Maine shark attack

[josko]

Just as we're ready to finally get to Maine: https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/27/us/possible-shark-attack-maine-trnd/index.html

[JohnHuth]

 

The eye witness accounts made it sound pretty hair raising.   

[josko]

We are on the menu.

[Inverseyourself]

Interesting presentation about Cape Cod having newly emerged ca. 2009 as one of the less than a handful worldwide Great White hubs (at 11:45 min).

 

 

[Jim Snyder]

My wife asked me what I would do if I saw a shark while kayaking. Some helpful information here:

https://paddlingmag.com/skills/do-sharks-attack-kayaks/

[josko]

Whitetips scare the living daylights out of me. 

[Inverseyourself]

I think a shark breached off Rockport next to David Mercer’s boat a few years ago. He can speak more to it. I wonder what type he saw.

[prudenceb]

9 hours ago, Inverseyourself said:

I think a shark breached off Rockport next to David Mercer’s boat a few years ago. He can speak more to it. I wonder what type he saw.

I was there.  As was Joe.  Joe got the best look.  I think Peter Brady weighed in on what kind.  Mako maybe.  Def not a great white.

[Joseph Berkovitz]

The one in Rockport broached about 5 feet from David and me but I think David was looking the other way. We both saw a fin lolling out of the water and I was absolutely sure it was a rubber fin, like a child’s Jaws-themed toy. The mind plays strange tricks to invent alternative stories that are more comforting than reality. Then a 6 foot shark jumped completely out of the water - but not at me or David. It did not look like a great white but beyond that my shark ID skills are crap.

the moral of this story may simply be, if you see a fin sticking out of the water, assume its owner is alive and hungry. 

[rveelenturf]

Perhaps eight years ago, a paddling friend and I were within feet of a large shark (approximately half as long as my 18 foot kayak with 12 inches of fin out of the water) under the Onset Ave bridge in Onset, MA. When I got home, I identified it as a bull shark, based on the shape of its fin and head from above. It did not display any aggressive behavior, which had a nice calming effect on us.

Edited August 1, 2020 by rveelenturf
slight wording edit

[BigBird]

I posted here a couple of years ago about friends of mine who were paddling off Hermit Island (not far from Bailey Island).  They said a shark came right up to them and was 6' - 8' long.  Not a great white, but they weren't sure what it was as they were so scared they began paddling to shore as fast as they could.

I've paddled around Casco Bay and often came across schools of fish flying at me followed by a couple of seals and I was always on the lookout for a fin or two, but never saw one myself.

[Jim Snyder]

Great White confirmed off Wells Beach. 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.wmtw.com/amp/article/great-white-shark-sighting-confirmed-off-wells-beach/33598095

[Paul Sylvester]

This is all a pain considering I have a new surfing wetsuit and have been enjoying the wave play on the SUP and surfboard (beginner level.)  Guess I'll shall remain seated..

[josko]

Got a close look at a sandbar shark yesterday. Clearly longer than my paddle, maybe 250# or so. Really cool animal.