Life with MK: The Illustrious Great White Shark

Today was one of the all time coolest days of my life. I finally got to check off the number one item on my life's bucket list and saw the Great White Sharks in South Africa! They are truly amazing animals and I can't believe I actually got to them them in person.

The morning began very, very early with a 5:15am wake up to get ready for the trip. I was still a little nervous that it may be canceled due to the insistence of the concierge last night, but I was met by the shuttle driver the minute I walked out of the elevator and into the lobby. The ride to Simon's Town wasn't so bad, but it was dark so I couldn't see a thing. The van had seven other people in in and four of them were from California. One was even a water polo player from Santa Cruz and we happen to know a lot of people in common since he played for the national B team and a lot of the national team players play for NYAC. We arrived at the launch point without any issues and met one of the crew members for our boat, and low and behold, she too was from California. Us Californians definitely outnumbered any other nationality by far. There were a few Canadians and some South Africans on our boat as well.

The boat ride out to Seal Island was fine. It was dark so it was hard to see anything. I forgot to take a dramamine, but a man on the boat had a whole thing of sea sickness tablets so I took one just in case since the water was forecasted to be a bit choppy due to all the wind. The boat definitely rocked a lot, and it was raining a bit (as it did off and on for most of the day). I eventually went to the upstairs deck of the boat to be able to see better.

We reached Seal Island and it was amazing. There are a ridiculous number of Cape Fur Seals that live on the island also with many birds, including a few penguins! We dropped the cage at anchor to make a little more space on the boat and set out to look for some natural predation. We tried to look out for sharks by tracking some seals swimming back towards the island, but did really see much. We eventually saw a fin come and hit something between our boat and another boat (there were a few boats out there but no more than four). Our drew decided to put the decoy in at some point in order to try to get a shark to breach and we actually got a hit on decoy. The shark didn't jump all the way out of the water but we saw a good portion of the shark and it was really cool! It is amazing how fast it all happens, and unlike with the humpbacks it is usually a singular hit and then they disappear.

I kind of resolved myself to the fact that I likely wouldn't see a full jump, but it was still pretty cool. We saw a bunch of birds hovering over a patch of ocean, which generally indicates there has been a kill, so we started heading that way. We were going towards it and I was sitting upstairs with a few other people and out of nowhere a shark breached right in front of our boat and the few of us that were upstairs were the only ones to see it. I am usually the one to miss stuff like that so I was pretty stoked to finally see a white shark jump out of the water!! It was over before I knew what hit me but so so cool. The area we were heading to initially we eventually reached and there wasn't much to see there. We did get to see the slick that is formed from the leaking juices of the seal though so that was kind of interesting.

For the rest of the early morning we towed the decoy and didn't really get any hits. One shark came near it, but realized it was a fake and left before trying to hunt it. We drove around Seal Island and I learned a little about the island from one of the crew members. It is a really neat place as I said before. we looked at the for a little bit and then retrieved our cage for the diving portion of the morning.

The cage is just as you'd expect, a metal cage that hangs on the side of the boat. I was upstairs when the first people got ready so I wasn't in the first group, but I think that worked towards my advantage. We waited about 30-40 minutes to attract a shark and then when one came the first group hopped in the cage. The company I went with, African Shark Eco Charters, gives you regulators so you can stay underwater the entire time you are in the cage and you done miss much at all. They are the only company who does this and I think it really made for an amazing experience! I watched the shark from the boat and then when it came time I volunteered to go in the second group. When I got in the cage there was an enormous and active shark around and we got quite the show! Even other people were saying that the second group got the best experience. The shark hung out around and we saw him many times, as close as a foot from the cage! It is absolutely amazing to be so close to those magnificent and terrifying creatures, but for some reason I was not frightened at all. I was more scared of the small jellyfish I saw because they could actually get in the cage, haha.

When I was getting out of the cage on of the crew members exclaimed something and I looked to my right and the shark was right there. It totally startled me since I wasn't really in the cage anymore (but also not in the water outside the cage; I was like half in the cage, half on the boat). I was really surprised that I wasn't freezing, but the wetsuit kept me quite comfortable and I was very happy. I watched as the third group went and then hopped in the cage one last time to see one more shark, and that was literally all I saw the second time, one more shark. We got out and then started heading back to Simon's Town. It was an amazing day and I am so so happy I went! I feel very lucky since the two previous day's trip had been canceled due to weather and they werent sure they were going to be able to put the cage in today, but I got to do everything I wanted to do. Cape Town trip can now be considered a total and complete success.

After the trip I paid for my tour and the shuttle took up back to Cape Town. Once back at the hotel I went to the hot tub on the 19th floor. The pool is an infinity pool that looks over the water front and it is beautiful! The hot tub however, while having a beautiful view as well, was not nearly hot enough. I was so cold that my joints hurt and I just needed to warm up! There were also two girls in there who were talking so loudly and it was very annoying in the spa atmosphere. I started falling asleep at one point so I got out and put on my robe and took a nap on the most comfortable pool deck chair ever.

After my nap I went and rested some more in my room and watched an episode of Body of Proof that was on. There was also a random old episode of American Idol one from season 11 which was funny I thought. I took the time to start thinking about what I wanted to do while here and rested up since I was so tired still. I ended up renting a car for tomorrow to go see Cape Point and some things along the way. It should be a fun day and the roads are good and not too many drivers, which is really nice.

At 6:30pm I took the shuttle to the waterfront for dinner and to shop around again. I am trying to figure out what I may want to buy here before I actually buy anything, but I found some clothes at an REI like store that I think I may just have to get. I had fish and chips at a restaurant called Quay Four for dinner and it was yummy and then I just wandered a bit. I got some candy at the super market (man how I missed sugar and a little something sweet after dinner) and I saw amazing looking queen pineapple and guavas so I may have to buy some for another day. I stayed at the mall until it closed and then took the shuttle back to the Westin. I am so tired still and ready for bed! Im watching the USA-Panama Gold Cup Final as I get ready for and sit in bed. It's been a great day :)

Oh and unrelated to my day, but my bathroom floor here is heated and it is amazing. I need to learn how to work my heated floors in Ann Arbor. This room is so nice.