Surf casualities - creepy surf breaks

[alakaboo]

oh, if you're worried about sharks, never take a low altitude flight over the place you surf...
especially not if you surf anywhere between broken head and DI....

sure it's the same elsewhere, but that's where i've done shark surveys...

[el rancho]

iluka isnt amazing at 6am on an overcast day in murky water 100 metres from stinking fishing trawlers.

[Longy]

Ive been surfing box head for about 15 years & have seen nothing out there & never get a vibe out there, apart from pure frustration when half the northern beaches shows up with thier hassling & snaking.

Saw three different solid sharks out Nusa Dua in 2 days in February. First one I saw about 20 meters away then it come at me then turned side on about 15 meters away & stopped like it was having a look, then dissapeared so i went down to another section then the same thing happened about 20 mins later. Next morning about 7am same thing again. Came at me, turned side on & then dissapeared.

I didnt go back for a few days.

[philw]

these are all the sharks i can recall seeing:

fiji - a group of reef sharks hung around between us and the boat, like hoodlums

nusa ceningan - a menacing bronze coloured shark hassling and thrashing very close to us surfers

bondi - last summer saw a shark up the north end where the kiddies swim, told a few people but the evening was so placid and calm nobody seemed to care

gaerie - smallish shark dining on big school of salmon, thrashing about, enjoying itself

[jimmy]

Haven't surfed Voodoo in a long time but when I did regularly it was back in the mid 80's when it was still a relatively secret spot.. You could have it at at times with only 3 or 4 guys.. The way it comes up out of deep water and hits the ledge is full on but it was always what was beyond that ledge where the water got deep real quick that gave me the willies..

Also surfed a spot recently down the coal coast which was a 500-600 mtr paddle to get to the reef.. Lots of fishing boats around and when I came in an old fisho pulling his boat in at the ramp said "Mate you're crazy surfing out there. I often have big Noahs follow me in to the ramp"

[shish]

I surfed Cactus last year. That was pretty spooky. Everyone kind of hangs together. The right hander (caves?) had about 10 guys on it and the other breaks were empty. Everyone too scared to go out there by themselves perhaps ? I certainly was. Closer to home, Hawks Nest. I have now seen three white pointers in the surf in the last 2 years up there. Only small ones (2 meters). They probably wouldnt swallow you whole but they could rip our arm off. Funnily enough they swam right past without showing any interest. I suspect that Hawks Nest/Stockton is probably worse than Cellittos (Cellittos was pretty good on Tuesday !) but HN doesnt get many sufers. It doesnt seem as scary when the water is crystal clear. Whilst on the topic, I did a white pointer cage dive at Port Lincoln, 4 meter great whites thrasing around the cage !! that was amazing.

[Red October]

Windawoppa and Crabbes Creek always freak me out .Too much freshwater nearby. Same goes for Moruya and Narooma breakwalls. Seen some big nasties there. A mate got hit and launched off his board at South Valla when the creek was opened. Got back in the water that arvo. "Got to get back on the horse!"

[NickyG]

supposably after the beached whale at flinders there has been a lot of shark sightings.. supposably there was a close call at flinders the other day, heard it on the radio... I also heard some paddleboarders had a good look at a few sharks as well.. or maybe it was the otherway around..

[Spoon]

Went out at Parsons in SA for an early with a mate years ago, that was creepy.

[alakaboo]

Closer to home, Hawks Nest. I have now seen three white pointers in the surf in the last 2 years up there. Only small ones (2 meters). They probably wouldnt swallow you whole but they could rip our arm off. Funnily enough they swam right past without showing any interest. I suspect that Hawks Nest/Stockton is probably worse than Cellittos (Cellittos was pretty good on Tuesday !) but HN doesnt get many sufers. It doesnt seem as scary when the water is crystal clear.

yeah, seen a heap of baby whites and small whalers around hawks nest.
they've never shown any interest though, they've swum past and under us without even twitching.

these were really small though, must have just been pupped. which means that mum is somewhere nearby...
heard some stories from a kitesurfer up there about something very big trying to eat his kite up the northern end of that beach, i don't know what it's called. he launched pretty quickly!

[Beanpole]

Hawksnest definitley and I reckon the beach at Budgioe? has the perfect set up for a shark to cruise along next to shore. Luckily the surfs crapo anyway.

[alakaboo]

does it? Where's Dad then? Up the pub?

if he's sensible, females are much bigger than males when mature...
the standard theory is that the males bite the females in front of the dorsals during mating. if i'd just bitten a 3.5m female on the neck, i'd get out of there fast too!

Wouldn't do it now knowing all this breeding ground stuff.

lot of sharks go into feeding depression while pupping, not sure about GWs. so breeding grounds can actually be safer!
doesn't apply to the pups themselves, which eat each other, and anything else they can find!

[Beanpole]

Gee surfing for 18 months and hitting a surf you call 6-8 or apparently 20ft according to someone whos been surfing for decades. On a twin fin. So how big is it before you pull out the 6'7"?

[daryl]

It's barely a point, the other of a beach with a lake at top end.
I came in from the beachy one day and this bloke watching there asked if I saw the big noah, then i was contemplating early on this weekend and a surfer came in, reckoned he saw a dorsal and the shark go for a fish, and then blood.
Put me off, and it's about the only way to get out there when it's big.

The next beach up is okay, not that can see underwater

[Grooter]

Also not a surf break but....

Swam at Lake Buffalo once as a kid on a holiday with the folks

Creeped the absolute fcuk out of me, hair standing up on the back of the neck, feeling of dread etc..... never been back and doubt I ever will

[Damage]

Although standing in the line for the shower waiting for topless chicks to finish counts as a PLUS when it comes to Tallows for mine.

[chrisb]

Also not a surf break but....

Swam at Lake Buffalo once as a kid on a holiday with the folks

Creeped the absolute fcuk out of me, hair standing up on the back of the neck, feeling of dread etc..... never been back and doubt I ever will

Inland lake, no noahs. Was it the coldness and depth of the lake that was creepy
It's not necessarily an irrational fear: last week a snorkeller went missing, presumed drowned, in one of Fraser Island's freshwater lakes.

[Ned]

Creepy - tick
Cold - tick
Uncrowded - tick

http://thesurfbird.com/2010/02/05/ice-i ... 05%C2%B710