Some shark movie nerds might catch what the significance of “Mike Brody” is. I saw Jaws when I was 5 and I’ve had a life-long fascination with sharks because of it. Especially Great Whites. This is something I WILL do someday. 3 years ago

I was going to take this off my list because I did the shark cage in Hawaii with galapagos sharks swimming around me. It wasn’t scary at all but I figured, what are the chances of seeing a great white anyway?

But maybe I can somewhere else…so I guess I’ll keep this one for now. 3 years ago

Shark cage tours in south africa.

http://www.white-shark-diving.com/white-shark-diving-tours.htm# 4 years ago

And I now live in San Francisco! I can start thinking about scuba diving lessons. But I just have to start thinking about them because I have to get my savings back up to where it was when I moved here. 5 years ago

INCREDIBLY AWESOME5 years ago

So I am now moving out to San Francisco and will totally be able to cage dive with Great Whites as soon as I can afford to. I might just ask the people who run the place if I work for free for them like on weekends for a while, would they let me go. I am moving to the exact place that has the largest concentration of Great Whites in North America. How fucking awesome is that? 6 years ago

Ever since I was a little kid I was in love with the shark. While I had an affinity for all species, I was absolutely fascinated by the Great White Shark.

I grew up and sadly waved goodbye to my childhood dreams of becoming a marine biologist for the sake of a Finance degree.

This year, my last year of college, I decided what the hell – I bought a ticket to San Francisco Bay, booked a car and a hotel, dragged along a friend for a weekend trip… and spent 13 hours out at sea (for the first time in my life, mind you) in the cold Northern Pacific Ocean.

The wetsuit was a first for me. Breathing through an air hose was a first for me. Being on a boat in the ocean was a first for me.

I threw up 11 times on the trip to the island (in mild sea conditions nonetheless) but all was well when suddenly an estimated 16 foot female Great White Shark lunged completely out of the water at the decoy behind the boat – in the blink of an eye, all the bitterness sea sickness can bring vanished thanks to a hungry shark not too shy to make its presence known well above the surface.

The cage-diving part was less spectacular than the topside activity in my scenario – simply because the water was cold and dark (eerie, when you know the sharks are there… and the shadows are fast and elusive). This is why I still long for the Guadalupe dive trip where the underwater viewing is unparalelled.

However – in my contemplative time underwater I did have the fortune (apparent misfortune at the time, as I lost my regulator and had to surface for air at the shock and excitement of it) of having my corner of the cage slapped by the tail of a Great White lunging near the surface for a go at the decoy. That alone made the price of the trip well worth the experience.

Ohhh but the poor seals – we saw one take a bloody beating, but the sharks must eat. We saw one get away too – which in a typical innate sympathetic fashion humans seem to have for other mammals – all of us found ourselves rooting for the seal.

To sum: The Farallon Islands were breathtaking – the manner with which the fog surrounds and engulfs the barren rock is something straight out of a movie – conveying nothing less than awe at Nature’s ability to stun us viscerally with a naturally breathtaking landscape hilighted by delightfully eerie weather and the ever-present knowledge that you’re among some of the largest, most elusive and intelligent predators this planet has to offer. An incredibly exciting feeling nobody should miss out on.

The diving was less exciting than the topside activity – but that is only due to temperature and visibility – it is not an ideal location for underwater viewing or photography – seek out a Guadalupe trip for the ultimate in underwater photography – I plan to do this before 2008.

Any questions – feel free to email me, I’ll be glad to answer. 6 years ago

I am now flirting online with this awesome guy in San Francisco. 6 years ago

Saturday night I had two dreams that included sharks.

I think I’m obsessed. 6 years ago

I wanna go to Gansbai, South Africa some day and do this. I’ve swam with caribbean reef sharks before and some other puny ones in the galapagos but swimming with great whites is one of my dreams. 7 years ago

I haven’t been myself but I plan to at some stage – you can do it in Gansbaai near Cape Town.

You can check out more information and some larger pictures if you follow the link below:
Shark Cage Diving – Cape Town7 years ago

Saw Jaws tonight on the big screen in Bryant Park. And I STILL want to go cage diving!!! 7 years ago

Found it!!!

http://www.cagediver.com/california-cage-diving.html

Cage diving with Great Whites off the coast of San Francisco for $875. I can always find cheap flights to CA. AND I’ve stayed in the youth hostel in San Fran and it is pretty decent. So accommodation would cost next to nothing!!! Wow looks like the completion of this goal is closer than I thought! 7 years ago

To the right of all the comments are advertisments for cage diving with sharks…

Maybe on my 43 things list I should have “be more observant” :) 7 years ago

Libby J told me about two places in South Africa that do it:

www.sharkafrica.co.za
www.sharkcagediving.net

And she also told me that they have it in Australia and Mexico.

They aren’t that expensive but airfair is a killer. So Step Two is be able to afford it which goes right back to…get a better job. 7 years ago

I was a child of Jaws. I have a great fear yet great facination with sharks. This would be the ultimate test of my mettle. If I did this I would feel like I could do anything. And one day I will. Step one: find out if there is anyplace that would let someone who is not a oceanographer or a shark researcher do this. 7 years ago