Great White Shark Encounter

"Did you notice the top 12 inches of the cage don't have bars?!  Doesn't that seem like too much?" Jan nervously asked Yemi as we watched the crew prepare for our dive.

Yemi was excited for his close encounter with a Great White, the ocean's most feared shark. Jan was a bit anxious and getting more sea sick with each lapping wave.  But considering this activity was on her bucket list, there was no way she was backing out!

The crew mixing the "chum" that attracted the Great White Sharks

The chum attracted sharks in about 10 minutes. Yemi went down into the cage with the second group. Right away, he had a thrilling experience when the massive Great White repeatedly attacked the corner of the cage mere feet from his position. The coldness of the arctic waters were the last thing on his mind as he plunged under the water when each beast would swim by trailing the bait.

The shark kept attacking the cage!  Yemi was about three feet from the corner of this cage.

Jan went in the next group and if the thrilling screams Yemi heard from the deck are good indications, she had an equally exciting experience. The first pass of the shark she experienced was when it came straight toward her in the cage and turned at the last minute, so close that its side fin actually entered the cage as it passed. A few minutes later a Great White leaped out of the water and snatched the floating seal decoy about five feet in front of Jan, prompting her scream that had the crew laughing.

Jan was directly in front of this shark!

Being so close to such a beast of nature is something we won't soon forget.  It felt like we were living our our "Shark Week" dreams.

Seasickness had taken its toll on Jan.  We had different attitudes during debarkation.