Nick's Semester @ Sea: Shark Dive

This is the info for our cage shark diving !!! The company info is at the bottom

Below is a little more information on your day at Shark Alley:

At 5:00am this morning you will be met at your hotel to begin your two hour journey to Gansbaai, a mere stones-throw away from the most southern tip of the African Continent. You will be transferred from Cape Town in either our Mercedes Sprinter or Toyota Quantum bus. During breakfast, your tour guide will give you a safety briefing.

After breakfast you will depart from Gansbaai Harbour for a 30 minute boat ride to nearby "Shark Alley" where you find two islands situated next to each other. We have a 57 foot motorised catamaran that was built especially for shark viewing and cage diving. This is the largest boat in operation in the Shark Cage Diving Industry, offering you the best in safety and comfort. Unlike other operators (who do 2 to 3 tours per day) we only do 1 tour per day thus maximising viewing and diving time out at sea. Hot and cold running water are available on the boat. Due to a number of geographical reasons - one being the shallow and narrow channel that runs between these two islands - Dyer Island has become known as one of only two unique areas in the world, where the chances to view the great white shark, are exceptionally high. Other wildlife species such as Cape Fur Seals, Cape Gannets, Cape Cormorants, Jackass penguins, whales and dolphins are also likely to be sighted. Once ancho
red in the channel, we make use of a specially designed, secure, six man steel cage, which floats on the surface, with our divers no more than 1m below the surface.

You do not require any diving certification to do the cage dive. Diving takes place on a rotational basis and on good diving days, it is possible for each diver to take more than one dive. Duration of each dive depends on the diver and the activity of the sharks, but could be up to half an hour per dive. We use a cage that is 3.5 m (10.5 feet) wide. On average there will be 5-6 divers at a time in the cage. You have 2 options available for the cage dive. You can either hold your breath and just dive down when a shark is close to the cage (there is a 60 cm area of the cage above the water where wait before diving down) or you can use air that is supplied from the boat via a hose and a regulator. Both options will be available. Normally clients stay in the cage for about 30 minutes at a time, there is no time limit we rotate clients as they want to get out of the cage.

White sharks are indeed surface feeders, providing brilliant surface viewing from the safety of the shark-viewing deck of the boat. Our non-divers have a great opportunity to view the feeding sharks from the safety of the boat, where exhilarating photographs and video footage may be captured, at close range.

The boat is comfortable and provides the ultimate stability at sea. The boat is fully licensed to South Africa safety standards and has a spacious cabin, comfortable seating inside and outside, private lockable toilet and fresh drinking water. The vessel is equipped with 2 radios, radar equipment, navigation equipment, depth finder, echo sounder, medical first aid kit, current safety equipment, 2 life rafts and life vests for all passengers. We are in possession of a valid White Shark Cage Diving Operators Permit (issued by government), enabling us to work within the Dyer Island nature reserve area (copy of permit available upon request). Only long-standing operators, who are in compliance with certain safety regulations and code of conduct, are entitled to this permit. All facilities are closely inspected by authorities on an annual basis, ensuring maximum safety for all guests.

The experienced crew (5 crew per tour) looks after every detail to ensure you have a safe trip. Around noontime, you will be served refreshments of snacks, fruit, and drinks to hold you over before returning to Gansbaai Harbour.

You will be transferred back to the lodge where you will have lunch and also watch the DVD that was made of the day. During this period you will also be presented with a diving certificate and then return to your hotel in Cape Town. During the whale season we see whales in the same Bay as we see the Great Whites. On the way back to Cape Town we will stop in Hermanus for some land based whale watching. The coastal resort of Hermanus offers spectacular land based whale watching. About 600 to 1000 Southern Right Whales visit the bay from mid June until December every year. Visitors are often treated to close up displays as these creatures often come to within 10 meters of the coast. The cliff tops in Hermanus offer the tourist great views and the ability to watch the whales close up.

The cost including return transfers from any address in the Cape Town area will be R 1,650 PP (R 1,350 pp self drive). We offer a free cage diving trip (open ended) in the extremely unlikely event of us not seeing any Great Whites on the day out at sea.

Please click on the link below to enter your credit card details to confirm the booking details. We will only use your credit card to secure the dive - you can do full payment on the day of the dive.

http://ww7.aitsafe.com/cf/add.cfm?userid=99118746&product=Abbie&price=1350       - Including return transfers from Cape Town (This includes a R 300PP discount for SAS Students)

5.00am           Pickups in Cape Town
8.00am:                         Meeting at De La Mer Restaurant in Gansbaai Harbour
8.00am - 8.45am:          Breakfast, payment and briefing (overview of day)
8.45am:                          Transfers to Gansbaai Harbour
9.00am:                          Safety/Dive briefing and launch
9.45am:                          Anchor at dive spot and start diving
1.00pm - 2.00pm:          Return back to Gansbaai harbour
1.00pm - 2.00pm:          Transfers back to Restaurant
2.00pm - 3.00pm:          Lunch, handing out of certificates and watch DVD of day
4.30pm - 5.00pm:          Back in Cape Town

                                Boat and Equipment:

·         57ft Lee Cat, largest and most comfortable in industry
·         Cage is 3.5m x 1.5m
·         Hot and cold water/showers available
·         220V available on boat
·         Charging of phones, cameras and cell phones possible
·         Coffee and Tea facilities
·         7mm wet suits with hoodie and booties
·         Towels available on boat (included in cost)
·         Videographer on every trip
·         Wireless PA system
·         DVD/CD/Tuner with 12 speakers throughout boat

Crew on boat (Min on every trip consists of):

·         Skipper
·         Dive Master / Guide
·         2 x Deckhands
·         Videographer

Meals:

·         Breakfast
·                     Toast / Bread (as much as you want)
·                     Tea and Coffee
·                     Cereal
·                     Yoghurt
·                     Fruit
·                     Juice
·                     Muffins

·         Snacks on Boat

·                     Chips
·                     Water (Still and Sparkling)
·                     Fruit
·                     Coke and Diet Coke
·         Lunch (They can choice lunch meal at breakfast, menu changes daily)
·         Choice of non vegetarian meals
·         Choice of vegetarian meals

·         Soft Drink / Beer / Wine

What makes us different?

·         Largest and most stable boat of all operators
·         We mostly only do 1 trip per day, unlike other operators that do 2 or 3 trips.
          We can thus offer you maximum time out at sea.
·         Only operator that meets at a restaurant where you can have a substantial
           breakfast as well as a choice of 6 different meals for lunch
·         Only operator with their own videography team - others are all outsourced
·         Most experienced skipper (more than 20 years experience in the Gansbaai
           area)

As all other operators we have:

·         Boat that is SAMSA (South African Marine Safety Association) Surveyed
           annually
·         MCM permit to operate as an Shark Cage Diving Operation
·         Qualified skipper, dive master and Level ll medic on board
·         All diving equipment required for cage dive

You are guaranteed an unforgettable experience!!

Please contact us if you require any further information.

Best regards,   Paul
UnrealDive Expeditions
Cell: 083 273 4920
email: paul@unrealdive.com