First Class seats, a private car with a driver, and a luxurious suite in the most opulent hotel…these are all things that comprise a fabulous vacation and NONE of the things that I had when I went cage diving with The Great White Sharks off of Guadalupe Island in the Pacific!
When the idea of a cage dive with Great Whites was posed to me as a “vacation”, I can say that 50% of me was dreading it and 50% of me was intrigued. I thought that it would be amazing & picturesque…and it was. A 36 hour boat ride starting in San Diego took me far into the Pacific where the journey was peppered with blue whale sightings and various other sea life that is seldom seen.
Waking up on the first day of four consecutive days of dives was so exhilarating! A full wet suit, a weight belt to ensure you sink to the bottom of the 20 foot deep cage, and an air hose are all I had as I stepped onto the top of the floating cage. The lid opens and in I went! 30 minutes in, 30 minutes out of the cage is how the day goes. The water is chummed to ensure the Great Whites come out to play…the good news is, they do! These creatures are much larger than you can imagine, but move in the most graceful way I have ever seen. There were several things that we were told to look for when in the cage, but the one that I was most focused on was something I was not seeing, until my last dive. Many people think that sharks have black eyes… the truth is that the most outer edge of the shark’s eye is the most crystal clear blue you will ever see…and if you are lucky enough to see it, it will take your breath away.
In summary, I said that First Class seats, a private car with a driver, a luxurious suite in the most opulent hotel were what made a vacation. What I took away from this experience is that though these are all things I want on the standard vacation…a day outside of my comfort zone and in the waters of the Great Whites is something that if I missed, I would be without. The beauty of traveling is that no trip is the same…a weekend in New York is the Apple (pun intended), and a weekend with the Great Whites is the Orange!
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