GW attack 10/29/11

Probably taboo to post it here but just keep your heads about you if you are coming down around Monterey. A guy got attacked this morning off of Marina State Beach.  Here is a link to the local news article.  http://www.ksbw.com/news/29624658/detail.html. 


Be safe out there my friends.

Hursty

It's that time of year.  Glad he's going to be OK.

Holy... I just got out of the water from Monterey.  @.@

    Lucky guy... he survived.         It's fall , this is when they return to hunt the northern Ca coast.     Big increase in Sea Lion population over the years relates to  an increase in the numbers of GW's .    Expect to see a significant increase in the number of incidents with people as their numbers increase.
    Good photo Chaeki...    your eyes look like you've just seen a GW !

yeah, very lucky.

saw this older post on SRC, dont recall hearing about this incident...

"Capitola  — On September 18, 2011 Matthew Davault was fishing from a 13-foot Ocean Kayak Trident, 3 – 4 miles SSW of the Capitola Wharf. It was 1:00 PM and he had been on the water for about 7 hours. The sky was clear with a mild breeze. The water was 90 feet deep with visibility of more than 20 feet and an estimated temperature of 58 degrees Fahrenheit. Marine mammals were present in the area. Devault reported; “I launched my open deck fishing kayak from the beach at Capitola village wharf at approximately 6:00 AM. I was targeting White Sea Bass (Atractoscion nobilis) in 80 – 100 feet of water which, at this location, is an estimated 3 – 4 miles offshore. By noon, I was riding a nice southeast drift from the prevailing breeze. At approximately 1:00 PM I was in 90 feet of water, drifting toward shore in a stern first trajectory. I had just completed urinating into the water. A large shark appeared and began following my drift in a zigzag pattern from the bow side of the kayak. The first 3 or 4 passes, the head of the shark was directly beneath my seat. It passed under my kayak, to about 4 or 5 feet off one side, then repeated this maneuver to the other side. This behavior was repeated throughout the entire encounter. The animal's movements were fluid and graceful. I had two lines deployed baited with whole squid, which I immediately cut to prevent entanglement. I then began back paddling away from the shark, trying not to agitate the water in the process. It followed me for what I estimate to be over 5 minutes, increasing the space between us and widening its zigzag until it was no longer visible. I then turned around and paddle forward into the wharf, and exited the water. The animal acted passively, and never touched the kayak, before it simply disappeared; still I was very uncomfortable and had to focus to remain calm. I estimate the shark to be about the length of my 13 foot kayak. It was dark on top and light below with a large black eye. It also had long pectoral fins which reminded me of the wings on jet plane.” Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee."