Guest comment: “Great set up, very professional and well run trip! Thanks to Pistol Pete as well!” – Sam
“Even though Bridget was sick – was so worth it! So glad we saw Pieter. We loved the amazing experience. Thanks!” – Alex + Bridget
“Such sweet staff! So glad the sharks came out. Thanks!” – Emily + MIchelle
29/01/2016
Location: Wilfred’s Klip + Joubertsdam
Water Temperature: 20.8’C + 19.5’C
Depth: 13.5m + 8.6m
Visibility: 3.0m + 0.5m
Number of Sharks: 0 + 2
Conditions: Sunny, clear skies with some slight swell and a little wind causing a bit of chop.
It was a lovely day to be out on the water with just a slight swell and chop keeping it from being perfect in the bay! We headed out to the Island as this is the place where the sharks have been spotted a small number of times over the last three weeks. We anchored and waited patiently hoping for the sight of a fin, close to two hours into our trip we did have a shark spotting but it was not a White shark but two very small Smooth Hammerheads, not something our boat gets to witness and actually a first for this Biologist! Very exciting but still not the Great White we had been hoping for. We decided that before heading back to the harbour we would give the Shallows a try, this is the area that the sharks are usually seen at this time of the year and we thought it might be worth a go! Many divers on board decided to give the water a try throughout the trip today and had two nice sized Short-tailed Stingrays pass by but as we approached the three and a half hour mark of the trip we went to call the end and low and behold a familiar shadow was spotted in the distance cruising in our scent trail. We waited, eyes glued on the shadow, was it a Bronze Whaler or a White shark? Moments later, after doing a slow circle around it appeared from the back of the boat and cruised by the cage…a WHITE SHARK! And not just any White shark but Pieter, one of our favourites that has been part of our tagging program and has provided us a tissue sample for numerous studies! Pieter was named before he became part of any of our studies due to his “playful” behaviour and was named after one of our Skippers, who just happened to be celebrating his Birthday today, Happy Birthday Pieter and welcome back to Pieter the shark! We also had a smaller individual come cruising in not too long after, whilst not as active as Pieter, a great sight tho those onboard! A very happy day out in the bay for the staff and crew and Marine Dynamics who were dearly missing their favourite fish and hopefully to all on board, thank you for joining us and for your patience, it paid off…
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.
