Guest Comment: “Incredible tour, great staff, good hot chocolate :)” – Kerri
“Great buzz! I’m no longer afraid! ” – Beverley
“Fantastic experience! Well run and very friendly staff. Thank you!” – Ellen
04/09/2016
Location: Joubertsdam
Water Temperature: 15.9’C + 15.9’C + 16.1’C
Depth: 8.25 m + 9.72 m + 7.60 m
Visibility: 0.5 m + 0.5 m + 0.5 m
Number of Sharks: 9 + 5 + 5
Conditions: Beautiful sunshine with a light breeze.
Trip 1
Sunshine, sharks, and sensational activity. What more could we ask for? It was a very early launch for our first trip. We headed down to the harbor as the sun was just beginning to rise. It appears as though more sharks are in the area now as activity is picking back up and we are having shorter and shorter waiting times for the sharks arrival. Our first trip had a 20 minute wait before the first great white was spotted. It was “3-bird” again! She is the shark that arrived first yesterday as well. We knew when she arrived that it was going to be another great day, and we were right! Our first trip spent a bit longer at sea as they were a research group and needed to spend a certain amount of time observing the sharks. They ended up seeing 9 different sharks! That’s the most we’ve seen in the past month. “3-bird” was joined by 2 other sharks we’ve had around a lot lately, “Sarko” and “Taryn-it-up.” The largest shark this trip was a stunning 4.5 meter female with a couple of bite mark scars on her side.
Trip 2
Our second trip wasn’t visited by “Taryn-it-up” but we did have 4 sharks that were all recently adopted and no waiting time before the first shark arrived. “Sarko” and “3-bird” returned, as well as “Scarlett” and “Bella.” The 5th shark that we saw was one we’ve also seen around a few times these past couple of weeks. It was also the largest shark of the trip measuring about 3.9 meters long with a large white scar running diagonally from just below its dorsal fin towards its pelvic fins. This shark, as well as “Scarlett” quickly became a group favorite. They both slowly passed in front of the cage, giving each diver a perfect glimpse at their entire body, even with low visibility. “Scarlett” also decided to model for our clients on board. She slowly rose from beneath the decoy then once her eye and part of her mouth was showing, she would sit there for a couple seconds, almost as if she was ensuring that everyone was able to get great photos of her. What a sight to see! We were also visited by a short-tailed stingray a couple of times.
Trip 3
Our final trip of the day had to wait a whole five minutes before “3-bird” arrived. She was her usual active self until all of the sudden she took off as fast as she could. Just then “Scarlett” came up from underneath the boat. She had obviously scared “3-bird” away. We have been noticing that these two sharks don’t seem to get along. Whenever “Scarlett” appears, “3-bird” takes off, which is understandable as “Scarlett” is a meter longer and much has much more girth than “3-bird.” It’s always interesting to see how the different sharks interact. Another shark the same size as “Scarlett” came to visit and neither seem to be bothered by the other and both passed in front of the cage at the same time! What an amazing experience to see! Our trip ended with a young juvenile white shark that was 2.1 meters long constantly going for the seal decoy and bait line. It was highly active and sent our divers home with their adrenaline pumping and big smiles on their faces.
Great weather, people, and sharks. Another amazing day at sea!
If you are looking to get up close and personal with the great white shark then Great White Shark Diving in South Africa, 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.
