Dive Review of Great White Adventures in
Mexico (Western)/Guadalupe Island

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Great White Adventures, Sep, 2004, by Tim Nugent, CA, USA . Report 2092.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Guadalupe Island, 100+ miles off the Pacific coast of Mexico, and about 200+ miles south of San Diego holds several world records for spearfishing - primarily large tuna. However, it has also been the site of several shark attacks on spearfishermen. Our boat was organized by Mauricio Handler, an UWP out of the Carribean, and several of his colleagues. The level of photography knowledge was very high, and learning was contagious. The tour operator was Lawrence Groth, owner of Great White Adventures. The boat was the Searcher; a long range fishing boat out of San Diego. This was a spectacular trip. Nothing but white sharks. Up close and in your face - touching distance from the cage, but really not advised. Sharks ranged from 8' to 14'. Not one dive was made without multiple sightings. The boat is 95' long, and while we were in cages off the transom, we could clearly see the anchor line off the bow. Excellent visibility, although with their countershading, the sharks could get to within 50'~75' of us before they were spotted. Divers rotated through the cages; one hour in, one hour out. By noon of the 2nd day, people began to spend more time in the salon, so cage space freed up and we ended up getting a lot of time in the water. One thing Lawrence has done differently than the other operators is to develop a 3rd cage, a deep cage. This cage is 4'x4'x 8' deep. It is lowered 20' under the boat, and you are free to stand on top of the cage and film the sharks as they pass (very closely) overhead, to your side and beneath you. Only one diver and the safety diver at a time in the deep cage, oriented back-to-back, both keeping a sharp lookout for curious sharks. There were plenty. Lawrence has been doing this for a few years, and it is obvious that he is well prepared. Plenty of tuna in the hold for bait, plenty of food and beer for us. He even has an underwater speaker blasting tunes out underwater to pass the time. The sharks appear to be more interested in classic rock and come in closer. Highlight of the trip was being in the deep cage with my safety diver, Scott Davis (one of the great white researchers that occasionally shows up on Discovery channel during Shark Week) and having 8 large white sharks swimming right around us as we stood on top of the cage filming everything. Even Scott agreed that was pretty hairy. This trip is a must do again & again. Guadalupe is the premier white shark destination in the world, bar none.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Worldwide.
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, dry	Seas	calm, noCurrents
Water Temp	70-70°F / 21-21°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	100-150 Ft/ 30-46 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	?
Enforced diving restrictions	Stay inside the cage.
Liveaboard?	yes	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	None	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	Everything we needed. A boat of 16 professional and advanced amateur photographers filming white sharks. There were probably 50 cameras on board, and the crew was good at identifying and passing down your next rig, while rinsing and putting away your spent camera.

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Dive Review of Great White Adventures in Mexico (Western)/Guadalupe Island

Great White Adventures, Sep, 2004,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Great White Adventures in
Mexico (Western)/Guadalupe Island