I had certainly been looking forward very much to the moment when all three of us in our small family would be able to dive together and by an amazing set of circumstances it first took place in the waters of Walker’s Cay, in the Bahamas, on their celebrated Shark Rodeo dive. Having parents like us who have a fascination with the world’s wild creatures, frequently travel to far-flung parts of the world and dive in some truly amazing places, it was natural that Rachel, aged 12 years old, would show no fear of diving in the first place and no fear of the creatures that she would encounter there in the second place. There we were standing on the back of the boat ready to jump in to the hopefully shark-infested water with our newly qualified Open Water daughter!
As I hit the water and the bubbles cleared I looked around for Mark and there he was a few metres below me surrounded by elegant circling sharks and obviously already in his element. Seconds later I descended through the sharks to the sandy bottom and was eyeball to eyeball with gliding Caribbean Reef Sharks, Black-tip Reef Sharks and some of the biggest Nurse Sharks I have ever seen. Within moments I was joined by our giggling daughter (yes, it does flood your mask!) who appeared to be very much at home when circled by 80-100 sharks!
Once the rest of the divers had descended we assembled on the sandy sea bed and made ourselves comfortable while the ‘chumsicle’, the frozen barrel of fish that the sharks adore, was dropped from the boat. For a few seconds there seemed to be little happening. A few small fish such as Yellowtail Snappers and Bar Jacks started to bite and then gradually the first large Nurse Sharks and Caribbean Reef Sharks moved in for their share. They clung to the frozen cube in an attempt to tear of chunks. Meanwhile, most of the sharks simply cruised around in a dense mass. There was certainly no feeding frenzy, in fact it seemed quite orderly, just as if the sharks had already established their feeding order and were sticking to the rules! Most of the sharks present that day were Caribbean Reef Sharks of about 1-3 metres in length, but there were also Black-tipped Sharks as well as a few quite large Nurse Sharks
As soon as the feeding was established I noticed that Rachel had been taken by one of the divemasters for a closer look and was swimming around the periphery of the feeding circle. It was my time to investigate too. The divemasters are quite happy for divers to go to about 4 metres from the chumsicle and they keep a careful and watchful eye open in case people move too close to the action. At one point the chumsicle broke up and a brief scrum followed when the larger sharks took off into the wild blue yonder with their booty.
For the most part these wonderful creatures cruised elegantly by and allowed me to observe them really closely, moving away from me at the last moment when our paths might perhaps have crossed. There was no aggressive behaviour from the sharks, such as the body-waggle gesture that can be demonstrated to divers, and on a couple of occasions I was actually able to run my hand down the rear part of the shark’s body without any problems. The Nurse Sharks felt quite rough compared to the silky Caribbean Reef Sharks. I don’t suggest a head on encounter with these sharks, but a little discreet stroking seemed appropriate at the time!
When the chumsicle had been eaten and the sharks moved off to find more fun elsewhere we hunted for shark teeth in the sand. Sharks naturally loose their teeth in this manner and we were fortunate to find several before reluctantly returning to the boat. From the moment that the bubbles first cleared to the search for the shark teeth we all agreed that this had been a truly awe-inspiring dive and a unique experience that we felt privileged to have experienced. Rachel’s first question: when can I do it again?!!! I would like to thank Mike Maloney, Divequest client and talented jeweller, who made a stunning gold and shark tooth necklace for Rachel to commemorate her first dive as a qualified diver. Other reports from WALKER'S CAY, BAHAMAS:   (1)

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