Today's great white trip to seal island

We took a trip to seal island today. I haven't been on a shark trip in a while and when Rob said he was going, I was keen to come along. We also took Tamsyn, our new assistant with us as well as our 4 year old Jordan. I promised her that when she was 4 she could come and see the sharks.

The day started out with a very light wind and a bit of a cloudy sky. The swell wasn't bad at all and the run out to the island was very pleasant. We spotted penguins and a Giant Petrel.

Jordan was so thrilled to discover that seals bleat like lambs. The island is very full at the moment, and  the constant cacophony of bleating was overcome by the horrible stench of the island of guano.

We waited around for an hour before the first shark appeared. Tamsyn shouted shark, shark, shark in this voice of amazement and awe. If you have never seen a shark up close and personal the effect on a person is awesome. The shark was a female, and just under 4m. It approached from the bow and lazily moved around the the stern( which is around 4 and a bit metres to give you a picture of how big 4m is).and went to inspect the bait that Wellington was handling.

It wasn't interested in the bait and then turned around and cruised into the depths. A few minutes later Rob shouted shark again and it had taken the second bait that we have below. We didnt get to see much, except a shadow as it swam away. A dead seal was floating by and another shark decided to have it for a snack. It first played with it like a cat plays with a mouse, tossing it into the air a good few times, rather gently I might add.

Another shark around 3m came to inspect the decoy, again just lightly mouthing it before moving to the bait. It was more interested in the tapping noise I was making on the side of the boat. This tapping we have found very effective as the great white is a rather curious animal. The female came again and stayed for a good while. Rob and Wellington had seen her in 2009 shark season. You can see the white band on her dorsal fin identifying her as her "fingerprint".

We returned around 12 as the navy had issued a warning that they where about to do a shooting excercise and we didnt feel like being a target for their practice. We where escorted by one of their boats back to make sure we where returning to the harbour.

Getting ready for shark season!

So, we took the boat out onto the hard for an expection . The propeller needed replacing. Great, that was not good news. Then we noticed a crack in the engine mounting. Yippee, more bad news. And to top it off we had to replace the gear box.
Well, it all has to get done. That's just life when you run a boat commercially, but it doesn't sit easy on the wallet!

Today has gone to upgrade his skipper's ticket. It has been a long time since he has been asked to write a test, and he has been practising his knot techniques, many which had been forgotten. Its glad to see an old dog can still learn new tricks...ha ha...he will kill me for calling him and old dog. Thank heavens I can run fast!!

Early morning shark predation pic

Just going through some of our great white shark pics to add to the website.

Here is a typical early morning scene, where a great white shark has made a succerssful predation on a cape fur seal. The gulls are hovering waiting their turn for their scraps.

PA-Booking Agent for Tourism Company in Simons town.

Must have related experience or diploma in travel and tourism.

Bookings and reservations, arranging  transfers, hotel accommodation.

Direct dealing with guests.

Till point controller / cash ups/banking/emails and admin.

Marketing to guest houses and tour operators.

Must be confident, outgoing ,willing to work  week-ends and standby. Preferably live in area.

Email CV to airjaws@mweb.co.za

Shark Cage diving with Rob Lawrence

Rob Lawrence, my husband, is the founder of African Shark Eco-Charters. He has been working in the industry since 1992, he is highly experienced and knowledgeable in the behavior of the great white shark.

Driven by his passion for these misunderstood animals, he has spent his life’s work  educating, informing and empowering individuals the world over by sharing with them on the habits and behavior patterns of these apex predators, now endangered and needing our protection. They have been put on the C.I.T.E.S – Appendix 2.endangered species list.

The same knowledge and passion is passed onto myself, Karen and to our crew members who work with him. They, together with Rob , have, over the years worked closely with film production companies, such as Animal Planet, BBC Wild life, National Geographic, Discover Channel etc. creating worldwide awareness.

Many life’s have been touched and attitudes changed by individuals participating in this exceptional eco-experience.

Because of the nature of the experience, with natural predation as one of their prime selling points, this has in turn attracted the true shark enthusiasts as well as researches, photographers, nature lovers, eco-enthusiasts to False Bay, to experience tin his uniqueness. 

Join us on one of our trips to experience the beauty of the Great White Shark.

A trip to Seal Island False Bay

 It was such a gorgeous day yesterday, that we decided to take an improptu trip out in False Bay. We headed off to

Seal Island. The Island was very full, and there where plenty of Bull seals and a lot of mating going on. We also spotted a few dead seal pups in the water.

We then did a little tour hugging the coast and returned back to Simon stown. It was very nice to be out on the water.

Simonstown False Bay, at dawn

Here is a nice pic Rob took of Simonstown False Bay.

So snowed under with work.

I have been trying to finish the holiday blog for ages now, but have been so snowed under with work.
Rob has been running around trying to fix the toilet on the boat, as well as looking around for another vehicle.

I have had meeting upon meeting with marketing and advertising companies, all wanting to sell and have our company list with them. Its hard to measure how successful your marketing is in terms of where are the guests coming from, and so you gotta be so careful where you advertise.

Then, the admin is really hectic at the moment, and I am as busy at my desk as I was in season, so I need to address that soon.

We found out yesterday, that MCM hasn't even begun to look at the permit applications. Hmmm, and they say they will have the permit allocation ready by January. Well, we will wait and see.

Call for applications.

Well its here. The call for applications for shark diving permits.

I am trying not to let it stress me out,lots of deep breathing, when I feel a panic-anxiety attack looming, but its a major concern for us. We were the first company to obtain a permit for False Bay, and we have worked our way, from scratch to who we are today, a successful eco-sensitive shark operation. Our ethos and love for the great white shark is very evident,and the fact that Rob, after all these years, personally takes almost every trip, speaks volumes.

So, along with every Tom,Dick and Harry, we have to apply,for a shark permit.

I fully expect us to keep our permit, but its stressful never the less.

Here is an article for more info.

The Department of Environmental Affairs in Africa will commence with the application process for boat-based whale watching and shark cage diving operating permits on Thursday 27 August 2009 as stipulated in the Government Gazette published on Friday 14 August 2009.

The policies on Boat-Based Whale and Dolphin Watching and White Shark Cage Diving gazetted last year in 2008 are aimed at providing and improving regulatory and compliance frameworks in both sectors, growing both sectors through the allocation of a greater number of permits and transforming the industries.

Permits will be allocated under section 13 of the Marine Living Resources Act (MLRA) for a maximum period of one year. Successful permit holders will be re-allocated their permits each year for five years from the date of the first allocations, provided that they fully complied with permit conditions.

Dolphins at Dawn

 

A lovely sight to behold.

Blue Pointer at Dawn taken by David Jennings

Thanks to David Jennings for this lovely pic of our boat.

Been to busy for Shark Week

Oh shock, Oh horror, we haven't watched much of shark week.

I have been reading with amusement and concern the various blog's and there comments on Shark Week. So far many of blog posts have not been positive with the main concern that the sharks have been portrayed from the angle of a killer, with bloods and guts and gore.

Due to having little kids using every trick in the book, not to go to bed, or more like, not to stay in bed, TV &(shark week) has taken a back seat and so I cant comment on shark week.

Having had a few of shark week documentary's made with us, its is always interesting to watch them. We have very little to do with the filming, or what the production is about. The most important thing is that the sharks must not harmed or negatively impacted. Most of the crew we work with are friendly and professional. Some times the presenters off screen personalities are Jekyll and Hyde to their on-screen, but we just keep that to ourselves.

The BBC are busy doing a film on migratory birds. Basically, the low down is that on their journey interesting happenings occur. Here in False Bay, its the breaching and predations of the Great White Sharks.

Last Wednesday and Thursday, we had a fantastic two days of predatory activity. The shark activity was amazing with dozens of predations occurring. Those days the crew was interested in the birds and so they were not filmed. I think they got an awesome breach shot on Friday, if I am not mistaken.

The activity has been quiet slow since Saturday, with the sharks being lethargic and staying deep. Today is the first day this week we have been able to get to sea. The swell is still quiet big but we have had one very good breach this morning. The guys are heading back now and will possibly head out this afternoon again.

Today, I need to work on July's newsletter, doing some changes to the website which should keep me glued to the computer the entire day.

Hopefully be able to download any new pics Rob has taken. Maybe he captured that breach today?

Starting the film shoot with BBC

WE started a 10 day film shoot with John Downer Productions of the BBC.

Rob comes home late last night and asks where is their generator. Oh my hat. I have forgotten to order in. Thankfully we have a genie at home. Its huge and old, but it will do the job for today. I have to go collect the proper one today. Its at the other end of the world 1.5 hrs away and so I will be spending close to 4 hrs in the car later on as I will be coming back during rush hour traffic.

Give you a low down on how the first day went and an over all description of the shoot.

I found this joke funny.

Q: why did the mommy shark and daddy shark get divorced

A: they no longer loved each other

( okay, so I have a weird sense of humour!!)

Shark spotters enjoyed their trip with us

Up close and personal with sharks

By Thandanani Mhlanga

The sea is quiet and still and it is almost hard to believe that great whites inhabit these calm waters.

On an unusually hot winter's day in the peninsula, and even more so in Simon's Town, a group of 10 shark spotters will get their first up-close encounter with the predator they've observed for so long.

Their excitement is palpable as the cage descends into the water.

At first, there are no sharks, but within minutes the boat to which the cage is attached is encircled by at least half a dozen.

After about 40 minutes, shark spotters Monwabisi Si-kweyiya and Patrick "Rasta" Davids are lifted out of the shark-diving cage.

"It was that close! Did you see it?" shouted Sikweyiya.

Davids responded: "Do you believe me now? There's nothing to be afraid of?"

The group was invited by African Shark Eco-Charters to get a close-up view of the sharks they keep a lookout for.

"There are more dangerous two-legged sharks on land," said Davids, a veteran of the shark spotting trade.

Davids started out as a car guard at a Muizenerg beach until a 16-year-old teenager lost a leg to a great white. His livelihood was subsequently threatened as the beach saw fewer visitors.

This led him to train as a shark spotter.

"The local trek fishermen taught me how to look for weather conditions, wind patters, visibility in the water. I was the first shark spotter in Muizenberg."

That was seven years ago, and shark spotting has since grown to encompass this group of youngsters from all walks of life who were given the opportunity yesterday to encounter the great whites.

Rob Lawrence, owner and host of African Shark Eco-Charters, sponsored the group.

"These guys do such a good job but only get to see the sharks from the mountains," said Lawrence.

Alison Kock, a shark re-searcher with the Save our Seas Foundation, said they were grateful to Lawrence for sponsoring the trip as the experience had lifted the shark spotters' spirits.

"Getting to see sharks in their natural environment, up closer than they ever have before, can teach them more in a few hours than years of studying sharks from books or films," said Kock.

Also in the shark spotter group are four women.

Ethel Thsandu said that, as a shark spotter, she had learned how to connect with nature.

"You get to learn about nature, how to become connected to nature," she said.

The other women said the best part of their job was meeting tourists from all over the world.

Shark Spotters

I have blogged before about the shark spotters and what a good job they do, sitting on the mountainside with binoculars and a radio, and monitor shark activity around the surf zone.

Today we are making their dream a reality, by taking these guys on our boat to have a look at the sharks "up close and personal"

Alison, from Save our Seas, said they are very excited and cant wait for this afternoon. We are giving them each a beanie to keep their head warm as its darn cold, and are looking into jackets for them as well,(just trying to muster up some sponsorship).

Let you know how it goes.

Can an old dog learn new tricks

So I have been promising you pics of whats been happening on the recent film shoots.

Rob bought a new computer for his footage and it has an editing program for raw footage and its bloody complicated to use.

Also with the added burden of getting all the filing ready for VAT month, trying to sort out PAYE and about 75 emails a day and to top it of its school holiday's, it doesn't leave much time to do anything else.

But, I will persevere and hope to have a few pics by this afternoon.

I love working with Great Whites. I love everything about them.

Here is a pic taken yesterday.

Notes from a recent filmshoot by Rob Jennings

We recently finished a 6 day shoot with Gurney Productions, filming for Discovery Channel.

One of the presenters who spent two days with us was Les Shroud from Survivor man. He was presenting a show about The most dangerous Great White Shark spots around the World.

The other presenter was Charles.( see pic below of us),a Special Forces Marine. His show was on the different feeding behaviors of the Great Whites around the world.
I was hoping that Charles would give us a grunt ( who-ha) and a marching song, as they do in those Hollywood movies…….but alas...... maybe another time.



Most days where pretty standard.....towing decoys, cage in the water and for the film crew.... chumming to bring the sharks up from the deep.

On one of the days it turned interesting when we had to use squid, kelp and a whole tuna to see which the sharks preferred.
To our disbelief the kelp was the first to be taken and eaten in a frenzy of tail thrashing, proving that the Great White goes for anything that resembles a seal in form shape.

The presenters were relaxed and enjoyable to work with, even though there was a lot of going over the lines again and again.
Once in the cage it was a different story, things were not so relaxed on one trip when visibility being poor and the sharks of about 4.5 m swimming around they were a little skittish and did not stay in the water long.

The weather over the period was outstanding for it being winter and the crew were content with their stock of film, making the six day shoot a success.

A great shark dive

Rob and the crew,

I cannot thank you enough for the dive this morning. I am so thrilled with every bit of how it went, all of the photographs that I was able to get, and even some great video! I wanted to share the photos and video with you - nowhere near as incredible as Rob's and Chris's, but some good shots all the same.

I will remember the dive forever, and can now cross it off my "MUST DO" list. That said, I'm sure that I need to do this a few more times, so I'll be back at some point. Thanks for making a long time dream come true.

photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sanders5

video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnckIjmkvuU

Jenna Sanders, RN, BSN

testing post

this is a test blog

Breaching Great White Shark of False Bay

Pic taken by Rob Lawrence

A day in the Life of a shark crew member

 

Karen thought it would be a great idea to have some of the crew blog about their shark trips. I asked Robert Jennings, our latest crew member to give it a bash. He gave me an apprehensive look that said " What, who me? Oh No!!"

So without further adieu, here is Roberts first blog.

Yesterday we left the harbour in a blanket of fog, cold and dark. With the aid of the GPS we were able to find our way to Seal Island. Navigating through the fog reminded me of the movie “Dead Calm”.

The sea was calm and oily with just the outboards for company. The faster we went the wetter my waterproofs became.
The sun finally came out just after ten burning off the last of the fog around the island.

We had anchored in section 5 of Seal Island, about 50m from the shore. With the sun out and the guests relaxing on the fly bridge we began to lure the Great Whites up from the deep. Within minutes we had a player around the boat, which stayed with us for about an hour and a half. The guests were well pleased taking photos and enjoying their cigars.

At around 12ish, we hauled the cage in, anchored up and we were back on our way to port. Fifty meters from the port we slowed down to view the first three Southern Right whales, of the season. That brought out more cheers from our guests and the final cigars of the day.

The afternoon trip brought us to tears with laughter, as we had a group of IPL supporters who knew nothing about diving or sharks. Most of the time was spent dressing them up in wetsuits, gloves, boots, hoods, masks and weight belts. When finally we got one of the guests into the cage, he said he can not stay in the water because it is too salty!

The day ended well with them seeing two sharks and eating all the sandwiches and snacks. What they could not finish they took with them. That was the first, till next time.

Watch out for those chairs......

Pilot Whales stranded at Kommetjie beach

My shark trip this morning was touch and go as the weather wasn't looking so good. I told my guests I would contact them early in the morning if we would go to sea. So,when I woke, I headed off to Muizenberg. Even though the weather wasn't looking bad, the swell was very big, and I was not going to take the boat out.

On the way home, around 7.45ish, I got a call from a paramedic buddy of mine. Pilot whales had beached themselves off Longbeach, Kommetjie. I phoned my crew, and asked if they wanted to assist me in helping out. "Yes, of course", they said, and I raced to my boat to get wetsuits.

When we arrived there where dozens and dozens of whales on the beach. Being still early, there where only about 30 people around. We started to move them back into the water, and getting them to try swim out to sea.

You need to get them with their dorsal fin upright. If they are on there side, they lay on there lungs suffocating. By moving them closer into the sea, we were successful in getting many off the beach.

By now many people where there, all eager to help. There was the NSRI, Sea Rescue, the police, marine biologists,local surfers and everyone gave a helping hand. With more and more coming onto the beach, it also started to get out of hand. Some where pulling them by there tails and pulling them on there side.

The NSRI, and the police cordoned off sections to try do some crowd control. I saw some young girls crying, as seeing these whales die was emotional.

After about 2.5 hours in the freezing cold, I called it quits. I tried to help, but to be honest, most will return and die. Only a handful will make it. No one really knows why they beach? Some say its because of illness, or one is in distress and so being in a close community they all follow suit.

Karen arrived later and took some pics. The dogs being none the wiser, seemed to be having a great time.

A few hours later, I phoned to see what the latest update was. A flat bed truck was on its way to take some whales to False Bay, where they would be taken into the deep sea. A good few were dead, and more had returned to the beach.

We don't see Pilot whales in False Bay. We get them offshore, and have seen them on many of our Pelagic Blue and Mako shark trip. By the looks of it, I think they were short tailed Pilot whales, but don't quote me on that.

Please feel free to leave a comment.

Killer whales in False Bay

I often forget how privileged we are. Rob gets to do what he loves,working with sharks and being on the ocean, and I love working from home doing all the bookings, correspondence and being with the kids.

On Sunday we had the fortunate rare experience, and may be the last one, of seeing Killer Whales/ Orca's.

Rob got a call from a friend saying that he has spotted Killer whales and a massive school of dolphins in the Bay. The kids and I were at a birthday party, and I was very embarrassed to inform our hostess that we had to immediately leave. We raced to the boat to meet Rob.

My heart jumped when we saw the first one. It was beautiful, really and truly beautiful! They swam in front, under and around the boat. Adam wanted to jump overboard, as he was so excited, and I had to take the kids onto the viewing deck.

There were 5 of them in the pod. 4 mediums ones ( I think all female) and one smaller male. They were actively after the dolphins. These animals can move it. They were swimming at a speed of 5 knots. They also eat seals, but didn't give them a second glance.

It was amazing to see them chase, herd and go in for the kill. They caught one dolphin,(They were Dusky dolphins),and then totally backed off. The dolphins went absolutely wild. They caused such massive splashes as they raced to get away, that all you could not even see them.

After that the Orca's changed course and swam away.

Rob took some nice pics, and my 4 yr old daughter wants to take a pic to "show and tell".

Sometimes we get caught up in the small stuff,paying bills,the increase in interest rates, wondering about the country and elections,how the global recession is going to affect us, and yes, it can seem overwhelming at times, but despite all of that, I am glad I took a step back and realised we are so privileged.

Shouldn't you?

The last few trips

As I mentioned a few posts ago, we arrived back home to find out that the shark activity had not been so great in our absence, with about only a 60% sightings rate.

This is very strange as April marks the start of high season and we normally have a daily shark sightings (over 90%).

We do not go to sea on Good Friday. It is an old standing sea tradition and considered extremely bad luck. Anyone who knows anything about the sea, knows that. However, there will always be someone who is willing to forgo the tradition for commercial reasons. So, in saying this, we where at home celebrating "Good Friday", when one of the False Bay operators phoned us to say that as he arrived at Seal Island he "got" great white sharks.

As we had a trip going on Saturday,and pretty much a full boat, I was thrilled to hear this news. However,on Saturday, sadly to say no sharks where seen by us. I could not believe it.

We had another trip going on Monday, but we had to cancel it due to strong South Easterly winds. Rob is out at "Seal Island" at the moment. The wind has changed direction to a light northerly, and that is always good news. I will let you know how today's trip went.

I am now about to leave to get some parts for the engine. We need some new spark plugs, 12 of them, and they cost a small fortune each. It also means I need to now drive for about 50 minutes one way, just to fetch the parts, and if you know Capetonians, anything longer than a 20 minute drive is just too far... .those jokes that people talk about us, saying we rather just chill dude, and look at " The Mountain", are partly true..ha ha ha.

I am still wanting to tell you all about our Botswana trip, but at the rate I am going with all our work here, it also still being school holidays, with mad kids running amok at home, I am not sure when I will get to it.

Intermediate Shark Season????

Golly, it has been over a month since my last post, and I am sure our keen readers must have thought we had dropped off the face of the earth. Alas, no such luck, we haven't been invited to be the next Mark Shuttleworth!

Well,they normally say that no news is good news. Sadly to say, that is not the case here. February is normally the start of our intermediate season. However the sharks have not arrived in the numbers that we have expected and we have had very low sightings indeed. This is a first in 15 years that we are still experiencing "low season". So far in March, the same trend has continued.

Our guests are always told of the latest sightings, or non sightings and most of them have been very keen to take the chance of going out to Seal Island.

The last few days have seen a remarkable shift in the weather and its gone from Sunny South Africa to jolly cold with a severe bite in the air. This cold front has affected the sea conditions and we have had a big swell push. This is a good sign for us, as it usually means the sharks will become more active and we hope to see a increase in sightings now.

Our next Great White Shark trip will be on Monday, and so I will let you know if anything has changed.

New Website

Last year I wanted to "refresh" our website, and stay in touch with the latest trends.
Our web hosts WSI have now completely revamped our website, and I think it looks really great.

Bookings were really slow in January and I was hoping that this would not be a trend for our shark season. Now over the last two weeks, we have received a lot of bookings, especially for June and July, so if you are planning on joining us, please book sooner rather than later to avoid disappointment.

Please feel free to visit our website and comment on the "new look".