White Sharks of Isla Guadalupe

At last I can post some photos from Baja! I scratched a very old itch this week, I finally saw a great white shark underwater. I saw LOTS of them on a 5-day trip to Isla Guadalupe, about 220 miles southwest of Ensenada and 170 miles off the west coast of the peninsula. A magical little volcanic dot of an island (22 miles x 9 miles) that attracts a significant population (about 50 individuals) of white sharks for several months each year. They are magnificent animals, the ones we saw were mostly young males, about 14 feet long, weighing about 2,000 pounds. Here are some images:





I have seen the following image hundreds of times in my mind, and all of a sudden there it was for real, right in front of me:









Topside, taking the bait:

Holy Molly Great photos and heart rate beating at 1,000 bps?? Looks like an exciting adventure. Lucky Man

Ken Bondy Thanks for sharing your adventure. Awesome!

OMG The wait was worth it,great shots KEN,that place reminds me of the lost world,strange but exciting at the same time,I,ve been waiting for your pic,s,I just knew they would be great,congrats.

I like no. 4 the best, would make a great xmas card
Merry Xmas from Ken and family

[Edited on 9-20-2007 by baitcast]

Thank you all for the kind words. I was on the Andrea Lynn with San Diego Shark Diving (Doc Anes) and yes, I was definitely in a cage .

++Ken++

PS I posted a lot more photos to an album in Photobucket, it will give a little better idea of the boat operation:


http://s107.photobucket.com/albums/m320/kenbondy/Guadalupe/



[Edited on 9-20-2007 by Ken Bondy]

Thanks for the great pictures. Great whites also congregate at the Farallon Islands. A great read on these sharks is: The Devil's Teeth: A True Story of Obsession and Survival Among America's Great White Sharks by Susan Casey. Just a recommendation to anyone into great whites. Again, great pictures.

Glad to see you back again, Ken. Things got a bit dry on this forum the last couple of days.

Looks like you had a great time.

I, too, like shot number 3. And also shot number 2.

I find these guys to be deceiving. They just don't look as dangerous as they are.

I liked this shot from your album as it conveys some of the sense of danger.

ummm......yeah....what he said..............

Ken, you just keep giving us these great images that so very few people have the opportunity to see!

Many, many thanks amigo!!!

Ken, just incredible. Love the colors. Wish the water was clearer though
Bob H

very cool!

hey Ken - thanks for posting these awesome photos - what a great adventure!

when are you going to publish an oversize color photo book of your photography?!

gringorio

Don't worry! You're fine. They don't like goat meat.

Pic number 2 looks like he's checking lunch or snack. Yikes!! Thanks for sharing, and for living the incredible life you do and having the ability to share it in pictures! You da bomb!

Dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun...........Gulp! Ken, what great photos!!! Your photos allow me to enjoy Great Whites vicariously. A great White is NOT something I want to see while diving or swimming. Worse, I don't want one to see me. I'm not sure I would have the cajones to stand in that cage either.

Next time an Englishman calls me "chum", I'm going to run.

Quote:

Originally posted by toneart Next time an Englishman calls me "chum", I'm going to run.

The guys in the cage were so freaked out they had their own chum line going.

However, I don't think it attracted too many sharks.

GREAT pictures, Ken Bondy.
Your favorite is my favorite, too; a CLASSIC!

Quote:

Originally posted by ursidae69 Thanks for the great pictures. Great whites also congregate at the Farallon Islands. A great read on these sharks is: The Devil's Teeth: A True Story of Obsession and Survival Among America's Great White Sharks by Susan Casey. Just a recommendation to anyone into great whites. Again, great pictures.

ursidae69
Thank you for the tip on the Casey book. I bought it on iTunes and just downloaded it to my IPod. It looks fascinating, I will listen to it on a drive to San Diego tomorrow. I'm getting too lazy to read books anymore, it's too easy to listen to them . Once again thanks for the recommendation. ++Ken++

Ken

Wow! Thanks again for letting us 'ride along'. The first dive I ever did I was in about 12 feet of water in Florida Keys and I was at the back of the group and saw a nurse shark. I had been told they were around and I knew they were harmless but..........I was very quickly out of air and back to the boat.

mtgoat

My wife swims in the ocean on a regular basis and I worry about the artificial 'seal colony' that has been allowed to develop attracting great whites to the area. She tells me not to worry as she swims much faster then most in her group. It is still more dangerous getting to the beach then getting in the water. Have Fun!

Great shots Ken!
I've been to the 'lupe on fishing trips and I have to tell you I once saw a shark down there that would make me have second thoughts about getting in the water; even in a cage.

Those shark there are well fed, that's for sure.



A couple shots from a trip a few years ago....

Those are both fantastic shots Halboo, GREAT timing ++Ken++