Guest comments: “This was honestly such an amazing experience! I felt like I learned so much and on top of that saw 2 (!!!) great white sharks. They are amazing animals!” – Isabel
“Worth the wait! Very impressed with the shark spotters and knowledge.” – Alistair + Fiona
“Awooo!!!! You made my dreams come true!! Thank you so much!!” – Chris
12/21/2017
Location: Joubertsdam
Water Temperature: 11.7°C + 12.5°C + 12.5°C
Depth: 8.0m + 10.0m + 8.5m
Visibility: 1.5m + 2.0m + 1.5m
Number of Sharks: 2 + 1 + 2
Conditions: Cloudy skies clearing up in the afternoon with a breeze all day.
“Just keep swimming” seems like a saying that has been repeated around here frequently over the previous 11 months, with such uncertainty surrounding white shark sightings in this area, we always hope for the best and just kept going, this popular Disney/Pixar quote comes in handy. Well guess what… We found Nemo! That is ‘Mini Nemo,’ an estimated 3.3 meter male white shark we have known since 2012. He was not the first to appear for this morning’s trip, with the female from yesterday making one impressive approach on the bait line in the beginning before disappearing for the rest of the day. This was not a problem as ‘Mini Nemo’ kept us all enthralled with his antics for the remainder of the trip. We moved onto our second trip with high hopes that we might repeat the success of first. ‘Mini Nemo’ did not disappoint, appearing quickly and fiercely. This great white has been monitored frequently over the last 5 ½ years, made easy by the fact that he visits the bay so frequently (this being his fourth appearance for 2017), and also because he is one of our study animals, in regards to collaborative study undertaken through DICT, Sussex University, University of Cape Town, and Stellenbosch University, in which a small tissue sample was taken in 2015 for numerous studies. A great ‘white’ trip this one! Our third and final trip of the day ventured out in hopes of continuing with the amazing luck we had this morning. We patiently waited for almost an hour when suddenly the female from the first trip appeared, making a stunning attempt at the bait line. She made 2 more passes and then disappeared, not to be seen for the rest of the trip. We anxiously waited, wondering if she was going to be the only visitor for the day. After some time talking about how white sharks actually have beautiful blue eyes, and how their skin is basically covered in microscopic teeth like scales, our star for the day decided to casually swim up to the cage. We were in luck, ‘Mini Nemo’ had returned! He impressed everyone with his usual antics, circling from below then lunging for the bait and decoy. A small fin won’t stop this shark! With an amazing ending to a fin-tastic day, we can only hope that tomorrow will bring us such great luck with these jaw droppingly gorgeous creatures.
If you are looking to get up close and personal with the great white shark then Great White Shark Cage 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.
