3/12/19 Shark Encounter!

3/12/19 Shark Encounter

Monday, after securing Samba in the marina, we happened to go into the dive shop that is located near the marina office. During the course of the conversation, they mentioned that they were going to go feed sharks the next day and wondered if we wanted to come along.

With a certain bit of trepidation (Carol) & excitement (Jim), we agreed. 😨

Tuesday morning, there was no wind at all and the ocean was like glass. A perfect day for a dive . . . and to be eaten by one of the fiercest predators in the world. Hmmmm. At least we would be able to watch them enjoy their meal. LOL.

The dive shop owner and divemaster was the gentleman in the white shirt. He gave us an excellent briefing on shore about sharks and their habits and then another briefing on the boat before we hit the water. 

Notice the young girls in the background? 2 of them were his granddaughters, 10 ½ & 13. They planned to dive with us & their dad. The other 2 weren't certified yet so they stayed in the boat.

We figured that if the young girls could go, we could go, too. Golly, we could all end up as shark bait!

Once the dive boat was anchored, this was the view over the edge of the boat into the 70 foot deep water - -  a bit intimidating! Notice the 2 hulking figures directly below us!

Once on the bottom, Jim almost immediately had a couple of sharks come in for a look see. About 3 feet, nose to nose. Either they didn’t like the way he smelled or they decided to save him for later as a little little icing on the cake, he’s such a sweet guy. LOL.



At first we watched the sharks gather around the crate that was filled with fish parts. Then, they dropped his patented “Shark Feeder 3000” down & released the goodies. The sharks really lit up on that one

        This is Carol watching all of the action, close, but not too close.

 Notice the little remora fish hitching a ride on this shark’s belly?

 This is Jim & Carol with our shark friends in the background.

For this first dive, we were underwater around 75 feet deep for 45 minutes. Since they kept refilling the Shark Feeder 3000, there was lots to see!

After a little over an hour on the boat to rest, we headed down to our second dive at 45 feet. It was quite a bit more relaxed AND intimate with the sharks. There wasn’t as much food on this dive so they often would swim by, checking us out.

Here’s looking at you looking at me! 

Notice how they swim between the divers!

This dive also afforded a little time to look at some of the other flora & fauna in the area.

This is a pretty little flamingo tongue. 

We were able to get a decent picture of this lionfish who was hiding out in a hole in the coral. If we had had a spear, he would have been meat for the table. They are terribly invasive and have no local predators. 

Interestingly, the dive shop owner has been teaching the sharks to eat them. That is a pretty amazing feat! He is quite the authority on shark behavior 

 This was Larry the lobster, all 2 feet of him - - yum!

We love looking at these little Christmas tree worms!

 The angelfish were stunning to watch! This guy turned around to say, "Hello!"

This little grouper would have been a nice sandwich for lunch if we had our spears.

By the end of the dive, Carol was getting pretty brave with her newfound friends!









By the time the dive trip was over, we were pretty tired so we went to the nearby restaurant for some adult beverages and lunch.

Wow, what an amazing day this has been! Here’s our sunset view from the back of the boat!