7 great white sharks swimming around 1 cage!!! Guest and crew log – August 24, 2010.

Today was a fantastic day!  We may have seen up to seven Great Whites to start our day. Everyone is very comfortable with their diving and being safe here at Guadalupe Island. We’re all sharing stills and video at the end of the day while we capture them. A few crew members went in the water in just their bathing suits and masks – they were total troopers. Bruce, our large white friend, showed up just at the end of the day and is such a camera ham. He was the final icing on the cake.
Matt, USA
After a slow first day of white shark diving, this morning started off with a bang. Shortly after jumping in on the first cage dive of the day we had five to seven white sharks of various sizes checking out the three cages in the water. Later in the day when the Mexican Navy showed up for inspection, the shark activity died off somewhat.     We still had at least two sharks whenever we were in the cages. What a great day!
Ben, USA
What a beautiful night. It’s just past 10pm, and I’m navigating the Nautilus Explorer south-southeast towards our next destination on this 10-day combo trip, while watching the ghostly moonlit shadow of Isla Guadalupe slide by our starboard beam. The seas are calm, the winds light, the moon almost full, and the sky is almost totally free of clouds. Gentle, long-period swells 3 feet high are slowly overtaking us from our port quarter as we rock ever so softly towards our next destination, Escollos Alijos. It’s nights like these that make me feel privileged to be a mariner.
Of course, most sailors will have the opportunity to experience at least a few beautiful nights at sea. But how many of them get to enjoy la noche hermosa after having spent 3 days at arm’s length from a great white shark! We’ve had a wonderful start to our 10 day combination trip with the awesome spectacle of Guadalupe’s famous toothy residents giving us all some exhilarating moments over some 36 hours total cage time. Our resident shark whisperer extrordinaire, Jessie “Sharkchick” Harper, said more than once that our last of the three days on site was one of the best encounters she’d ever seen, and the first two days weren’t exactly boring either. Up to five sharks at one time, coming so close to the cages and from so many directions that we didn’t know which way to turn.
All this, and the trip isn’t but half over. Still awaiting us is the remote and rugged group of deep-water pinnacles called Escollos Alijos, where we will be exploring some very unique diving opportunities while not exactly sure what to expect. We’ve heard some exciting reports from other diving and spearfishing charter operators about the rich ecosystem to be found there (including the potential for spotting Galapagos sharks), and I for one am looking forward to breaking some new ground.
Finally, we will be finishing our trip off with the beautiful (and surprisingly cold) waters around the islands of San Benitos, home to some of the most beautiful kelp forests in the world. It really can be like strolling (or, rather, flying) through a sunlit forest while darting sea lions and bright orange Garibaldi provide colorful highlights through the rich green backdrop. I’m looking forward to seeing them again.
I should wrap up and return to the job at hand – navigating the Nautilus Explorer safely through the night. Having recently returned to the vessel from my vacation, I have enjoyed the renewed rush of challenge, responsibility, hard honest work, decision making, stress (of course!), and being thrown back into the dynamic mix of crew and guest experiences and personalities.  And a night like this, after a great white shark experience like the past few days, helps to drive home how unique and special an experience like this can be.
Sandy Curtis
First Mate
Nautilus Explorer
Photos courtesy of Daniel Kendzia and Kiki Fabritius