Straddie and the Shark

It's Sunday evening and I am beat. After sleeping in until about 10 o'clock this morning, Conor and I made a couple cappuccinos (on our new espresso machine!) and a batch of pancakes. Mmmm...Sunday morning breakfast. We hung out on the balcony for about thirty minutes together before I had to get dressed and hustle off to work.

I just got home, and although I only spent about six hours on my feet today, I am tired. We had quite the adventure yesterday on North Stradbroke Island. I think it might take me (and probably Conor too) a few days to recover.

Yes, we went to North Stradbroke Island. Yes, there was a shark sighting. Before I jump into the details, let me tell you a bit about North Stradbroke Island. First of all, it's gorgeous. I don't think I have ever been anywhere as beautiful as this particular sand island (the second largest in the world). By this point I have posted several photos of sandy, white beaches and turquoise waters. Our little digital Canon does not do Straddie (as the island is known by the locals) any justice. Still, you be the judge.



It takes about an hour and a half and $25 to get to Straddie from Brisbane. Conor and I were up and moving by six o'clock on Saturday morning and hopped on the Ferry in Cleveland, QLD around 9am. The ferry ride out to the island was a million times better than our boat trip to Moreton a few weeks back. (I didn't feel nausea in the slightest!) It was a beautiful day - clear blue skies, temperatures in the mid-eighties. When we arrived on the island, we boarded a little bus and headed to Point Lookout, the hot spot for whale watching and surfing.

Point Lookout is home to about four cafes, a general store, and a surf board rental hut. We had breakfast and walked along the rocky coastline for about an hour before heading south to rent a kayak and some snorkel gear.







Unfortunately, we missed the guided morning kayak and snorkel trip hosted by Straddie Adventures. The crazy local behind the counter seemed pretty comfortable renting Conor and me (and one other couple) a couple kayaks and some gear and pointing us towards the best snorkeling spots for a few hours though. I asked Barry, our wonderful "guide", if it was safe for us to be out in the open water on our own and if there had been any shark sightings in the area recently. He was certain we would be fine. As certain as any local could be.

The water was incredibly warm and clear. Conor and I paddled for about twenty minutes before reaching our target, a couple large rocks about 500 meters from shore. There were two other boats anchored near the rocks and we noticed a few other snorkelers and some divers swimming about. Conor threw on his gear and jumped in. Even though we were quite far from shore, you could still see the ocean floor - the water was amazingly clear. After a few minutes I jumped in too and Conor and I "duck-dived" for about an hour. There were fish everywhere and beautiful coral growing on the rocks. Conor and I even saw a couple wobbegongs, which are one of the eight varieties of carpet sharks. We didn't have a camera with us - man, do I wish we had! - but here is a photo I found online.



After playing around in one spot for over an hour, Conor and I decided to kayak around to the other side of the rock. I jumped back in the kayak and while I was adjusting my gear and the paddles, I overheard the divers making quite a bit of noise. I looked up to see one diver in the boat, the second jumping aboard, and then the two of them reeling in the third diver at great speed. Behind the third diver, a large, silver fin, moving with great speed.

Here are some tips from the Australian Government in regard to shark attacks:

Shark Attack
Shark attacks occur rarely. Only a few of the 450 or so shark species have been known to attack people. Unfortunately, some attacks are fatal.

There are some easy and commonsense precautions to take that can help reduce the risk of a shark attack. This risk minimisation advice is reproduced from the Australian Shark Attack File.

Do not swim, dive or surf where dangerous sharks are known to congregate.
Always swim, dive or surf with other people.
Do not swim in dirty or turbid water.
Avoid swimming well offshore, near deep channels, at river mouths or along drop-offs to deeper water.
If schooling fish start to behave erratically or congregate in large numbers, leave the water.
Do not swim with pets and domestic animals.
Look carefully before jumping into the water from a boat or wharf.
If possible do not swim a dusk or at night.
Do not swim near people fishing or spear fishing.
If a shark is sighted in the area leave the water as quickly and calmly as possible.

Based on this advice, can you guess what went wrong in our particle situation? It turned out that these "divers" were not just scuba diving, but were spearing the larger fish feeding on the smaller fish dwelling around the rocks. The blood in the water had attracted a large shark. The fin was the length of my forearm and hand (fingertip to elbow). Don't worry, the third diver made it out of the water. The fish on the end of his spear most likely did not.

As soon as I saw the fin I motioned for Conor to get back into the kayak immediately. I think he thought I was kidding at first. Do you know how hard it is to balance a kayak while your partner throws his body over the side (never mind while a shark is circling 30 feet from where you are swimming)? Conor and I have been tossed from our kayak before and after several attempts are usually able to climb back in. It's crazy what happens to your body when adrenaline kicks in. Conor was back in the kayak within seconds and I balanced the boat while he put his life vest back on and grabbed his paddle. We sat by the rock in utter disbelief for about a minute, staring down into the shallow waters below us. Conor whistled to the "spearos" and confirmed that we had just witnessed a potential shark attack. The three men (yes, stupid, stupid men) informed us that we should not be worried and that they were going to try to catch the shark. Continue disbelief.

After a couple minutes, we decided to paddle back to shore (through the open water) while the spearos distracted the shark and teased him with the freshly caught fish they were storing on board. I have never paddled/moved so quickly in my life. Although we never feared for our lives, we were both terrified.

We're safe though. We made it back to shore. And we made it back to Brisbane. I will write more later in regard to our trip. In addition to sharks, we saw a great deal of wildlife and had a fabulous day trip.

This Post's Recommendation:
Television: The Office