We can’t always get mad at the sharks when we get in the way of their feeding frenzy. Yesterday afternoon a tiger shark (who’s been spotted cruising Hanalei Bay the past week or so) got a little close for comfort. Reportedly a baby whale has been hanging out in the bay and a few big sharks followed it in. And supposedly the turtles were going bonkers. One of the surfers –Jim Rawlinson– had his board bit off by a large shark.” Missing was the leash, two fins and a chunk out of the tail of the surfboard, carving teeth marks approximately 1.25 inches, which supposedly translates to a 14 foot shark (every 1 inch equaling 10 feet).
Just for the record, when the shark hit his board Jim rolled off onto the sharks back. He stayed calm and realized it would be best to detach himself from the shark, which was pulling him by the leash. While the crowd scurried to the shore, 68-year-young Rawlinson, realizing he still had one fin left, continued to surf for maybe an hour and reported that he got two really good waves…. 
Since the tsunami there’s been some anomalies in the waters here, especially in regards to many deep water fishes appearing in more shallow waters (Tigers are much less common and there was even a Great White making an appearance last month); more about that soon. So will that stop the surfers from paddling out at the bay today? Doubtful…surf’s up!
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Hey, did you never read our post “Sharks, Swells & Stinky Smells“? Get on it!
Btw, the Bay WAS as busy as ever. Okay, maybe a few of us kept our feet up but everyone was out there!
