Posted by Wayne on April 05, 2001 at 12:03:15:
In Reply to: Re: I agree it was a cool sighting. I wish I had been there... posted by kelphead on April 05, 2001 at 11:38:03:
I used to think nothing of sharks. I truly believed that they only eat seals and surfers. Over on Maui when they started to do snorkeling trips of Molokini Crater, they needed to scare the sharks away to prevent the tourists from seeing them. They would send a scuba diver in the water to swim around before the snorkelers entered the water. The white tips did not seem to like the noise of a reg. so they left.
Lastyear my neighbor came reg to snout with a HUGE shark in Redondo Canyon at about 85 fsw on a solo night dive. The shark was at least the same diameter as the diver and his teeth were monsterously large. They just stared at each other for a while and then my neighbor went back to shore looking over his shoulder often and sucking air like there was no tomorrow! Took him a few months before he went back.
My wife and I were chased out of a little cave by a pissed off and cornered 6 foot white tip in Hawaii, and it was wierd, but not that scary.
I think of BIG sharks like I think of all other BIG wild animals. I stay away from them and try not to act like food. Whether it is bears in Yosomite, dogs in junkyards, or Sharks in the Pacific, I always act the same.
Besides everyone knows fish go to school. If they saw JAWS, they know that scuba tanks can kill sharks. So they will leave me alone. But a free diver... Well that's another story.
Wayne