Great White Shark Cage Diving

Cage Diving.

The very mention of it polarises people and almost everyone has an opinion on whether the activity is pro-conservation or completely anti-conservation.

I had worked in the dive industry for a few years and had heard every opinion: It teaches the wild animals a domesticated behaviour, it brings this massive killing machines closer to surfing beaches, operators used whole goats on link chains to lure them... I had heard it all.

I had also been fortunate enough to be in the water with a fair few sharks over the years, including some Great Whites in Western Australia, so my curiousity was always peaked when I heard somebody else's opinion of cage diving.

I began to realise that there is really only one way to fully appreciate and understand the pros and cons of it and that was to do it.

Shark diving is most popular in Australia, Mexico and South Africa because this is where the Great Whites are most prevelant.

I travelled to South Africa in 2003 as part of a bigger trip. When I arrived in Cape Town I still didnt know if i was actually going to do it and the myriad of operators and spruikers touting cage diving in the city made me wonder again if i really SHOULD be doing it.

Being the anal retentive nerd that I am I did some solid research into the operators before choosing one that I was fully comfortable with. It was true that a few of the operators I spoke to seemed very "cowboy" about the activity but the company that I eventually chose spoke in depth about the conservation of the animal and their worry that the other operators doing stupid things were in fact bringing the whole industry into question.

Most of the cage diving in South Africa is done near the pretty little town of Hermanus. This place was originally built up on the back of the Great White industry but since then has developed its own tourism identity and there are several hostels and other cool little places to stay here.

We left on the boat pretty early from Hermanus to make the short (maybe too short) journey out to "Shark Alley". This is the area that our operator used due to the clarity of the water, the relative shallow depth and the resident seal colony nearby which ensures quite a few sharks meandering through looking for a feed.

Once at anchor, the crewmen started to "chum" the water. They used shark livers to entice passing sharks to have a closer look at the source of this strong scent.

At first, nothing happened. At least one hour had passed and there was still no sign of anything bigger than a few passing tuna in the water.

Then, silently a shadow passed underneath the boat. A massive shadow. The first of the Great Whites had arrived.

The silence in the water was matched by a weird silence on the boat as well. There were 8 of us: a Kiwi, two Canadians, two French, an Irish guy, two Swiss girls, and me. Not one of us said a word as this huge fish did a few quiet laps around our increasingly-small boat.

Then Francois, the skipper, snapped us out of it by bellowing to his two crewmen, "Get the cage in the water!"

That was the first time I had actually looked at the cage, and it didn't exactly instill confidence. Sensing my anxiety, Francois murmured quietly to me, "It's stronger than it looks". Reassuring.

It wasn't long before there was another Great White circling the boat, then another. The crew had attached half of a tuna to a line and threw it out over the top of the cage which was now between the lure and us. The sharks didnt seem too fussed by it but instead kept circling very close to the boat. It was as if there was a hierachy between them as one would come in and have a close look at us, then another would replace him.

With the cage in the water off the side of the boat, and all of the group now shivering in their wetsuits (not all from the cold wind), it was time for the first group to go in.

The cage could only hold four at a time so I graciously gave up my place in the first group to anyone that wanted it really. Not the smartest decision perhaps because by the time my group went in the water there was three more Great Whites (now six) in the water and they seemed to be getting angrier by the second.

Once in the cage you feel very very exposed. There is no doubt in a rational mind that it is made from super high strengthile steel and would be virtually impossible for a shark (or anything else) to breach - but there isnt exactly rational minds in it! It is the strangest mix of adrenaline, curiousity and flat out fear that makes every minute you are in the cage seem like a second.

As the sharks approach from their patrolling orbit the crew drag the lure towards the cage which makes them swim very quickly towards us, usually with their huge mouths wide open. At the last minute, the sharks change their course when they realise they are not going to get to eat either the tuna or the humans in this strange cage.

By the time both groups of four had had a few rotations each in the cage there was seven sharks in the water - the largest of which the skipper estimated to be almost 4 metres in length and about 1000kg.

We stayed at Shark Alley for a few hours and then made a closer visit to the seal colony camped on some adjacent rocks on the way back to shore. Seemingly both cautious and partially oblivious to the danger awaiting them, they made frequent quick dashes between their two rock homes across the Alley all day. I dont think they are too clever because these sharks just swam up and down the Alley all day munching away on them. I am pretty sure that if I was a seal and just saw my mate get eaten by something the size of a car, not only would I not swim back across but I would probably tell my other seal mates about it so they wouldnt swim across either.

It is a completely exhausting day. When you return to Hermanus you feel exhilirated and strangely proud of yourself (brave humans in cages) but also completely drained and tired from the constant surge and release of adrenaline.

The one adjective that I was left with in my mind to describe these animals was strangely "beautiful". A savage beauty but a beauty nonetheless. The way they are able to move so effortlessly through the water despite their big weight and size was something I will always remember.

So the big question... The operator that I went cage diving with was first class. He was very interested in the conservation of the sharks - mostly because his very lucrative income was derived by them returning each day. There were no goats on link chains thrown to the sharks, nor was their any kind of red meat or other product of land animals. The lure used (tuna) is in the shark's normal diet and none of the sharks were harmed, scared or taunted.

There is some discussion as to whether the operators are bringing the Great Whites closer to the shores and to Hermanus' many great surfing beaches. The statistics on shark attacks don't really support this and I have to say when we were out at Shark Alley land was barely visible in the distance.

I guess the simple answer is I don't know. It was certainly one of the most memorable and unique experiences of my life but I wasn't left with a definitive idea of whether it was good for our (and the shark's) environment or not.

Maybe you will just have to make up your own mind...

Nick Bowditch

Below is a really well made video of cage diving off Guadalupe, Mexico. It is filmed by Rob Breskal and edited by Alex Finn.