Transpac Blog II-7
Man Overboard II: Sharks.

You've fallen overboard, the Psyche is gone from view. You are on the verge of panic. You begin to recall all you know about sharks.

Sharks. These things give EVERYBODY nightmares. How unlikely it is, in our industrial world, to be seriously considered as lunch. Yet there is a decent possibility that any snorkeller in any out-of-the-way tropical marine setting will get this experience. I've never been seriously threatened by a shark. My worst experience was a snorkel around a semi-sunken volcano crater in the Galapagos Islands, called the devil's crown. A friend and I had been invited to join my parents on their boat Compadre. We were snorkeling around the outside of the crater in 50 feet of very clear water. Big fish, lots of species, volcanic beauty. Then, at the very bottom there came into view a line of a dozen hammerhead sharks, 6-10 feet each. Very impressive; they were swimming single file. It reminded me of the dance in West-side story. "When you're a Jet you’re a Jet all the way from the…" These guys were totally in charge. My friend and I closed ranks. We both had pretty puny broom poles with spearheads on their ends. Suddenly the biggest shark veered away from the line and came RIGHT AT US! I pointed my legs and puny spear-head right at him, but on he came. Then about 15 feet from us, he suddenly veered back down and rejoined his line at the bottom. The rest of the dive was pretty jumpy. I spent a lot of time doing quick 360 degree surveys of the surroundings.

http://www.maneatingsharks.com/Hammerhead_Sharks.htm
I once got to be friends with a South African, Bobby Fridjon. He was a competitive free-diver, and in South Africa, that's a pretty macho thing to be. South Africa has lots of sharks, and competitive free-divers swim with them every day. Each shark seems to have its own personality, and now and then, one of them wants to eat you and the fish you just speared. The shark comes right at you. Bobby told us how you're supposed to carry a little explosive-loaded "shark-banger" with you as you descend to spear a fish. When a rogue shark comes at you, you discharge the banger on its nose. He said the shark banger really works, but the whole operation scares the shit out of you. Usually, he says, the sharks don't really bother you, but sometimes they do.

Shark Sticks