Duel with shark, Vid, 10Dec11

Wind: NE-NNE 10-12 knots
Swell: 1.5-1.8m from SE but with short NE chop
Cloud: 10/10 (Raining)
Current: Suspect N>S along Main Beach, elsewhere ??
Participant: Jimbo

Apologies for the delayed report (I was too stuffed yesterday afternoon to write it), and its length without photos, but I think the story is worth telling.

An exchange of emails with Sunshiner and Jaro at around 0330 on Saturday morning indicated that the former was going to at least turn up, but the latter thought it too wet and was going straight back to bed (in hindsight, perhaps not a bad decision). So when I arrived at MG car park at 0410 Sunshiner was already there and our recce of the beach in the gloomy early morning light indicated the surf break was doable with good timing. However, the NE breeze, predicted to increase later in the morning, was already up to a brisk 10 knots. For me, having already had breakfast, the prospect of going home and back to bed and later having to unload the unused kayak, was mildly less attractive than a 3+ hour outing in choppy/raining conditions with the hope of catching a fish or two. For Sunshiner, however, the prospect of going back home to bed and breakfast, combined with the possibility of a fishing day later in the week was a much more attractive option.

So Sunshiner helped me unload my kayak and then waited patiently up on the groyne with camera ready to film my exit through the surf zone. It took me at least 5 minutes until I was confident I had figured out the sequence of the sets and eventually made a good transit beyond the break zone. I believe Sunshiner has taken a video of this launch.

Jimbo waiting, waiting... (pic: KL)

VIDEO
Taken by Sunshiner and uploaded. 45 secs, but fairly high-res, so you may need to wait until it’s downloaded before allowing it to play.


Once through the surf zone it was clearly not going to be a fun day. As I began my set up procedure the rain started, and didn't stop all morning. Also the brisk north-easterly was creating a very choppy sea and this, together with a suspected southerly current, was pushing me back towards the SLSC. Anyway, having accepted my fate, I set out for Jew Sh at 0510 and deployed my Halco Laser Pro lure (HLP, with short wire trace on 30lb monofilament) from my trolling outfit once across the shark net.

I had paddled about 1.5km from MG and was opposite Tea Tree Bay when the ratchet on my Charter Special overhead reel started grinding, indicating line was being taken against the drag, but it was not "screaming" as is typically the case when a good sized pelagic initially strikes. On taking up the rod it felt very heavy, almost like the lure was snagged, but clearly it wasn't, as this "snag" was moving fairly quickly in a south-easterly direction. I tightened the lever drag to the normal "fighting" position (about 25% of line breaking strain) and the nose of the kayak quickly swung round to follow this underwater juggernaut as line was slowly, but progressively being taken from the reel. After an initial 10 minutes of excitement, it was becoming apparent this was almost certainly a pretty big shark and I was starting to have doubts about getting my HLP lure back, let alone the viability of landing it on the kayak, assuming it would eventually tire and I would be able to get it up to the yak. However, I decided I at least wanted to confirm it was a shark, and to see just how big it was.

With the drag now set at about 50%, by pulling really hard on the rod (by now in a constant 90+ deg bend), I could at times recover a few metres of line as I effectively winched the kayak closer to my prey. But then this powerful animal would accelerate faster than the kayak could move through the water and line would again be taken against the drag. After about 15 minutes it became apparent the shark was towing me at an alarming speed towards the breaking waves at Dolphin Pt. I was at the point of thinking I was probably going to have to cut the line as the height of the swells increased closer to the rocky point. But then the animal headed slightly more easterly (I suspect because of the decreasing water depth) and I was able to use the rod to keep the kayak pointed into the swell until it thankfully towed me into the deeper water of Granite Bay.

And so the process of my pumping/winching the yak closer to the (assumed) shark, and then it taking line back off me, continued as we progressed at a steady pace across Granite Bay with only slight deviations to the left and right. With the choppy sea and rain falling, visibility into the water was very difficult. However, at one point I could see an unclear brown shape at least 2.5 metres long across my bow just below the surface about 10 metres away. And then the unmistakable white/grey underside of a shark's pectoral fin, about 50 cm across its base, momentarily broke the surface. Yes, this was definitely a bloody big shark that I was hooked up to! I had now given up any hope of landing this monster but I still wanted to see if I could tire the bastard out and get it sufficiently close to the kayak to have a good look at it and make a better estimate of its length. It's probably appropriate at this point that I insert the Google Earth image that shows my "shark path".

The next element of my concern was that I was now being towed towards the increased swell and breaking waves at Fairy Pools at the eastern end of Granite Bay. I was also concerned that even if I could get past Fairy Pools I would then be pulled into the "washing machine" of incoming and opposing reflected wave action that exists along the "rock wall" between Fairy Pools and Hells Gates. Luckily my prey decided to skirt around the increased swell immediately off the point of Fairy Pools (again I suspect due to the decreased water depth) and around the outer fringe of the "washing machine", but then started to head ESE towards New Zealand... but I still hadn't had a good look at the bastard, and so I persevered.

Once around Fairy Pools, the further difficulty was that I was now exposed to the full SE ocean swell together with the continuing NE chop and rain, and my left arm was starting to feel really tired as I had by now been holding and pumping the rod with this arm for about an hour. It was also becoming painfully obvious that the shark:

(a) was gaining benefit of the increased water depth and was taking as much line from me as it needed to stay near the bottom,

(b) was pulling me at about 3 kph to seaward, and I was now about 2.5 km from my intended destination (Jew Sh), and,

(c) I was becoming more tired than the shark and I was unlikely any time soon to get it within viewing distance of the kayak.

So I resolved to end the contest by tightening the drag to 100% so I would either get the shark up to viewing depth and then cut the line, or break the line (usually at the knot) and thereby minimise the amount of lost line. After about a minute of really straining on the rod I was starting to recover some line when the shark decided he was having none of that, and headed for the bottom once more. There was then a loud "BANG" and I was dismayed to realize my trusty 6'6" Abu Garcia rod had snapped in mid section (about 60 cm above the top of the butt) and the top end of the rod had taken off down the line that had now gone slack... and so ended the contest! I then wrapped the line around my gloved hand and pulled hard as soon as the line tightened which broke the line at the knot, sent the top end of my rod to the ocean floor, but thankfully for both of us, gave us our freedom from each other... the shark with my HLP lure and wire trace still in its mouth!

It was now 0645 which meant I had been fighting the shark for about 1h 15m. I marked the end of my "shark path" with my GPS and later used Google Earth to determine I had traversed a distance of at least 3.25 km which meant I had averaged 2.6 kph (in a relative straight line not taking various deviations into account). I then assessed my situation: It was still pissing rain, I was soaked to the skin (despite wearing a rain jacket from the outset) and was now feeling pretty tired. I was now limited to bottom fishing with my light casting outfit. If I chose to go to A-Bay Rf, now about 1 km further south I would then be facing at least 5.5 km paddle back to MG against an increasing NNE wind and possible southerly current, plus further re-positioning paddling around the A-Bay Rf mark. Jew Sh, my original destination, was about 2.75 km to the NW against the same wind and current, plus reposition paddling if I chose to go there, and then a further 3.8 km back to MG. The obvious answer was to give up catching a fish for the morning and take on the 5 km paddle back to MG. This I did, and was glad to make a successful upright transit through the surf zone to land on the beach at 0750 with my left bicep telling me I had made the sensible decision to take the option I had.

So that's it. No fish, a lost HLP lure, a broken rod, a bloody tired body, but a great experience I will remember for a long time to come.

My only other observations are:

(1) A GPS is a vital piece of equipment to give you a sense of location, direction and speed when reference to land-based marks is obscured or not visible in rain/cloudy conditions. A VHF marine radio gives you the confidence to take on such conditions on your own knowing you can contact Noosa Coast Guard for assistance should you need to.

(2) A simple "half barrel knot" tied with quality (in my case Platinum) 13.5kg/30lb monofilament line has significant fatigue-resistant qualities, but can be broken at the knot when required.

(3) Don't expect a spin rod with a rated line class of 6-10 kg to be able to withstand the bending force exerted when used upside-down with an overhead reel in combination with 13.5 kg breaking strain line.

Cheers,
Jimbo