Shark Cage Diving

White Shark Projects (WSP) was an experience that has been on my bucket list since I was a child.  Although we had a very early departure, 5:00am, it was well worth the sacrifice of a few hours of sleep.  The transfer to Gansbaai was about 2 hours after leaving The Twelve Apostles Hotel & Spa.  Once at the White Shark Projects shop, we were given a breakfast and a briefing by the marine biologist.  The briefing was great; he explained the sharks’ behavior and gave tons of information from migration to eating habits.

When we left the harbor, it was about a 30 minute ride to the dive site.  The crew threw the hook in the water, they then put the shark cage in the water and tied it off to the side of the boat.  The cage was about 8’ tall and 3’ deep and 12’ wide.  It was about 10-15 minutes until the sharks showed up.  Once the sharks showed up, 6 people at a time went into the cage. 

WSP provided wet suits with hoods, booties and a mask, so all you needed was a swimsuit.  Once in the cage, they shut the top and the cage sat 2’ above the water. We stood in the cage on bars and when the sharks swam by we would hold our breath and go under water to watch the sharks swim by. 

This was an experience that everyone should have if they are at all interested in the ocean and its animals.  I learned so much about the Aquatic Big Five of South Africa, (whales, sharks, dolphins, seals and penguins) on this trip.  We saw over ten sharks ranging from 10’-16’. 

There are two-three trips a day one at 8am, one at noon and one later in the afternoon.  I would definitely do the morning run as seas are more likely to be calmer because the winds haven’t started to blow and the sharks were very active