Thursday, 05 February 2009
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Shark Diving in the Bahamas
by Molly
My family and I like to think of ourselves as more of the adventurous travel types. If there is a more adventurous option on an itinerary, that is most likely the one that we will all agree upon. So, on our first diving trip to the Bahamas, my sister and I were fresh out of the PADI diving certification course, with our new PADI identification cards in our hands and ready to go on our first real dive.
While we were on the bus ride out to the dive shop, we were looking through the various options available to us. There was the shallow dive, the deep dive, the scenic dive, and so on and so forth. Then, as we were moving down the list, my dad's eyes lit up as he read off the last one: Shark Dive. Yup, that was the one.....we signed the release papers (allowing for the loss of life and limb), and were on our way.
When we got to the boat that would take us out to this dangerously amazing first dive, we saw one of the guides getting dressed with metal chain link sleeves and loading up a cooler of raw fish meat. It was then that I started to realize what we were getting ourselves into....but we had signed the papers and psyched ourselves up, and I was surely not going to let my sister show me up.....so off we went.
Once out to sea, the guide pulled out a long metal rod and put on her chain link sleeve. She opened the cooler of fish meat and started to dangle it off the side of the boat to attract the sharks. It took a few minutes, but before we knew it, a huge mouth came up and clamped down on the meat. The guide turned at said it was time to go. She gave us a brief tutorial which consisted of her saying that we had to keep our hands tucked into our armpits while we were on the bottom so that the sharks didn't confuse them for food, we were to stay in a circle at the bottom and be as still as possible. Alright, let's go find some sharks!
Everyone jumped into the water one by one and went all the way down to the sandy bottom, 60 feet underwater. We got into a circle, tucked our hands into our armpits, and looked out to see a few looming sharks in the distance. The guide took the fish out of the cooler and started to hold them out for the sharks on a long metal rod. One by one, the sharks came to get their meal. After a couple of minutes, there were about 25 of them swimming around our circle. At one point, a shark bumped my regulator (air) line, and it almost slipped out of my mouth! I was debating whether drowning would be better than reaching up to grab the cord and have my life ended by 25 hungry sharks! It ended up staying in, but it was a pretty scary moment.
At the end, the sharks started to swim away as the fish cooler was emptied. When they were all gone, we were told to stay and look for shark teeth on the ground, as they tend to lose them when they eat. We did, and I found one! It was my favorite momento from the trip, as you can imagine. All in all, it was an amazing adventure, and it was even better that it was my first certified dive!
Have you ever been on a shark dive? Would you ever go? What was the closet you have gotten to a shark?
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About the Author
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- From: Molly
- About Me: Age: 23 Hometown: Colorado Favorite Places Traveled To: Peru, New Zealand, Greece, Brazil, Spain, Italy, Portugal and California!! Ideal Vacation: Around the world!! I'd love to take a trip from one end of the globe to the other and then back. That would be ideal. If not that, I want to go to Ghana, South Africa, Thailand, Japan, oh no.....this is turning into quite the trip!
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Comments (16)
I'm not a fan of vast bodies of water, but maybe in a shallow pool somewhere I would do that... it's not the sharks I'm afraid of, it's being lost in the water. Or something. But I would totally do that under the right circumstances. My siblings and I have always had a special place in our hearts for sharks.
Uhmm.... this guy at the beach caught a baby hammerhead while he was fishing once. That was slightly odd and a little sad. My favorite sea critter to be around would have to be rays, though. They're so cute.
This is such a great story. I have always wanted to go on a shark dive. I only went diving in Thailand and I couldn't imagine anything so beautiful. The idea of swimming amongst sharks is so awesome, scary but still a worthy experience. I'll put it on my list of things to do. Thanks for sharing the story.
so awesome that you went to bahamas so jealous. you should've took me with you and loaded me in your suitcase. haha That must've been a nice experience diving with the sharks. So tell me more about the bahamas. Was it really nice and beautiful as they say it is? How was the beaches out there?
I've ever gone shark diving before but it's definitely one of the things that I would like to try before I die.
that is sooooooo effing awesome. i've had a scuba license for almost ten years now and still haven't been on a REAL shark dive! i've only bumped into nurse and lemon sharks while diving in florida. i didn't know they did shark dives like that - in all the scuba magazines i read the people are always caged or at some marine conservation park
This is amazing!!!
I went swimming in the middle of the ocean in Belize (dropped off the side of the boat...). It was only 30-40 feet deep, clear to the bottom. There were sharks, but they weren't as close as you were to them.
I have never been shark diving before.
man, i would love to say i did something like this but i'd be too afraid. some of my nightmares involve being deep down underwater in the open seas... haha
I was there! And it is exactly as she describes it...but you you have to imagine your pulse beating in your ears, the weight of the water swaying your body as the sharks swim past, and your eyes and imagination bulging out of your head! It was amazing.
In the first place I never go in that water when somebody atract sharks to come. Who is dinner , when I am not wrong the shark have not a problem with other meat on there dieet. I hope you are vegetarian especialy in the east a lot of people get sick when the eat meat there. you now Boeddha they love him , he and his followers are vegetarian. And never play with food, the fish dont do it eather Yust Pieterfrancis
I would love to do this and is actually something I plan on doing one day. I love sharks and wand to be able to get as close them as possible.
That's pretty amazing.
I'm not a big fan of deep bodies of water, but I think I'd have to do it. That's definately an amazing experience.
i have been to the bahams and went snorkling i came about an inch close to a jelly fish freaked out swam back to shore and was done lol.
I want to go in a submarine..I'll probably panic if I swam with sharks .___.
Swweeet.
Im a diver, and, while I've never been on a shark dive I once saw a shark about fifty yards away...not as thrilling but definately exciting. I really want to do a shark dive. I wanted to be a marine biologist for 6 years, yet somehow I wound up in art school. Im seriously considering majoring in photography though, so that I can do underwater photography, mostly with shark baiting.