The shark’s wide, rounded
snout is pointed squarely in my direction. Its 10-foot-long body presses
forward until it’s about 5 feet away. I maintain eye contact as my trusty
guide advised. Arms remain tucked in to my body so as not to look like a
flailing fish.
If I were photographing this
powerhouse of a creature, this would be the money shot. Sans camera, it's
cemented in my brain forever. Before I could even feel panicky, its bendy body
quickly reverts in the opposite direction. Thankfully, it’s not me he’s
interested in but the shiny GoPro in the hands of my safety swimmer.
Tracking one shark is no
problem. With snorkel gear and fins on I swivel my head around to keep an eye
on the nosy Galapagos shark. As a species, they are inquisitive and persistent.
Right now, I’m surrounded by
a dozen or so of its friends, which makes it impossible to keep track of every
one. Several Galapagos and sandbar sharks are making wide circles around the
boat, sometimes cruising a few feet below my fins, other times gliding by at
eye level. The larger alpha sharks swim toward the top and the smaller ones at
the bottom in a water column of dominance.
Because our guides want the
interaction to be as natural and positive as possible, there’s no chum-slinging
involved and no shark cages either. That said, during the experience you might
have two sharks show up or dozens.
We are about 3 miles off of
Oahu’s legendary North Shore where beyond the sharks, it’s common to find green
sea turtles, spinner dolphins and the occasional whale shark patrolling the
blue-green abyss.
For a second, I turn to my
sister. From the looks of it, she is also having the time of her life. While
many travelers hop over to Hawaii for hula performances, we are here for a
whole different kind of show, an underwater ballet of sorts. Far from the
bustle of Waikiki, it’s perfectly peaceful.
If ballet isn’t the first
word that comes to your mind, I don’t blame you. These notorious sea dwellers
have certainly gotten a bad rap. But we are here to prove that wrong. Just ask
Ocean Ramsey, co-founder of One Ocean Diving in partnership with Water
Inspired, and all-around lover of sharks. She has dived with 32 species of
sharks around the world and has devoted her life to saving them.
If you haven’t heard of her,
surely you’ve seen her on
YouTube. She’s the brave Oahuan who fearlessly free dives with white
sharks. She does it all in the name of shark conservation, research and
education. She has even given names to some of her toothy pals, though you may
have a hard time distinguishing Captain Pancakes, Frankenfin and Miss Aloha on
your swim.
After toweling off and saying
our goodbyes we hop on Kamehameha Highway, windows down. Papaya trees, rocky
shoreline and clapboard farmhouses whiz past as we seek out a hammock. It’s one
of those brilliant Hawaiian days where the breeze is just right, and we can’t
wipe the goofy grins off of our faces.
Hours later, the excitement
is still fresh. We gab about it to anyone who will listen, from the college
student serving up our lunchtime veggie burgers to the helicopter pilot who
shows us the jagged Ko‘olau Mountains.
As the sun drops below the
surreal landscape, I spot a shark from the chopper. It’s just a speck from this
point of view, but I’m still in awe of this incredible (and misunderstood) species.
If you go
$150 gets you in the water
with the sharks and marine biologist/divemaster. Bring your GoPro, or have One
Ocean film it for you for an extra $50. If you’re not quite ready to jump into
the water, it is $80 to go out on the boat and learn and observe from the
surface. oneoceandiving.com
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