Shark Stories
Pretty sure I had a mini sub swim under me today. The water was clearish, could see into but not make out the bottom on sand. A couple of dolphins swam near past, not playing just tight together, I looked down and saw what I assumed was another four or five dolphins packed into a solid mass. I kept watching and expected to see one break away or a bit of light coloured bottom between them or any individual shapes. Instead it was just a large blob with a definite taper at the front and back.
The two dolphins stayed on the surface but I never saw any other dolphins despite watching intently. No harm, no foul. Journey on big fella*!
*inconclusive though likely.
Sounds mighty ominous though Blowin.....
Any instinctual reactions on your part mate?........You know, neck hairs rising etc...
Blowin - Tell me you paddled in .
I was visiting Angourie a few years ago and chatting with Baddy and the local boys out near the jump off....there were about 6 or 7 of us...fish were about and the waves good but long interval so time for banter.... someone further inside motioned to one guy and the people inside paddled in...
we all said "what was that?'...Baddy said Shark sighting..we all went Ohhh...everyone kept looking at each other but nobody moved ...then all at once we all pissed ourselves laughing and headed out to the new oncoming sets....it was just a really funny moment.
Positions vacant , shark security, please apply 
A mate just sent these photos of a friend of his that got bitten by shark at coffs , yesterday I think ? 
Geez. Lucky the doors still there. Gonna take ages to heal though.. feet always do
udo wrote:
^^^^^^^^
Not the best idea to kick your legs like crazy in that situation. A curious shark might just get excited - wounded prey.
One time when a shallow reef break close to rocks is a positive.
This is really interesting and potentially life saving.
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/sep/24/doctors-brilliant-new-fi...
Very interesting and good to know!
Craig wrote:
Excellent Craig.
Keeping it simple and such an obvious solution to a traumatic AKA or BKA.
Just dragging this over from another thread:
Yeah, it’s consistent with combat trauma treatment. Put your whole body weight on it if necessary - using the knee works well and means that your hands are free to apply a tourniquet if you’ve got one. You can let the pressure off the knee once it’s on and tighten the tourniquet if necessary. You know if it’s too loose because blood starts pumping again so you have to jam your knee down quick. Usually is - you’ve got to really crank the tension on a tourniquet.
There’s a similar spot on the upper arm under the armpit. Harder to apply direct pressure tho. Have seen a tennis ball wrapped in a bandage then jammed in there and the arm pretty much splinted to the torso to keep the pressure on.
Dr Jon Cohen out there?
The information above could save lives . Thanks Gents !!!!
Yeah thanks etarip!
Jeezus- Sth Wall Ballina a few days ago..
https://www.dorsalwatch.com/report/index.html?id=26392
Good spectacle at Southy’s Sawtell today...numerous baitballs floating up the coast shadowed by large schools of sharks. One local jumped in for a snorkel and closer look as a good size bronzey I think skirted the rocks. The uneducated tourist crowd on the headland went into full panic mode with screams and whistles as old mate cruised calmly with the shark. After about 10 minutes and about 8-10 sharks cruising by he hops out of the water and slips back into his car and drives off.
A good education of actual live shark/human interaction for the stunned crowd.
What would motivate someone to do this?
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/oct/12/western-australia...
Idiot.
Scary shit. Apparently people saw a young fella get taken by a white and a tiger while swimming just off the beach at Freemantle. They can't find him. Pretty sad
Fark that’s heavy, two sharks would be pretty unusual wouldnt it? That’s terrible
Tragic :-(
Interesting.
Dorsalwatch now supply a bit more info on tagged sharks and Tag numbers
https://www.dorsalwatch.com/report/index.html?id=27860
Aghh yes, so they give the number and last reported. Cool. It' be great to get the raw data somewhere.
"The primary aim of our study was to use white sharks.........to enhance our understanding of post-capture and release behavioral responses....."
"Our results indicate a period of consistent, immediate offshore dispersal in white sharks after release from capture, with most individuals relocating into continental shelf waters (≥40–60 m depth, ∼10–30 km offshore) within ∼6 h and remaining there for the duration of their deployments (up to 136.2 h)"
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.791185/full#S10
vids are cool - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.791185/full#supp...
zenagain wrote:I paddled out at Waddy point on Fraser a few years ago alone. Right on sunset, side-shore, murky water, bait fish popping everywhere. I caught a shitty little wave paddled back out and sat. Just kinda taking in the sunset and emptiness, just my car alone on the sand and then this bone chilling shiver went through me, I can't describe it. Probably be silly to be out there to begin with but every fibre of my being said get the blazes out of there and fast.
I paddled in and belly rode a little wave into the shore.
I walked up to the car, dried off and drank a beer. Didn't see anything but knew somehow that at that moment I was on borrowed time.
I've had a couple of encounters in my surfing life but not seeing anything was the one that scared me the most and probably the only time i've ever paddled in.
Yes Zen! Had that exact same thing happen to me too. I've seen plenty in the water, had some close encounters, but the one that spooked me the most was down off Pt Macdonnell, in SA. Didn't realise while i was surfing there was a dead whale washed up 300m away. Had the worst, darkest most blackest feeling i've ever had. I caught a wave in kinda puzzled then saw in the local rag about the dead whale. Spooky. A poor fella got taken at the same spot a couple of years ago snorkelling. Gotta trust those instincts. Never felt that feeling before or since, thankfully.
And in case it wasn't obvious....this vid shows exactly why it's not a great idea to surf around whale carcasses..
Saw a big surface bukge and swirl in still water between sets a few weeks ago like something large had come up and changed direction just beneath the surface. No fins broke the surface.
I was 30 metres away and it was in the channel 20 metres from some other surfers. Somehow it seemed disconnected from me and the other surfers - not a purposeful move towards anyone. So I stayed out but kept my eyes peeled.
Thinking back to my reaction, I concluded that the drone footage of sharks around surfers and shots of whites breaching out from the pack at Ttestles have made me accept that they are often just minding their own business. The lack of a fin sighting also made it less sinister.
If I had been out alone I would have headed for the shorebreak and waited a bit. Interesting how the mind works.
Fatal shark attack in Sydney this arvo
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-16/shark-attack-at-little-bay-police...
seeds wrote:Fatal shark attack in Sydney this arvo
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-16/shark-attack-at-little-bay-police...
I saw the vid of that attack and it was full on - no test bite, a full blown attack like when you see seals attacked.
"...which they saw 'swallow parts of his body' after ripping it in two."
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10518187/Deadly-shark-attack-Li...
Brutal.
Yeah the video is not a good watch.
Not good at all. Geez R.I.P. Tough thing to witness also
A few interesting stories on shark attacks and near misses on the Shark Shield report so I thought I would start this thread. Don't want to trivialize the subject as people have had their lives taken or changed forever by what can happen. I thought it might serve as an educational purpose by hearing others experiences so we may all learn from them and hopefully avoid it happening to us.
One of them was a mate of mine named Hazey.
He had been surfing at Castles, a notoriously sharky wave in the bay at Cactus.
Several hundred metres offshore the wave breaks before reforming into Inside Castles making a long left with several sections. The wave has been the scene of several attacks and near misses over the years including the local known as "Sharkbait" who had been attacked more than once.
Gerry Lopez is another who came very close to being attacked out there and vowed to never surf Cactus again after his near miss.
Well Hazey was surfing out the back with another bloke named Steve when out of the blue he was launched into the air still on his board by a huge force from below.
A shark had rammed him with a direct hit straight up into the air! In a moment it was gone but soon returned to the stunned Hazey and started biting him and his board. Hazey instinctively put his arms out to protect himself but both his arms ended up in its mouth. As the jaws closed down his arms could have easily been severed, but several teeth on the sharks lower jaw had become dislodged and imbedded in the board leaving his upper arms with massive injuries, but the vital inner arms where major arteries run were not majorly damaged. This probably saved his life.
By this time Steve had reacted and in a rush of adrenalin and pure ballsy courage he threw himself onto the sharks back and started gouging at the sharks eyeballs, eventually feeling one pop and the shark departed.
Steve got the two surfboards together and got himself and Hazey on and started the long paddle to shore.
Then they were both thrown into the air as the shark rammed them a third time before disappearing again. They continued to make their way closer to shore and the shark nudged them again. Steve told me he thought he really must of pissed it off when he popped its eye.
Finally they we're just a metre from shore when the shark made its fifth and final appearance. It beelined towards them and the shore while they stood in waist deep water with their boards. The sharks mouth was just rapidly opening and closing like one of those wind up sets of false teeth. The boys separated and put their hands on either side of it's body and held it on a 90 degree angle to the beach as they made the final steps to the safety of the sand.
Hazey was rushed to Ceduna hospital and then flown to Adelaide for micro surgery on his shredded arms.
Steve ended up receiving a bravery award and they both sold their story to 60 minutes and made $50,000 each out of it!
It was quite a story!