Slipping into the Water Quietly — So the Sharks Don't Think You're Food or Competition
Leaving from Simon's Town and passing by the Cape of Good Hope, the boat reaches the meeting point of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans about two hours later — the perfect hunting ground for sharks. The crew sets bait in the middle of the ocean to draw the sharks in. Divers are required to maintain neutral buoyancy at 5 meters and must wear gloves, because sharks are particularly attracted to reflective surfaces and fast-moving objects. When your entire body is covered in a black wetsuit but your hands are bare and pale, they might mistake them for food. As for the entry, you gear up and quietly slip into the water from the edge of the ladder. From a shark's perspective, it has been lured in by bait and is coming in for a meal — the last thing you want is to leap into the water like you're either stealing its lunch or offering yourself as the main course.
Leaving from Simon's Town, passing by Cape of Good Hope, the shark's dive took place where The Pacific and The Indian ocean came together. Bait to be set in the middle of the ocean dives needed to maintain themselves at 5 meters deep with gloves on. The sharks were peculiarly attractive by reflection and fast-moving things. The uncovered hands looked like lunch for them. The entry would gently slide into the water with the gear you definitely wouldn't want to jump into a group of sharks when they are having lunch.
Up close and surrounded by sharks
You Have to Be Willing to Get Seasick if You Want to See Sharks
The bait is made of frozen fish scraps mixed with water. The moment it hits the surface, every seabird in the area mobilises and swoops in for lunch — some even dive down to 5 meters to snag a piece. I forgot to take my seasickness pill, and the moment the crew brought out a fish miso soup (a guaranteed recipe for nausea), I was on my knees retching on the deck.
The recipe for bait is frozen fish with water. Seabirds were the first customers for the lunch. They can even dive into 5 meters deep for food. I forget to take a pill. The smell of bait was horrible that I couldn't help myself.
Blue sharks are absolute darlings — big eyes, almost like something out of a LEGO set, just endlessly curious little creatures swimming over to check out what you are. The moment I got in the water, I was graced by a shark zooming right past my mask. One of them even swam over and tried biting the dive guide's GoPro to see if it was edible.
The blue sharks were so adorable with big eyes wandering around us. A shark swam by my face just when I got into water — they tried to bite the GoPro to see if it was food or not.
Following the sharks as they spiral down to 10 meters
Surrounded by Blue Sharks
All the divers formed a circle around the yellow bait bucket, with the blue sharks circling around us on the outside. I was so excited that I kept following the sharks as they spiralled down to 10 meters — completely lightheaded but too thrilled to care. I forgot whether I had turned my GoPro on or off, threw out every rule about staying at 5 meters and maintaining steady breathing, and honestly have almost no memory of how that hour passed.
Divers circled around the bait with blue sharks circled us from the outside. I was too excited and forgot the rules, kept on circling with them to 10 meters. I also forgot to turn on or turn off my GoPro. Just couldn't really describe my happiness in that hour.
Blue sharks are surprisingly elegant — there were no dramatic, jaw-snapping feeding frenzies. At most, they would nudge the bait bucket or playfully interact with the divers, and they came across as remarkably intelligent. Seen from the surface, a blue shark's skin has a stunning, lustrous colour. On this particular day, only 4–5 sharks showed up, swimming endlessly past my mask, my fins, and alongside my body. I've heard that during the right season, 20–30 of them can circle you at once — I think I would pass out from sheer joy.
The Blue shark was really elegant. They gently shake the bait or played with us. They did look smart and the skin was shining under the sun. Laterally describe their name, blue — only got to see 4 or 5 of them. It was said that during the right season, it could be like 20–30 of them. I'll be over the moon if I did have a chance to see.
Dive Details
費用: R3500，含潛店至港口接送，一支氣瓶，裝備，導潛，午餐
Cost: R3500, including pickup from the dive shop to the port, 1 dive, equipment, dive guide and lunch
Further Reading:
