June 28: Not Shark Bait Today!
Shortly after booking my great white shark cage tour off the Australian Bight a few weeks ago, I realized that given my claustrophobia and complete lack of experience breathing underwater, I might be more afraid of submerging myself in a cage in the sea than encountering such a large beast up close. So even though I didn’t experience the thrill of being shark bait today, I’m still counting this adventure as a win!
After waking up before 5am this morning and catching the Calypso Star shuttle outside my hotel room to their offices at the Lincoln Port, I trudged with 18 other brave souls to the chartered ship berthed at the pier for what would be a three-hour ride through choppy seas to the Neptune Islands.
Passing Thistle Island, we were able to enjoy views of sea lions basking on the small island’s rocks and cavorting in the ocean before heading out to the more turbulent waters nearer our destination. Quite a few people suffered from sea sickness, making me grateful I had taken some anti-nausea medicine earlier in addition to donning two pressure point wristbands designed to help with the same problem.
After pulling on my wet suit and being fitted with weights to hold me down on the bottom of the cage, I decided to volunteer to be the first person going into the water, having found it easier for me to face difficult challenges in a timely manner rather than letting the anxiety build.
As I had never breathed through a respirator before, the crew kindly helped me acclimate to the device by breathing slowly through it before submerging myself in the water, then practicing again with my head right under the water, then going to the bottom of the cage and coming right back up.
After the brief trial run, I gave the crew a thumbs up and descended into the murky water floating with shark bait all around, anchoring my feet under a bar to position myself in place in the hopes of spotting a great white up close.
Feeling exuberant about facing my fear and loving the feel of breathing underwater, I ended up staying in the cage longer than anyone else in my group, glimpsing a few fish floating by and holding on to the waist height bar to prevent myself from bashing into anyone else in my group as the metal structure thrashed back and forth in the strong current.
Although none of us ended up seeing a great white shark, I loved the thrill of being in the water, the friendly camaraderie shared with other participants and the crew, and the chance to see a part of the world I had never been to.
Once we were out of the water, the crew brought out reels and let several of us take turns pulling in a fish. When my Silver Trevally flopped on the floor of the boat, another tour participant helped me wrangle the creature into my hands for a photo op before the tour operators sliced up the little guy for a sushi platter.
On our way back to the port, we ran into a pod of dolphins and stood at the bow of the boat watching them cavort in the froth generated by the stem of the boat, their shiny gray coats shimmering in the setting sun. When we disembarked at the pier later than evening, one of the crew members gave me a hug and said “Keep up the great work. You’re one tough cookie.” What a great day in Australia!
