Guest comment: “So well organised and staff was extremely helpful, watchful and informative. Delighted to have seen so many individual sharks!” – Margaret + Ed
“Epic! Definitely a bucket list activity. Great company, definitely would recommend!” – Bryan
“Amazing! The sharks were great and the crew was brilliant!” – Mark + Cindy
01/04/2015
Location: Joubertsdam
Water Temperature: 12.9’C + 13.4’C + 14.1’C Depth: 8.7m +10.6m + 10.7m
Visibility: 1.5m + 1.5m + 2.0m
Number of Sharks: 13 + 6 + 5
Conditions: Clear skies, flat seas with a light breeze.
Today was one of those days that you dread, it was cold, overcast, we had rough seas and slow sharks…APRIL FOOLS! The first day of the month had near perfect conditions to spend the day out on the water and even more perfect sharks to match! The first trip of the day headed out of the harbour with a stunning sunrise to brighten our way. We were the first boat into the shallows and directed ourselves to one of our favourite anchor spots. With a little bit of a wait, our divers enjoyed some hot chocolate and the beautiful scenery before a juvenile White Shark appeared. This little individual was followed closely by 3 others similar in size and all a tad bit shy and inactive however the fifth shark of the morning turned out to be a beauty! “Little Rosie” came hurtling into our view and was a game changer with the rise in excitement on the boat being felt! This was the start of a fantastic trip, with the larger individuals now making their way in, including none other than the 3.8m current queen of the bay, “Rosie”, and our largest shark of the trip and day, a 4.3m female with half of her left pectoral missing and the dorsal fin showcasing some large and distinctive notches. The most exciting arrival of the day, well for the crew on board at least, was the return of a well known and loved “Malcolm X”, you can read more on “X” here. The second trip of the day launched with the sun shining and obviously some good luck shining on them as well with sharks spotted only 10 minutes after arriving back in the shallows. This trip was dominated by “Little Rosie” yet again and a large female approximately 4.2m in length that we are not so familiar with, as many of you will know these sharks are not residential to this bay and come and go as they please, revisiting the area as they make their migrations up, down and away from the coast line, so we see many different individuals throughout the year, some becoming very well-known and monitored by us. The third and final trip of the day set off this afternoon and yet again only had a 10 minutes wait before the tell-tale shadow was seen. This trip was one for the smaller sharks of the day to show off, with all sharks seen measuring under 4.0m. However size is in no way a measure of the greatness of a trip and this afternoon was a fantastic way to finish off a terrific day spent with some new and old fishy friends…
If you are looking to get up close and personal with the great white shark then White Shark Diving in Gansbaai, and more specifically with Marine Dynamics, is a once-in-a-lifetime experience you won’t want to miss. Book and pay online with us and get a free video of your encounter with the world’s apex predator.
