Not small. Photo: NKF
Since we all love to play in the ocean, it’s only natural that most of us are completely enthralled by ocean animals. Namely, apex predators. The first time I saw a great white shark while surfing, I was on a longboard between Dogpatch and ‘Nukes at San Onofre. It was one of those blistering-hot Southern California days that usually only happen in the fall.
The water was oily, with the slightest hint of offshore Santa Ana Winds. The surf was fun and the sub-surface visibility was endless. Out of nowhere, “Fluffy” appeared to check out the dims on my board. The pup, aptly named by locals, was only seven feet or so, but obviously left the few people in the lineup unnerved. Kinda like this cat, only the shark he ran into was double the size, and definitely wanted whatever was in his kayak.
This is Matt Wells. He runs the YouTube channel Nomadic Kayak Fishing, where he documents his adventures all over New Zealand. In this episode (below), he has a particularly sketchy interaction with a giant great white shark in a remote fishing spot in the country’s northern reaches.
The shark appears out of nowhere to have a go at Matt’s live bait, but he seems to like the kayak a whole lot more. As it follows, the Kiwi paddles away, out of breath. “If I get eaten,” he deadpans, “it’s not going to be much fun.” Wells estimated the shark at 4.5 meters or 15 feet. The kid booked it out of there back to his launch site, but the shark followed him for five minutes or so, just to make sure he wasn’t an easy meal.
“This is the risk you take when kayak fishing,” he said after. “You’re going into a big animal’s domain and you’re stepping into their house and you have to understand that’s the risk you take.”
No doubt.
