(09-18-2023, 02:12 AM)Schmoe Wrote:(09-16-2023, 05:16 AM)Grace Wrote:(08-30-2023, 03:34 PM)Schmoe Wrote: Good old New Smyrna. I never had the pleasure to swim in the shark bite capital
I did love Florida though. My aunt had a house in New Port Richey, complete with a closed-in pool that was screened and covered with anoles every morning. They were fun to catch until one latched onto my thumb. That little prick stayed latched on for about 10 minutes, but I'm the one who messed with it, so I couldn't harm it.
They also had a gator in their community pond that people would brilliantly feed.
We went to the Gulf of Mexico one day we were there, that water was amazing. Up to my chest in water and I could see my feet. No waves though. Can't have it all, I guess.
I enjoyed Florida, but I'm a cold-weather guy. Once the charm wore off I'd be miserable in humid-year-round Florida
Lol @ shark bite capital...
There's an inlet where bait fish are, the bait fish are why sharks go there.
Also happens to be the inlet where the surfers go surfing... I think it's the only place they can actually surf.
In my personal opinion, if you have to go surfing in the shark's food dish then you should probably skip surfing all together - but apparently you can't tell that to the surfers..
"I just wanted to surf! I don't know what happened, I was playing in the bowl of Cheerios and they mistook me for an 0 of Cheer... I have no idea why!" Lol
.
I have to say I'm actually surprised surfers aren't chomped more often. When you look at the silhouette a surfer produces from under the surface of the water, it's looks an awful lot like a turtle or a large seal. A favorite food of tiger sharks and great whites.
Still, I'll pass on being a floating charcuterie board
Pretty sure they know the difference. I'd bet most people only get bit out of curiosity. Problem is ... getting bit a little bit by a shark is pretty damned traumatic for one of us.
My most interesting encounter with sharks was on a blue water dive. Blue water dives are open water experiences (usually a one-and-done) where you're way out in the ocean and there are no reference markers anywhere. The bottom is too far down to make out, the surface is 60' above ya, and the water 'blues out' in every other direction. I don't know what that distance is where the blue out occurs ... 60 yards or a hundred (can't be much more than that).
Anyway ... I'm out there with a bunch of newbs ... wasting time. Then a pack of pelagic scavengers comes through. These are the BIG sharks nobody _ever_ sees. These are the ones that'll eat a boatload of shipwrecked sailors and leave nary a soul behind. Gobble down big ol' whales.
Let me tell ya ... sharks _know_. They know what's in the water the same way a bear knows what's in the woods. But, they've got the same visual limitations we have. That blue-out phenomenon affects them same way it does us. Imagine it like a circle surrounding you. Anything outside the circle can't _see_ you and you can't see anything beyond the perimeter. You can catch glimpses of the sharks as they pass through it to have a look for themselves.
Thing to do at that moment is inflate the orange sausages and float 'em. When the boats come back get your fat-ass the fuck out of the water in a damned hurry. It's the one time (as a safety) that I get out of the water first ... 'cause I wanna make damn sure nobody dilly-dallies on the steps. Everyone (and their heavy-assed equipment) is pretty much yanked by the elbow right the Hell out of the water.
I can tell ya after decades of diving, I've never seen a critter leave a mess behind after finishing its meal. So, if you won't fit into its stomach, it'll probably leave you alone. When something like those pelagics are hunting in packs, it makes for a different equation.
Pro tip: You almost never see the shark that gets hold of you. So ... if you're diving with a knife on your calf, for the purpose of fending off a shark attack ... you're a newb. LOL