Shark and Awe

Their reputation as “monsters of the deep” is undisputed, but that didn’t stop Chris Mitchell from joining Australian shark expert Rodney Fox for an underwater expedition to get up close and personal with the great white

My breathing has become rapid and shallow. My heart is pounding. I’ve forgotten the coldness of the 17 degree water and the fact I’m in an aluminum cage 15m underwater off the South Australian coast. My attention is wholly focused on the great white shark that is mere inches away from me, separated only by thin metal bars.

The great white is more than four metres long, twice the width of the cage, and it’s circling us, investigating this new object in its realm. For a moment I’m staring directly into its big, black, unblinking eye and the razor smile of its huge, serrated teeth. With a last disinterested glance, it flicks its huge tail and heads off into the cold blue.

Inside the cage, there is a moment of awed stillness, and then the four of us start grinning at each other through our regulators. Rodney Fox has just introduced us to our first great white shark.

When the hydraulic crane has lifted the cage back on deck, there is an explosion of euphoric shouts, laughter and excited conversation as we relive our great white encounter, the first of many over our four-day trip. For 67-year-old Rodney Fox, it’s a moment he never tires of witnessing, despite having led great white expeditions from Port Adelaide to the remote Neptune Islands for over 40 years.

“Seeing the great whites around the cages and swimming round the boat gives me an enthusiasm that doesn’t fade,” he says,

“especially when our guest expedition members get out of the cages, excited and with great, incredible smiles on their faces, making declarations like, ‘That’s the best thing I have ever done!’ and ‘The sharks are so beautiful!’”

Fox’s enthusiasm is all the more remarkable, given that he was almost killed by the very creature he has spent his life trying to understand. During a spearfishing championship in 1963 off the coast of Adelaide, Fox was attacked by a great white, and escaped only because the rope around his waist by which the shark was dragging him underwater miraculously snapped.

He required a staggering 412 stitches on the operating table and yet, despite a grim prognosis, made a complete physical recovery. Psychologically though, Fox had become terrified of what he loved the most – the water.

“While recovering from my shark attack, I was amazed at the reactions of so many people to sharks and the emotion shown while talking about sharks – fear and terror – a bit like they would speak of the devil, hell and death. I knew nothing about sharks and could find nothing in libraries to educate myself. I planned to find out more, to see if I could go diving safely and work out if the fear generated in people’s minds was real.”

Not only did Fox overcome his fear of returning to the water, but he also became a self-taught authority on great white sharks, becoming involved with pretty much every major documentary and film about great whites – including, of course, Jaws. Fox has a stream of well-honed Hollywood anecdotes with which he regales guests on the shark expedition boat, but he’s clearly a man unaffected by his brush with the big time and concerned about the continuing effect of director Steven Spielberg’s opus on the public perception of sharks as crazed killers.

Besides the Rodney Fox Shark Experience Museum in Glenelg, the Fox Foundation’s Adopt A Shark program lets people sponsor individual sharks and help monitor and tag all of the great whites encountered in the Neptune Islands.

Watching Rodney’s son Andrew deftly hook an ID tag into the dorsal fin of a great white as it momentarily breaches the surface to attack a tuna bait is almost as hair-raising as being in the water. As Rodney points out, “Great white sharks lead very elusive and still secret lives to us, and it’s going to be a challenge to show and learn more about aspects like courtship and breeding, and just where do the giant ones go…”

Going by the philosophy that “you only love what you know”, the Foxes have ensured that coming face to face with the great whites is open to anyone daring enough to do it. You don’t need to be a qualified scuba diver as you can use the surface cage, which has unlimited air pumped in through a hookah pipe.

Indeed, the surface cage is even more adrenaline-pumping than being on the bottom as it provides a ring-side view of the great whites lunging for the tuna bait – the speed at which these one-tonne creatures launch themselves from below is astounding. The first indication the divers often have of a shark’s attack is the frenzy of white water and the rocking of the cage rocking as it takes the bait.

Just as quickly, the shark disappears. It’s this sort of encounter that convinces Fox’s guests of the awe-inspiring beauty of the great white shark’s primal power.

Just as Andrew Fox has taken over from his father as expedition leader, the Foxes aim to ensure that by protecting Australia’s great white sharks, these predators of the deep will survive to awe future generations.

IF A DIVE WITH SHARKS ISN’T ENOUGH TO SET YOUR HEART RACING, TRY TAKING A DIP WITH THESE OTHER INFAMOUS “MONSTERS OF THE DEEP”

MARBLED STINGRAYS

What they are: Relatives of the creature that killed “Crocodile Hunter”

Steve Irwin by spearing him through the heart, marbled stingrays deliver an electric shock to kill their prey. Oh, and did we mention they can grow up to 1.5m? There’s a reason rays share biological roots with sharks.

Where they’re seen: South of Phuket, marbled stingrays can be seen by divers off Racha Noi, a tropical island about 45 minutes from Koh Racha Yai. The underwater scenery here is said to rival the spectacular sights off the higher-profile Similan Islands. Who to contact: To explore a wide range of diving packages, including expeditions for advanced divers off Racha Noi, contact Thailand Diving – Marina Divers Phuket (45 Karon Road, Karon Beach, Phuket, tel: +66 (0)76 330 272, www.marinadivers.com)

BARRACUDAS

What they are: These fearsome-looking scavengers can grow to around 1.7m and possess fang-like teeth that are visible in their jutting lower jaws. Territorial by nature, barracudas are infamous for separating divers from their fingers while defending their turf. Where they’re seen: North of Manila, at the wreck sites of Subic Bay in Olangapo City, divers can see barracudas near the sunken World War Two-era Japanese passenger ship Oryoku Maru, which is also home to a vast array of other species of marine life. Who to contact: Few in the undersea exploration business can rival the expertise of Johan’s Adventure and Wreck Dive Centre (Midway Baloy Long Beach, Barrio Barretto, Olangapo City, Subic Bay, tel: +63 (0)47 224 8915, http://subicdive.com)

MORAY EELS

What they are: With their camouflaged bodies, gaping jaws and teeth made for tearing flesh, Moray Eels are born hunters who grow to about  
1.5m. Although vicious by reputation, they tend to attack only in self-defence but can inflict severe injuries when they do.

Where they’re seen: West of Padang, Cubadak Island is surrounded by a coral reef where divers can see many species of marine life, including coral fish and turtles. Farther out, they can have close encounters with moray eels, snappers and barracudas.

Who to contact: To arrange expeditions, the place to go is MondoBlue Diving Schools (Pulau Cubadak – Kec, Koto XI Tarusan – Kab, Pesisir Selatan (tel: +62  
(0)811 668090, www.cubadak-paradisovillage.com)