over trying to lure the sharks. And lure they did! The sharks started coming and to see them up close (within feet of the cage) was magically. Completely in awe of their gentle motion through the water, I was at peace. All the fear just washed away and was overtaken with blessed emotion. The sheer size of them, the grooves of their skin, those infamous dorsal fins, the teeth, their calm nature. Recalling it all now; how grateful I am to have been able to see this enigmatic masterpiece in their own habitat. The sharks were curious about the boat and would swim by. Oh sure some of them went for old tuna head and we got to see one shark really bare its teeth. But mostly what I thought was going to be completely terrifying ended up being a blessing and memory I hold dear.
The real highlight was when a 14 foot female shark swam right up to me to check me out up close. We genuinely locked eyes (true non embellished eye lock), only the “cage” and 2 feet of water separating us. In the seconds after you can hear my husband and I screaming above water with excitement. To remember it gives me a thrill and I think about that shark often. A fellow adventurous and curious female, fearless at heart.
To this day my love for all things sharks has grown. I would seek out this adventure again no question. Regardless of how scary it is – worth it, worth it, worth it!
I came face to face with a Great White Shark.
I did that. I DID THAT!
This story on Fearless moments is captured in the below video. What you’re seeing here is a beautiful female great white shark come and take a look at what my tiny self has got going on. I am not in the actual video, but believe me, that’s me she’s looking at.
Enjoy 🙂
