SHARK!!!

[Natho]

Just interested if anyone has any real life stories relating to sharks while surfing to tell.

Ive only ever seen a shark twice while surfing. First time was 3 years ago at Bungan and the shark wasn't that big anyway.

Second time was on Sunday afternoon, again at Bungan. This time the shark was much bigger and much closer. I assume it was a Bronzie, and a very sizeable one at that. It came in between the surfers and the beach. I just saw this big thing come up from under the water and at first I thought it was a large dolphin. Then it just went mental, thrashing in the water for about 4 seconds. Then it was gone.

I always wondered how I would react in such a situation. To my suprise I found my self very relaxed and rather facinated. To the point where part of me wanted to paddle over to it for a closer look. This animal was not interested in us surfers at all. I hope I experience that again. As long as the thing doesn't take an interest in me.

[marcus_h]

I've only had a couple of encounters, nothing serious

1) Maroochy rivermouth, there were just three of us out - this big black thing just cruised underneath. It was probably about 6-7 foot, we all just looked at each other as if to say "did you just see what I just saw". Surf wasnt that good so we paddled in.

2) Out at the Bluff - sitting out the back early morning once again with only a few people out, all of a sudden i see this fin cruising along the surface about 20 metres out. I high-tail it out of there.

Im not one for taking a chance when I see one, but i suppose its the ones you dont see that you have to worry about

[philw]

only once.

fiji last year. a couple of reef sharks (i think) in the 6-7ft range. they hung around between us and the boat. paddle back was a bit freaky but mostly, had same reaction as you - completely calm and fascinated.

[Butts]

Nope, never seen one and don't want to





Been told there was one close, but didn't see it!!!

[Bodyboarder-sicne-1989]

had a few, 1st one was a reef shark out the island in 96 only small but was cruising the line up, we had to get out up on the reef. it hung around for 20 mins. most of the sharks ive seen have just been reefies at the island.

but the scariest was big and happened to be in a suburb that has the most recorded shark sightings than anywhere else in australia (headlands)

there was 3 others out just after the woolongong floods. there was a brown haze hanging just along the shore and i was in the rip channel paddling back to the peak right on the edge of the haze.
then i saw this big round grey thing fly right underneath me from the side about 12 feet long. it didnt penatrate the surface, 1st thoughts were a dolphin, but thought it was too big. yelled out to my mate "shark" then just as we both looked towards the peak, a set stood up and the 2 guys out the back started to paddle for it, then a big fin just popped out of the lip heading straight for the 2 surfers. we all caught the wave to the shore together.

my grandfather (an abaloney diver from eden, australian champion spear fisherman. also taught ron and valery talor how to dive) was spear fishing at the beach next to headies in the 70's.
on his way in bodysurfing a wave with a net full of fish, had his fin ripped off by a shark.

[Holy Smoke]

Bronze Whalers at Bungan ! i surf there all the time...i mean i DID surf there all the time

[Revolution]

Winki alone with a mate

he said he saw a fin i called him a pussy and took off on a wave, pulled off and in the corner of my eye thought i saw something, continued for a while until a spash about 25m away from us happened. got a wave rode it through the rocks my mate got one just after me, we watched for about 15 mins nd saw nothing. but decided our sesh was over.

[GCLuke]

> Fraser Island - 1 bronze whaler approx 8-10 feet..

saw the bitch of a thing amongst a school of fish at orchid beach in the exact spot i was surfing about 20 mins before hand.. (lucky i'd gone in as it was getting dark)

> Nth Straddie - about 5 ranging from 3 foot to about 4 metres over the course of a few years

the biggest was - 4 metre tiger was the furtherest away at about 50 metres and was chasing what looked to be a school of tuna? was out at the gorge at point lookout on a bigger day... you could see the shape of the shark in the surge before the set hit as it piss bolted after the fish all the way down the beach.. nobody got out as the shark took off anyway..

the closest was - at cylinder beach with my mate rod and it looked like a bronzey? at about 8 foot and came within about 5 metres of us..
kinda did an s-shape lap near us then took off.. (probably just curious)

most recent (and smallest) - was over the x-mas break 06-07 at main beach.. about a 3-4 foot bronzey casually swimming through the line up

> Kingscliffe near the bowls club - didnt see sharks but we were surfing the shore break and over the back of it and it the gutter was a massive school of bait fish getting chomped into.. a helicopter was flying up and down the beach telling everyone to piss off out of the water.. and we did..

> Fingal back beach - approx 5 foot shark a few metres away.. chasing fish..

...outside of the surf - have seen bull sharks by the bucket load on several occasions in the broadwater cannals of the gold coast..
mostly you will see them on dusk in pack thrashing the surface like mad for a few seconds then disappear..
you dont really get to see them, but you know what's doing it

never had the "spooks" in sydney waters... YET

just curious iggymeister, did you ever surf the bombies out at kingy?
heard some shark stories about that place

[Stokie]

I've only had one experience, which is odd considering i've seen dolphins, seals and even whales whilst surfing.

I was surfing Parson's point last summer (isolated South oz point break one short headland away from waitpinga beach, where there's been a recorded fatal great white attack) there was only me and one other guy out. As i was paddling back out after catching a wave i saw a brownish looking thing (bronzie i'm guessing) about 1.5-2m long just lingering about 20m away. What made me think shark was how it was moving; quite slow and nothing like a dolphin. So i just spun around and caught some whitewater towards the shore. Wasn't really scared as i knew it was a distance away and by the time i made it into shallow water i was more intrigued.

Of course had it've been a white shark during a flatspell while i was out the back i would be shitting myself.

[Shaunm]

If in summer you are surfing on a crowded day near a guy with a tatt on each upper arm, and he calls SHARK!!! Please ignore, I'm bullshitting again. Does clear the crowd a bit on the odd occassion.

[Revolution]

Shark alarm at Narra club house

[Nick-W]

HAhahahaha, i love talking loudly to a mate about seeing a shark fin or a black shadow or a fin and splash in the summer crowds.

You always see people get concerned and think/start to paddle in.

Did it up the coast on a great surf day, then a lifeguard ran to the rocks near the break and shouted that there was a big tiger just around the corner.
Saw the locals smile so i thought i would stay too.

Heaps of sharks up at Gap beach, Smokey Cape. Seen about 3-4 in the water, more out.
Its a protected habitat so i guess you can expect that, but a great surf for anyone willing?!

One that freaked me was south coast, Ulladulla, Dolphin Point. A mate and i went down for a last light surf, had some fun, saw a huge black shadow and thought it was time to move on. Especially because it was just after that albolone fisherman got nabbed by a great white only a few km's up the coast!

Cold water makes me so much more scared.

[lovemuscle]

One that freaked me was south coast, Ulladulla, Dolphin Point. A mate and i went down for a last light surf, had some fun, saw a huge black shadow and thought it was time to move on. Especially because it was just after that albolone fisherman got nabbed by a great white only a few km's up the coast!

same thing happened to me, same place, same time. freaky

[locomotive]

Out at Avoca late last year some fish had started running, I think salmon but I am unsure. Anyway, a big feeding frenzy occurred out the back, just churning up the water. I was imagining what was going on beneath when all of a sudden a shark, probably ~2m jumped out of the water - full body - within the action.
It looked fantastic. Five or ten minutes later a crew of surf-club paddle boarders paddle right through the area... little did they know (or maybe they did know) what occurred.

[The Oracle]

Never seen one, never want to - they scare the hell outa me! So much so I got freaked for a second when a penguin swam under me and popped its head up a few feet away! I hate all moving shadows and silhouettes in the surf.

[Toby Wan]

Never seen one, never want to - they scare the hell outa me! So much so I got freaked for a second when a penguin swam under me and popped its head up a few feet away! I hate all moving shadows and silhouettes in the surf.

I hear you on that one, i remember freaking out once (ok maybe more than once) when i saw some seaweed out of the corner of my eye..

seen heaps of dolphins, penguins etc, but only 1 fin which we were pretty certain wasn't a dolphin.. nice big dark grey/black fin about 50m away at Whale beach.. was at the start of the session and the surf was good so me and my mates managed to convince each other that it could've been something else... we still paddled over to join a crew of boogers, haha safety in numbers

[KLXracer]

Never seen a shark whilst surfing - although have seen dolphins and a mate got attacked by a seal once (long story - morale of which is "picking up a seal pup from the water whilst Mum is in vicinity = bad idea").

Whilst Scuba diving though, I have seen plenty of reef sharks, and one large tiger (in Fiji). As long as you can see them, they don't seem as scary. Although I imagine that would change if they decided you could be edible.

Also seem a few when I have swum from manly to shelly.

P

[still here]

I was taking photo's of 4 mates from a channel next to a sandbank in a very remote area . Suddenly they're all proning in on same wave yelling shark . With a full suit , no fins and a camera in hand it's hard to swim .
But jeez did I swim fast , occasionally looking up to see my mates yelling and gesticulating to swim harder . I literally crawled up the beach . Apparently a large shark surfaced within 10 m of them .

Other time at a reknowned sharky spot with a seal colony nearby and legends of a 30 ft Great White called "submarine " ... waves breaking a long way out a mate and myself saw a fin that fair dinkum was about 4 ft tall out of the water . It was about 10 m away and swimming towards us and on the beach side of us . It went down and we had no choice but to paddle over it's path . Proverbial lull was a a nightmare as we scratched the surface until getting a wave in . Once on the beach we paddled half way out to call others in .
Reckon we paddled over "Submarine"'s path as he was well into circling us .

3 years ago and trudging down a long beach on my own to a great mostly deserted sandbank I came across a seal with most of his torso missing ...dead just beyond the waterline . Perfect clean waves but was a bit scary as a guy had died there a few months before .