[stuartj]

Heres my best shark story. Its amongst the memories one might take, hopefully, take to the grave....

It was many years ago, surfing at remote cold water location. Access via miles of fire trails through national park, a 350ft cliff descent followed by a jump off a rock ledge into the frigid Southern Ocean. Remote. There were three of us. After a time, being close to the cliff after a wave, I saw one on my friends back up on the rock ledge, waving his arms over his head....the other was several hundred yards back out to sea. Andy appeared to be OK, so I started to paddle back out.

I was moving across foam covered water, and it cleared and opened to the deep green. Under me, moving slowly with me, was a Great White shark. Its head was size of Toyota Corolla. It was fkng huge. It was one of the sharks the local abalone divers call 'submarines' because when they pass, they are so big, they displace water. The foam on the water closed over. She was somewhere down there and I had to go fetch James from out the back.

I sort rationalized by thinking if she wanted one us, it would have happened already and there was nothing anybody could do. But it was a long long paddle. A deeply impressive experience.