The best White shark diving in the world! - Guadalupe trip 6 report

Over halfway through our Guadalupe Great White season and with still many experiences still to share, we headed back to the island and once more where treated to some of the best conditions whilst diving with White sharks there is anywhere in the world.

At this point in the season the Islands weather begins to cool slightly but under the surface of the waters, the conditions remain incredible. We had our first shark on the bait straight away on the first morning and throughout the day where visited by 4 - 5 different animals. The viewing on our first day at the island are usually from the surface cages and once everyone of our guests are feeling comfortable with those, we start deploying our submersible cage during day 2. For our certified guests, the submersible cage is often the highlight of the trip and during the next two days we where treated to some incredible spectacles from some very large sharks at depth...................

We started the day getting a fantastic surface viewing of Bella who has become one of our favorite sharks of the season (she is an absolute beauty and massive in size!) Then to add to this, shortly after, another huge female turned up (with a very different personality altogether) named “Tzitzimitl” which means “Air Demon”! If Bella is the princess, Tzitzimitl is the ugly stepsister! She is slightly smaller than Bella and is absolutely covered in bumps and scratches plus she lacks the elegance in shape and is incredibly stocky! 

We deployed the submersible at this time and down we went..............Descending to 30ft to see the islands sharks has to be done to be described with true justice but here goes...........Once at the depth, due to the fantastic vis found here you gaze up from the tiny bars looking up at the underside of the boat and the surface cages with a 360 view of sharks in all directions. When the sharks swim above the cage it feels like a small truck had just swam past and as you look up and they show you their white underside, you see the huge bulk these animals possess as well as their spectacular grace in this underwater world. When Tzitzimitl swam past within feet of myself and many of our lucky guests, time seemed to freeze as we shared one of natures great and humbling experiences, that of sharing the water with one of natures great apex predators.I was lucky enough to have my camera on hand for many of her passes and have many images in my head of my time underwater with her. It was an absolute privilege. 

Day 3 and the action continued - “CoriB” plus 2 females played host most of the morning for our guests and again we kept rotations going thick and fast in the submersible cage. One of the islands classic sharks “Horizon” also made a very brief appearance as he stole a bait from one of our handlers (a trait for which he is famous!)

We left the island to some great weather again making our trip home a calm one and made me realize that, although it is the longest Great White shark location in the world to get to, Guadalupe Islands diving conditions have to be the best in the world. Its true, each location (South Africa, South Australia, New Zealand and the Farrallon Islands) offer something unique with these sharks, however, Guadalupe has to be the one to go to for the ultimate diving and underwater viewing. Long may the guests keep wanting to return here year after year and long may the sharks keep turning up and continue to grace us with their sheer beauty in these pristine conditions.................

Next up............our freediving trip!!!!!!!

ECO -TOURISM AT GUADALUPE - Trip 5 report

We have reached half way through our Guadalupe season and on reflection so far, it has been an epic start with some fantastic guests plus some classic shark encounters! If we continue the way that we are going it is sure to be our most successful season ever! Also, with the number of guests, for whom this was the first time seeing a White shark we as ever, have been reminded just how important these trips are for the education and overall protection of the shark not just here in Mexico but also, worldwide.

We arrived at the island to find a brisk wind, so after assessing the best place to anchor we where soon doing what we do best. Again (like usual on the first morning), we where made to wait a few hours for the first shark but around 11am a cry came from the cages that a shark had been spotted down deep. Throughout the first day the sharks seemed to be teasing our guests by just coming in and out of view and as we came to the end of the day just as the sun disappeared behind the island and we where about to call time on diving for the day, our buddy “Chuggy” turned up and put on a great late show for our guests! after a gradual build up to a rocking end to the day it is fair to say our guests’ beer and wine at the end of the day tasted that much sweeter.

Day 2 and our guest where very eager to continue and pick up the diving from the end of the first day. Chuggy (who has now been seen for 8 years at Guadalupe) was back and is now starting to make a real name for himself plus we where visited 4-5 different average sized sharks including “CoriB” and as we came to the end of this day Mauricio Hoyas once again jumped on the boat for an evening of questions and answers session allowing our guests to ask as much as they want to know about these beautiful but mysterious creatures and their habits.

Mauricio has been studying the sharks here at the island for the last 9 years and after having a passion for sharks since he was a young boy he is now concentrating all his efforts to find out the unanswered questions surrounding these sharks in order to help gain a further understanding of their behavior and ultimately, help get them the protection they desperately need. He firmly believes in scientific data through tagging and tracking sharks as well as sample taking to help this be achieved, however, he also points out just how important it is that guests come out to see the animals and help stand up for what has in the past been a very misunderstood animal. After talking “sharks” for a few hours we planned our final days diving rotations and prepared for what was to become a massive climax to our adventure..................

Day 3 was easily our best of the trip with sharks making an appearance very early on. Chuggy was back (again!) plus 3-4 new sharks and during this time our submersible cage was working on overdrive taking people up and down from the depths and giving excited shark divers a unique and special perspective from the deep! During one of the rotations we spotted some very large Tuna which is found in great numbers here also. Then, from what seemed out of nowhere, a very boisterous and large 14ft male turned up to finish the trip with a bang! I have to say when you come across one of these larger sharks you realize what a privilege and honor it is to be seeing and spending time in its presence is.

As we departed the island once more we reflected on both how these trips are exciting adventures for our guests but also how they are becoming just as important to the sharks themselves. A portion of the ticket price goes directly to the research undertaken here and whereas in the past these sharks where worth money by being caught and killed, they are now becoming worth greater amounts through tourism as people are prepared to fly halfway around the world for their “Great White encounter”. Over the course of the season we will have shown and let over 160 people come out here, make their own minds up about the sharks plus leaving with the memories and stories of a lifetime. This is eco tourism at its best and long may it continue this season as well as years to come...........

Here come the girls! - Guadalupe trip 4 report

We often find our trip that runs through the last week of September and the first week of October is one to remember. The beginning of the season is fantastic for great weather and lots of sharks whereas the latter trips is when our big female sharks start to turn up..............due to the timing of this trip, we often get both!

With a great set of guests (including some personal friends), a few fresh crew members and a great weather forecast, all was looking good for trip 4. After arriving at Guadalupe once more and getting the baits in the water everyone was very excited to see their first shark. After a few hours of waiting and only a few glimpses of sharks down deep we where starting to wonder where all our friends had gone! Then, just before midday we witnessed one of the great entrances by a shark ever seen here and a classic “Jaws” moment...............

Jak, one of our bait handlers shouted “Shark on the surface” and pointed to a dorsal and tail fin cutting the surface 200ft off the stern. We watched the shark continue on its path until it turned, picking up the scent off the bait and made a direct course for us! As the shark came closer into view, the size became evident and we realized that this was unlike any shark we had seen so far this season.........this was one of the islands’ big females!! The atmosphere on the back deck was electric as we where treated to an incredible show, circling the boat, hitting the baits and coming close enough to touch from the surface cages!! She was accompanied by a lone pilot fish which is common to see on the sharks as they arrive back at the island after spending many months out in the open ocean during their annual migration and as she dwarfed many of the other sharks we have seen this year. We estimated her size to be between 15 - 16ft!

She stayed with us for most of the afternoon plus we where visited briefly by 4 different animals. The real star of the day however was our big female, later identified as “Bella” who has been seen at the island fairly consistently over the last few years. It is fair to say at the end of the first day our guests where ecstatic!

Day 2 and guess who was back.............. “Bella” made her appearance first thing in the morning plus 2 other sharks. Just when we thought we had it all another big female joined the party!! This time it was “Curley” who can be identified by her spot tag on her dorsal fin. What a line up we had going now and as we started to drop our submersible cage in the water for our guests the visibility turned over 100ft and those lucky enough to go down in it had an epic experience! After a busy days diving the sharks left us before the sun dropped behind the island and it was time for beers, an exceptional Indonesian cuisine by our chef and a questions and answers session with the islands head researcher Mauricio Hoyas. 

During our last day, the wind picked up slightly but the action didn't stop. Again “Bella” popped by to say hello along with “Curley” plus 3 other sharks we are yet to identify. What a trip! still many more guests and trips to go through plus...........................our old buddy “shredder” is yet to make his appearance! 

No Facebook or Twitter for 5 days - Guadalupe Trip 3 report

Guadalupe 220 miles off San Diego is not only one of the most sought after destinations in the world today but also one of the most remote! When boarding in San Diego we often tell our guests to leave all their troubles on the docks, immerse themselves in the trip for 5 days and pick them back up on the way home...............trip 3 was yet another one of these once in a lifetime vacations for our ecstatic shark divers.........

Day 1 and we where off to a flying start! We had sharks during the first rotation of the day (which is early for the fist morning) and it didn't let up. One particular shark which we have nicknamed “Scarface” due to his nasty scarring on his left side of his face put on an amazing show from midday onwards and stayed making pass after pass around the cages for nearly a constant 4 hours! At the end of the first day some of our guests had over 1000 photos already and we still had 2 days to go!

Day 2 continued in the same way and included many highlights such as one of our favorite sharks “Chuggey” stealing a few baits from our crew, the sight of a landslide taking place on the island itself, a shark taking a poo right in front of some divers and seals and turtles coming and checking us out up close! However the main highlight took place on the back deck at around lunchtime..................

Myself and 5 of our guests where standing at the back of the deck having a casual conversation. One of our guests, Mike, was leaning against the rail and out of nowhere a 12ft Great White breached right out of the water at a height above the rail...........and 2 foot from Mike!!!!! I have seen sharks breach this close to the boat before but have never had anyone standing right there when it happened!! We all screamed with excitement as the shark crashed back into the water! Amazing! We don't know why the sharks breach like this out here but when Mauricio Hoyas (Guadalupes’ head researcher) boarded the boat that evening for questions and answers it was the first question asked. He believes why the sharks breaching naturally here is down to some sought of social behavior. It is often seen when many male sharks are together and is a kind of dominance display shown by one of the animals against the rest. One thing is for sure, the sight of a shark suddenly appearing behind one of our guests a good 10 foot out of the water is one I will never forget!

After experiencing sharks from our submersible cage and finishing the end of our last day with an amazing showing from a 14ft male who nearly ate some of our guests go pro cameras he came so close, it was not hard for our guests to loose touch with the normal living of life back on everyday land. When the Islander pulls away from Guadalupe on the last day back to San Diego our guests are left to reflect on what a special location this is and why it has to be experiences first hand to fully understand why more and more people are coming each year, often returning guests needing there Guadalupe “fix” for another year. 

Trip 4 on its way guys..............