False Bay flat as a pond, sharks abound

Crossed the Peninsula today to sample the view over Simon's Town by way of a change. False Bay has been exceptionally warm these last few weeks and with a lack of south easter and often a westerly wind, completely flat and clear as the Mediterranean. A paradise for swimmers and beachgoers, of which I'm afraid I'm not. The older I get, the less attractive I find the prospect of swimming, either in the sea or a swimming pool, although truth to tell I know I would enjoy it if I did. It was Jaws that did it for me, way back in the early 70s, I think. We used to swim - or at least jump in the breakers - at Fish Hoek beach in the night, when a summer's day had been particularly sultry and the smell of the ozone enticed us under the moonlight. But after Jaws, there was just no way I was going back in the water.

When I look at the documentary on how it was made, and see the mechanical shark head, I can only wonder how we could have been fooled, but I think that it was the music that built up the anticipation of the shark leaping from the water that frightened us most, and we probably turned our heads away from the screen at that moment, and so not getting a really much of a discerning look at the actual shark! Turns out that we were well advised to stay out of the water, particularly in Fish Hoek bay, where fatal attacks are recent in our memories and a shark exclusion net now provides a safe haven for wary swimmers. It seems to be working well and is much appreciated by all the regulars who refuse to be scared off anyway. It is probably their families that are most appreciative!

Helicopter shots show that there are sharks all along the coastline between Muizenberg and Cape Point and there is no doubt that they have always been there; we just couldn't see them from the beach. Surfers will tell stories of sighting sharks in the vicinity of the Kalk Bay reef for years now, but apparently there is very little that will keep a surfer from his wave!

Following my Shark! story which was in no way embellished, various fishing friends have confirmed that they too have had sharks jumping into their boats, both during the day and at night, the latter incident seeming to involve the light on the mast! Perhaps after all they just enjoy jumping?