A young Aussie has had a terrifying encounter with a great white shark off the NSW mid-north coast while fishing on a kayak. And miraculously, the whole thing was caught on drone footage.
Matthew Smith was fishing off the coast of Black Head Beach when a 4-metre great white approached him. This truly is one of those “you’re gonna need a bigger boat” moments.
“I just looked next to me and the shark was just gliding past, looking straight at me,” Smith told 9News.
Smith explained how the shark circled his kayak before turning sharply towards him, as if it were going to attack.
“I did think that I was probably going to die,” he said.
Throughout the footage, he literally just yells “holy shit, holy shit” and “no, no, fuck off”, which is definitely the appropriate reaction in this situation.
But while Smith was fearing for his life, his mate Nick O’Brien had to helplessly watch vis live drone footage, unable to actually do anything.
“I just sort of started worrying, thinking, oh, hopefully this goes alright,” his friend said.
Thankfully, the apex predator was more interested in the anchor than Matthew, and quickly lost interest after he threw it overboard.
“Fucking have it,” he says as he throws the anchor overboard.
But if you thought a near-miss with a great white was going to keep him out of the water, think again because Smith reckons this is just an excuse to upgrade to a bigger boat for future adventures.
“The tinny might get wet for the next couple of weeks and the kayak might stay in the shed,” he said.”
The terrifying encounter marks what has been the worst year in shark attacks in over a decade, with scientists blaming colder water temperatures for the increase in activity.
It goes without saying that we’re a visitor in the sharks’ home, and should respect them as such. But if you’ll excuse me, I might stick to the shore for the time being.
