Bull SHARK, Up Close - My Heart's still pounding!

[RoadWarrior]

Friday May 20th. Panama City Beach, FL.

We're diving a wreck called the Black Bart. Two people are spear fishing and having a lot of luck.

My wife grabs my shoulder and points... 8 to 10 feet away there's the biggest Bull Shark in the world. At least 25 feet long. Okay, 10 feet long. Huge is an understatement when they're that close.

It swins, ever so slowly, in an arc around us and fades off into the distance. Talk about an adrenaline rush!!! That was the best ever. We didn't move a muscle as we looked at this magnificant creature in both awe and wonderment. It felt like we could reach out and touch it.

We've seen the 2' to 4' nurse sharks often enough but this... shades of JAWS. It looked as big around as it was long. That one sighting will do us a lifetime. Please.

I'm still excited about seeing the beast. I told this story to several non-diver friends at work and... well, you know, so I wanted to share it with you.

In total there were 5 divers on that dive and everyone saw it. The Deck Hand said they called the shark Smilie. He hangs out at the Black Bart and is seen often when the spear fishing is good.

To those who have had the pleasure of seeing such a creature as close as 8 to 10 feet... is your heart still pounding too?

 

[H2Andy]

are you sure that was a bull shark? sounds like a large catfish to me

seriously, that was awesome... i *bet* your heart is still beating fast

 

[jagfish]

Great account...

 

[dive_lover88]

that's so cool!! i really want to see one!!

 

[Dr. Doug Ebersole]

What, no pictures? (Obviously, the reply of a warped photographer!)

 

[menemsha43]

That is cool. Amazing creatures

 

[DennisW]

They are scary animals and they can be agressive. I would be very excited if I got that close to a Bull.

 

[SharkDiverMag]

I think it is an amazing experience that you had. I just got back from Fiji where we had maybe 20 bull sharks around us. Of course this was during a shark feeding. No way would that many sharks be comfortable around us divers without the use of food. Opportunities like the one you just had are getting more scarce by the day. Especially in Florida...

Thanks for sharing,

Eli
Publisher
www.sharkdivermag.com

 

[Johnoly]

We're diving a wreck called the Black Bart. Two people are spear fishing and having a lot of luck.

That bull has made that wreck his home for a number of years. He seems conditioned
to the sound of the speargun's because he always come running. And yes he is very
large and unfriendly to some of us. Casey from Diver's Den has run into him lots!

 

[Hank49]

Just curious....How does one identify a specific shark like a bull with no giveaway markings? I've seen a number of sharks diving and can identify white tip reef sharks, nurse, gray reef , silver tip, because they have obvious markings although even those aren't guaranteed. But most other sharks I've seen are just grayish brownish and I have no idea what they are as they pass by.