Tiger Sharks!

Deep in my sleep I hear that voice again. Just like on some of my night dives those words echo in my head - "Laz! Laz!" Jimmy's voice repeats. Thinking that I am just dreaming I disregard it at first then I hear it again, "Laz.. Wake up!" My eyes slowly open and take in the morning light. Standing in front of my bunk is Jimmy, wide awake and as energetic as ever. Trying to speak out a full sentence, my mouth mumbles "Whauuu?" Jimmy response, "Go outside!" and quickly leaves before explaining further.

Groggy-eyed and still with my morning Buckwheat hair, I stumble out of my top bunk and up the stairs. Opening the door that leads to the dive deck, I am temporarily blinded by the bright sun. As I slowly regain my vision I see Capt. Mike with a rope in his hands. On the other end some 50 feet away is a bright-white float and a dead fish floating in the water.

Slowly focusing on the white float an enormous head comes out of the water. The sight of its blunt square-shaped head, its deep dark eyes, an impressive row of teeth, and its enormous size awakens me like the sound of a locomotive horn. "Holy s*&@!" are the only words my mind can muster.

An enormous Tiger Shark! Chasing the dead fish carcass, Capt. Mike barely pulls the line away from the Tiger Shark's gapping mouth. The Tiger Shark continues to slowly chase the fish carcass. A few seconds later it disappears.

With everyone scanning the horizon, another Tiger shark is spotted. Smaller in size but still as impressive. It goes for the floating bait as well.

A few brave souls suit up, grab their cameras and head for the sandy bottom 20 feet below. Once again questioning my sanity, I stall a bit before going into the water. One look at Little Geek, my underwater camera, and I knew it would be no match for a close encounter with a ~12ft. Tiger Shark. My underwater camera would probably get caught in between the gap in its teeth like a strawberry seed in a person's mouth.

Without giving it too much thought, into the water I go. Right away I can see Andy Sallmon at some distance from me. My old chameleon eyes go into operation. I spin my head around like an owl. All the while my imagination plays tricks on me. Envisioning large dark shadows at the corners of my vision, I have to do a double take to realize nothing is there. I wonder what everyone back on the boat is seeing.

My only signal from the surface is watching the line carrying the fish carcass straighten up. Then it happens! Anxiously my heart races in anticipation of what is following it. I lift my camera up to my face and off to the side I can see it coming. The vertical bands alongside its body and its piercing dark eyes make its identification clear - a Tiger Shark! My first Tiger Shark encounter I happily remind myself. My camera's auto focus struggles to lock before the Tiger Shark slowly swims away.

Again and again both Tiger Sharks make their appearance but always from a distance. After a while they stop passing by and a couple of us turn to shell collecting (Yeah, I'm getting my head examined). Swimming back up to the boat, we decide to get back in the water and try to snorkel with the Tiger Sharks in hopes of them coming in closer.

Staying near the bait line, but not too close to the bait, I anxiously scan the water around me. I can hear some of the folks back on the boat screaming, "It's coming from your right!" In sync, like a group of soldiers, our heads promptly turn in that direction.

The Tiger Shark makes a closer pass. I dive down and attempt to swim parallel with it while taking a few photographs. Over and over again the smaller of the two Tiger Sharks appears, never quite coming in for a close encounter of the photographer's kind.

After a while the Tiger Sharks lose their interest and leave the area but not without leaving a group of divers and some on-lookers with some amazing stories of their Tiger Shark encounter.

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