SHARK ROUTE:

Sardine Run 2011

2011-06-10T23:07:00.000-07:00

The Blue Wilderness teams on Sardine Run 2011 had an epic first ten days. For the full report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

Allen Walker loves beer!

2010-09-01T00:57:00.000-07:00

Allen Walker took the pictures of the Wallabies at Shark Park yesterday. While editing he had some fun!!!

Wallabies visit Shark Park

2010-09-01T00:30:00.000-07:00

The Wallabies had a great day at Shark Park yesterday and fun was had by all.

On a more sombre not a baby Humpback Whale who was visibly in trouble from Sunday washed up in the same location yesterday and had to be euthanaised.

Blue Wilderness teams back from almost five months on the road!

2010-08-16T01:16:00.000-07:00

The team at Blue Wilderness are back home after nearly five months on the road - or in our case literlally at sea!

The team have been involved in various expeditions and films. These projects have ranged from a jetski expedition around the coast of South Africa in order to raise funds and awareness for cancer. This project was undertaken for Cancer South Africa and sponsored by Acer Computers and Spar as well as many other fantastic and willing partners. The team have travelled from Capetown to Bassas da India on various film projects and research initiatives. The orphans day at Shark Park was a highlight for Blue Wilderness and the participation of the Shark Angels gave the kids huge insight and inspiration for the the future. The highlight of the day was the shark dive with the sharks of Shark Park with the Shark Angels team headed by Julie Andersen.

Sharksboard declare war on Sardine Run 2010!!

2010-03-18T10:19:00.000-07:00

Sharksboard have declared war on Sardine Run 2010 by buying more nets and using additional boats to kill sharks over the World Cup showpiece. This flies in the face of South Africa's Tourism authority who added sharks and whales to South Africa's terrestrial "Big Five" last year in an effort to encourage tourists to the soccer showpiece to view South Africa's marine splendour. Sharksboard will kill thousands of sharks, rays and dolphins that follow the sardine shoals at this time of year if they don't take out their nets and drumlines. Public pressure has forced them to do this in the past but they seem hell bent on circumventing the public to continue their murderous spree for financial gain.

To make a difference go to www.removethenets.com and make your voice heard.

Shark Route teams still getting blown about!

2010-03-02T10:44:00.000-08:00

The Shark Route teams in the Cape have been blasted by the late south easterly winds and are having a torrid time. The teams at Shark Park have fared better and record setting freedive instructor Hanli Prinsloo is back conducting her freedive courses. The freedive crew had a phenomenal day with tiger, blacktip and a lone bull shark.

Shark Route teams get blown off water but Shark Park rocks!

2010-02-22T10:11:00.000-08:00

The teams on Shark Route have had some good diving when conditions have allowed but have also suffered at the hands of big winds. Their Shark Park counterparts have been spoiled with an endless string of whale shark sightings.

Shark Park teams have a great December of diving with the Sharks of Shark Park:

2010-01-03T23:16:00.000-08:00

The Shark Park teams mourned the loss of a member of the "Tiger Tribe" on Boxing day but have had amazing diving none the less. See there full report at http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/

Christmas and another of our Tiger Tribe dies and unnecessary and violent death:

2009-12-26T10:51:00.000-08:00

Another tiger shark was caught in the Scottburgh shark nets. For the report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/

Shark park teams struggle with conditions but the stars keep rolling in!

2009-11-25T08:22:00.000-08:00

The team at Shark Park have played host to a number of natural history celebrities again but conditions have meant that the going has been tough. See their full report on http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/

SharkPark teams host VIP's and Shark Route teams wait for Chokka spawning conditions to improve:

2009-11-19T02:00:00.000-08:00

The teams at Shark Park have had a great time with some VIP clients. See the report at http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/ . The SharkRoute teams are battling with poor conditions for the Chokka Squid spawning event in the eastern Cape. Hopefully things will improve and the teams will make some headway. At the close of season things were looking very good but the subsequent weather has put paid to a bumper diving season so far.

Blue Wilderness team in Europe and the U.K. - like fish out of water!

2009-10-26T23:36:00.000-07:00

The Blue Wilderness team of Mark and Gail Addison were hosted by Steven van de Voorde and his amazing team from Wild Water in Belgium last week. Steve and his wife, Elke, were amazing and made the trip an incredible experience for us. The talk at the Aquatopia Aquarium in Antwerp was a highlight but many of the sites Steve and his team took us to were incredible - Belgium rocks. Special thanks to other members of Steve's team - Francois and Bert among others - for making this a truly memorable trip and a great experience.

After a brief cup of coffee with legendary freediver Fred Buyle at the Brussels airport we were off to the Birmingham Dive Show. The show organisers, Diver Magazine, did an absolutely amazing job and the show was a huge success. I spoke to exhibitors and visitors alike and everyone was impressed and the vibe was incredible.

The highlight of the trip was undoubtedly the speech by living legend Captain Paul Watson of Sea Shepherd. The Captain delivered another inspirational and passionate speech which galvanised the audience into action and hopefully this man's valuable work will continue apace - there is no doubt the oceans and its inhabitants need him to succeed.

The Shark Park teams celebrate Billy Bates' birthday with the Blacktip Pack:

2009-10-13T10:07:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park have had some good diving despite the windy conditions experienced at this time of year. The team went out on Saturday to celebrate Billy Bates' birthday for more on this see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

KZN Sharksboard continue the killing as Sardines make their way back south

2009-09-07T12:48:00.000-07:00

The KZN Sharksboard killed two Great White Sharks in two days last week as the sardines made a welcome return to the KZN coast on their way back south.

The two white sharks (4.4m and 2.8m respectively) were killed by KZN Sharksboard fishing gear at Zinkwazi beach. A needless slaughter of this critically endangered species.

Shark Park has some good weather and good sharks

2009-09-01T06:02:00.001-07:00

The team at Shark Park have been busy and have had some good diving. The weather is certainly better than at the same time last year. To see what the team have been up to see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com .

Shark Route teams back from Sardine Run 2009

2009-07-22T00:31:00.000-07:00

The Blue Wilderness Shark Route teams on Sardine Run 2009 are back at Shark Park. The teams had a tough year trying to find and follow the sardines. The biomass is clearly down and thus only small pockets of sardines showed along the East Coast and although this was dissappointing from a general point of view the experiences were intense and the predation on the small pockets of sardines incredible.

Shark Route teams on Sardine Run 2009 meet the whales!

2009-07-09T10:36:00.000-07:00

The team from Blue Wilderness had a great day with the Brydes whales on Sardine Run 2009. The "Goodwill Camera" captured the action!

Shark Route teams have a ballistic sardine day!

2009-06-23T22:39:00.000-07:00

The teams on Blue Wilderness's Sardine Run 2009 had an incredible day yesterday with phenomenal baitball action. The baitballs were being smashed by dolphin, seals, sharks and up to five Bryde's whales at one time. The visibility was between three and five metres but the action more than made up for this.

The wind has hit us this morning and it looks like a day to get cameras ready for the action to come.

Shark Route teams host Carte Blanche team at Sardine Run 2009:

2009-06-20T00:32:00.000-07:00

The team on Sardine Run 2009 had the privilege of hosting the Carte Blanche team headed by Derek Watts this past week. The team managed to get some great footage and hopefully this will contribute to a quality piece for the multi-award winning Carte Blanche team.

The activity has been slow for the past two days and we are all still waiting for the push by the bigger shoals of sardines through the Hamburg area. Despite a flurry of very small mixed shoals of sardines and red eye in the north eastern Transkei area from Port St. Johns to Mtentu for a day things have yet again gone very quiet along the entire north eastern Transkei coast. At the very least this fits the pattern of 2004 when the sardines only got there on the 24th June.

As we sit at the gateway to the Sardine Run out of East London we are certainly hoping for some major action soon!

Sardine Run 2009 hots up after a few quiet days!

2009-06-17T07:08:00.000-07:00

The team on Shark Route have had good sardine action today after a few quiets days. The big action still appears to be to the west of East London. Mark Van Coller took these great pictures.

Shark Route teams still on big sardine action!

2009-06-13T22:21:00.001-07:00

The Blue Wilderness teams on Sardine Run had another massive day yesterday with phenomenal sardine and predator action.

Shark Route teams have a day of Sardines like never before!

2009-06-12T06:33:00.000-07:00

The Shark Route teams on Sardine Run 2009 had an incredible day today with the sardine activity finaly starting to push through East London. The teams had bait balls de luxe today. The usual culprits were in evidence: sardines, gannets, sharks, dolphins and Brydes whales. The team have been busy all day and are still not back.
I will update more fully after the evening war council tonight.

Shark Park teams have a fun day with Springbok Rugby team and a whale carcass:

2009-06-10T10:04:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park have had a good day with the Springbok Rugby team. The team enjoyed the sharks and had an enormous amount of fun.

Late this afternoon the Shark Park team got a call out to a dead Humpback whale carcass which should offer some excitement for tomorrow.

The Sardine teams are still waiting for the sardines to move from the Port Alfred area but are otherwise filling in time with the dolphin and whale species to be seen on the coast at this time of year.

Shark Route teams hit it BIG on Sardine Run 2009

2009-06-08T10:50:00.001-07:00

The Blue Wilderness teams on Sardine Run had an awesome day today with a pod of eight orcas feeding on common dolphin. The orcas were competing with the dusky sharks for their meal. Blue Wilderness staff member Steve Benjamin took the pictures and guided his team inwater on this amazing experience.

The Hoff Rocks Shark Park!

2009-06-04T11:22:00.000-07:00

Actor and adventurer extraordinaire - David Hasselhoff - rocked Shark Park this week as he made a forceful statement to end shark fining around the world.

The Hoff had a great time and for the full report check out http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/

The Sardines are in the vicinity of East London and the Shark Route teams leave tomorrow to get Sardine Run 2009 underway.

Sardine action still way south!

2009-05-27T21:29:00.000-07:00

The only confirmed sardine action is still way south. The action is slowly working its way to East London and with the pending cold front it will be interesting to see if it gets a welcome assist to help it along.

The Goodwill Camera strikes at Shark Park:

2009-05-11T21:35:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park had a phenomenal day yesterday and had four species of shark around them at one time, racking up an impressive five species for the day. For the full report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/ .

Sardines on the move!

2009-05-08T08:58:00.000-07:00

The first reports of small pilot shoals of sardines from the Coffee Bay area were reported last week and most of the activity is still south of Port Alfred. Things are definitely on the move and we are looking at a first week in June start for our Shark Route teams.

Shark Park teams in the peak of shark season while Shark Route discover new locations in Mozambique:

2009-04-27T07:19:00.000-07:00

The Shark Park teams have had some great diving and you can see their report at http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

The Shark Route team had a fantastic trip to Mozamabique to do some diving on the Africa Banks. The team were hosted by the developers at Mahangate (www.mahangate.co.za) and were priviledged to spend some time with the fantastic sharks that live in and around the area. We had a variety of shark species and even a bow mouth guitar shark. The reef diving was excellent and fish life not only prolific but very diverse. Athough this is not an established dive site yet there is more than enough potential for it to become one of the finest in Mozambique!

Shark Park rocks and Sardine activity reports coming in:

2009-04-08T08:14:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park are having phenomenal diving at the moment. For their report check out http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com . The reports are filtering in from the southern coast. Reports from Coffee Bay indicate about 5 000 gannets and 2000 common dolphin were very active. Good reports of sardines from Mossel Bay to St. Francis Bay have been filtering through. There has also been some good activity in the East London area over the last month. Hopefully this bodes well for a bumper sardine run.

Shark Park teams having a great time and the sardines are on the move!

2009-04-01T04:47:00.000-07:00

The teams at Shark Park have been aving a great time with fantastic visibility and awesome sharks. The good news for prospective Shark Route clients on Sardine Run 2009 is that a massive biomass has moved into the area between Mossel Bay and Cape St. Francis. This bodes well for the upcoming event. Watch this space for more updates.

Shark Route teams end a tough but successful season on the road and Shark Park is rocking!

2009-03-29T08:13:00.001-07:00

The Shark Route teams have finished their activities in the south with some success. The teams had to get over the worst visibility in five years but all told the team have added cow sharks to the original species hit list and ended with 16 species in total.
The teams are back at Shark Park to catch their breath and have had phenomenal blacktip and tiger sightings in awesome visibility.

Wolfgang Leander is diagnosed with stomach cancer and our thoughts are with him!

2009-03-18T23:12:00.000-07:00

The Old Wolf has been diagnosed with stomach cancer and will be operated on immediately. We at Blue Wilderness are deeply saddened to hear this and wish The Old Wolf and his family well over this trying time. Wolgang's passion for sharks and endless effort to save them has known no bounds and we certainly hope and pray that he will make a full recovery and be back in the water soon.

Shark Route teams battle the elements and get some reward:

2009-03-17T02:40:00.000-07:00

The teams on Shark Route have had to battle the elements for nearly two months now as the weather and water cycle is turned on it head along the entire east coast of South Africa. Nonetheless the good spirited clients have taken the little reward on offer and returned some excellent results.

Sijmon De Waal's pictures (above) are testimony to this.

On a sad note however we hope that Wolfgang Leander gets well soon. The Old Wolf was about to board the plane on his annual pilgrimage to South Africa to dive with all of the sharks of our coast when he took ill. Get well soon the Old Wolf!

Shark Route team has a great day off Cape Point:

2009-03-09T08:48:00.000-07:00

The Shark Route team in the south had a fantastic day in the area around Cape Point. The team saw a yellowfin tuna, shoals of longfin tuna, a marlin, a blue shark, a sperm whale, hundreds of common dolphin and more than a few seals.
The teams have been hampered by poor visibility and yet have still had some remarkable sightings.

Strange days indeed!

2009-03-03T08:58:00.000-08:00

Shark Route teams battle the elements but find some strange things!

2009-03-03T08:38:00.000-08:00

The Shark Route teams are fighting the weather in the south and we hope things recover for them soon. Although they have received a weather beating they have still seen some unique things other than the wide range of sharks on offer in the area. A yellow bellied sea snake was a visitor on one day and then unfortunately on an enforced down day yesterday the intrepid team went to the caves at Arniston and found two dead beaked whales.

Shark Route teams experience the highs and lows of the South African coasts weather systems but still have great diving and good sharks

2009-02-25T20:33:00.000-08:00

The Blue Wilderness Shark Route teams are spread over the length of South Africa's East Coast and although they are battling the weather and water the sharks have been phenomenal. The southern teams have had baitballs with copper and dusky sharks, great endemic shark sightings and even a yellow bellied seasnake. The northern teams have had great raggies and a solitary whaleshark as well as several species of reef shark.

Shark Route teams on the move again!

2009-02-19T07:51:00.000-08:00

The Blue Wilderness Shark Route teams are fanning out across the country again to see how many species of shark they can rack up on their Cape to Kosi back Shark Route Epic.

Shark Route teams racking up the species on their Cape to Kosi Bay spectacular:

2009-02-09T07:05:00.000-08:00

The Shark Route teams have been travelling the length of the country to rack up as many shark species as possible. The Sub Parma group have had tough conditions but have already racked up ten species in just six days. The team are currently at Sodwana and whilst hoping for whale sharks they had a chance encounter with a Great White.

The species seen so far include: White, Tiger, Bull, Raggie, Blacktip, Dusky, Scalloped Hammerhead, Copper, spotted gully, smooth hound, striped catshark, leopard cat shark, puffadder shyshark. We are still well short of our total but moving ever closer.

The team hope to get a whale shark tomorrow.

Shark Route teams have a slow start!

2009-01-26T23:23:00.001-08:00

The Shark Route teams have had a slow start in the south with the sighting of a solitary Hammerhead and a handful of Raggies. The weather is set to improve on the weekend and this should see the teams back in sharks. The fishermen have reported big numbers of Duskies, Mako's and Copper sharks on the 12-mile bank in very clean and warm water.

Belgian Adventurer Marc Sluszny has fun at Shark Park!

2009-01-22T20:36:00.000-08:00

The team at Shark Park have been having a great time with Belgian Adventurer Marc Sluszny. Marc's accomplishments are many and diverse in all sports but hopefully his biggest contribution yet will be in the realm of shark conservation and education.

The Shark route teams are on location and in the next few days regular updates will fature on this blog. Watch this space.

Intrepid Adventurer Marc Sluszny visits Shark Park!

2009-01-22T20:27:00.000-08:00

The team at Shark Park have been working with Belgian adventurer Marc Sluszny for the past few days. Marc is doing a film on his adventures with sharks. His previous exploits are many and varied but encompass a diverse range of sports from tennis (Davis Cup), motor racing, bungee jumping, BASE jumping, Skysurfing, mountaineering ... you name it and Marc has done it at the highest level - and a great guy to boot!

We have had between two and five tigers, a bull shark and between 20 and 60 blacktips. The visibility has dropped steadily over the last two days but the activity has been fantastic. We have one more day at Shark Park with Marc and then we are off on the Shark Route to show him the other sharks of the east coast of Africa!

Shark Route teams hit the road!

2009-01-19T20:35:00.000-08:00

The summer shark season is upon us and the Shark Route teams are leaving in the next 48 hours for the various summer locations where we expect to rack up a grand total of at least twenty species of shark from the Cape to Kosi Bay this season.

Shark Route gears up for summer of the shark!

2009-01-14T19:55:00.001-08:00

The Shark Park team have been really busy of late and shark sightings are extremely good at the moment not to mention conditions. See their reports at http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

Meanwhile we are preparing for our travels away - both north and south - over the coming months. The team will have some exciting news and pictures to update you with so watch this space.

Blue Wilderness staff find a dead raggie in the shark nets:

2008-12-22T09:52:00.000-08:00

Blue Wilderness staff member Steve Benjamin found a dead female raggie in the shark nets whilst out on an educational trip with a group of school children. We phoned the manager of the Aliwal Shoal Marine Protected Area who in turn notified Sharksboard that they had killed another harmless shark - one of almost 10 000 raggies killed since meshing began.

Shark Park sees in the summer:

2008-12-08T00:04:00.000-08:00

The summer at Shark Park seems to have finally shown its face. For a full report on the activities at Shark Park see: http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

Amazing days at Shark Park:

2008-12-01T05:00:00.001-08:00

The teams at Shark Park have had an amazing few days. Paraplegic ex-rugby star Cedric Mkhize achieved the impossible with a dive to 26.4m with the sharks of Shark Park. This is an amazing feat and has never been attempted before. All this on his first trip to sea and no assistance in the water. To read more about this amazing event please see the report on http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/

Shark route team back from the Squid-Spawning in St. Francis!

2008-11-26T09:39:00.000-08:00

The Shark Route team have returned from St. Francis Bay after trying to follow the seasonal peak in squid spawning during the closed season for fishing. The trip failed to observe the squid spawning due to a number of environmental factors but we did have a lot of fun with the endemic cat sharks. Thanks to Faunce, Jane, Paul and Charles Maxwell for their patience and effort to track the elusive squid.

The Shark Park teams are having a great time and are taking ex rugby star and now unfortunately paraplegic Cedric Mkhize to freedive with the sharks of Shark Park. For their report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

More pictures of Sharksboards murderous killing spree:

2008-11-14T20:42:00.000-08:00

Pictures from yesterday's Sharksboard's killing fields:

2008-11-14T20:40:00.000-08:00

Sharksboard kill four sharks today:

2008-11-14T11:45:00.000-08:00

The Sharksboard killing continued today with the unnecessary death of four tiger sharks. Blue Wilderness staff member Steve Benjamin and http://www.sharksavers.org/ Julie Andersen tried to revive one animal but were unsuccessful. Sharksboard hid two of the sharks under life jackets and nets but this one they left on the beach for hours.

Sharksboard killing continues with eath of two tiger sharks in the Aliwal Shoal MPA today.

2008-11-13T21:28:00.000-08:00

The Sharksboard needlessly killed two more tiger sharks in the Aliwal Shoal MPA today. The Sharksboard covered the sharks with life jackets and nets in order to avoid public scrutiny. The Sharksboard staff physically restrained our staff memeber, Steven Benjamin, from taking pictures.

KZN Sharksboard killing spree continues!

2008-11-12T09:37:00.000-08:00

The Natal Sharksboard continued their killing spree with a turtle and tiger shark on Tuesday. The tiger was most probably trying to scavenge on the turtle and got itself caught.

Shark Route Team arrives safely in St. Francis Bay for the Chokka-squid spawning:

2008-11-10T20:46:00.000-08:00

The Blue Wilderness Shark Route team arrived safely in St. Francis for the annual Chokka-squid closed fishing season. This seasonal spawning peak allows for some exciting diving with the spawning squid and their associated predators. On arrival the team were having tea with top marine predator scientist Dr. Malcolm Smale. Malcolm was called to the beach to do an autopsy on a female ragged tooth shark that had been fished by an angler and left to die on the rocks. Malcolm found that the female ragged tooth had been tagged in KZN and had dropped her litter of two pups. This was the only good news as the shark was now dead and the fisherman's trace was still tangled in her gut.

The team will be out on the water later today to search for the squid egg beds. A frontal system hangs over us so it looks to be a tough day ahead.

Shark Park has a good week and Shark Route teams getting ready for annual squid spawning:

2008-11-02T23:36:00.000-08:00

The teams at Shark Park have had a good week. For their full report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/ . The Shark Route team is preparing to leave for St.Francis Bay for the annual squid spawning event this week. Watch this space for updates on Chokka Squid 2008.

Shark Park team have a good day!

2008-10-24T04:15:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park had a tiger, 30 blacktips and 10 duskies today. Visibility was in the region of 15m and water temperature a shade over 22 celsius. The conditions look to be on the mend and hopefully we can expect more of the same going forward.

Bad News!

2008-10-21T06:31:00.001-07:00

The team at Shark Park were confronted with the terrible news that a female and male tiger were killed in the shark nets this morning. Staff member Steve Benjamin took the pictures and then went to sea with the rest of the Shark Park team only to find another female tiger shark in the nets. Steve cut her free and then swam her to resuscitate her. She did swim off on her own but we hope that she is strong enough to survive.

This unnecessary and institutionalised slaughter of the sharks by Sharksboard has to stop.

Team USA and Team SA swimmers have fun at Shark Park:

2008-10-21T04:37:00.001-07:00

The team at Shark Park hosted members of the Team USA and Team SA swimmers from the recent FINA championships in Durban. South African swimming legend Ryk Neethling set the day up and Team SA swimmers: Samantha Dry, Chanelle Van Wyk and Yolana Du Plessis as well as Team USA swimmers: Peter Marshall, Randll Bal and Kicker Vencil took part. We would like to thank these great athletes for giving sharks a chance and for the great spirit on a day which offered little other than 30 blacktips and 10 duskies. The wind, visibility and sea surface conditions were decidedly poor but these fun people soldiered on regardless. Thanks guys!

Finally tiger shark returns to Shark Park!

2008-10-20T07:45:00.000-07:00

The weekend heralded the first tiger sighting at Shark Park since the 29th August. The teams were treated to some great shark activity and the tiger was a highlight.

Visibility and temperature returns to Shark Park:

2008-10-13T02:19:00.001-07:00

The team at Shark Park had a welcome rise in water temperature to 22 celsius on Sunday. There is a warm pulse of 24 celsius on its way and this should bode well for the Tiger Tribe. For their full report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/ . The Shark Route teams are watching oceanographic developments in the Eastern Cape with a view to the upcoming Squid Spawning season. Watch this space for more details.

The pictures from the last week are in!

2008-10-05T09:48:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park have battled the weather but finally the water has come good with visibility between 15m and 30m. The pics are taken with an old Nikonos V - since the "Goodwill Camera" donated by Jon Cooper got eaten by one of the tiger tribe last year.

Visibility and great raggies at Shark Park!

2008-09-29T07:37:00.000-07:00

The visibility has steadily improved at Shark Park and was in excess of 30m today. The raggies were phenomenal and the team swam with approximately 50 at one site alone. For the full report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

Shark Park team back in clean water with Legendary Freediver Hanli Prinsloo!

2008-09-27T22:55:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park were back on the water on Friday with some excellent visibility. The water was still too cold for Tigers but the ever increasing numbers of Duskies and the ever present Blacktips were great fun. the team also encountered a Southern Right cow calf pair and a playful pod of dolphins.

Resident scientist and shark guide Steve Benjamin has been hard at work in the downtime creating identikits of our sharks and guides to help our clients:

Shark Park hammered by big seas:

2008-09-23T07:27:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park have been sidelined by big seas and strong winds. The forecast going forward is better but the warm water still seems a way off. A three day period over the past weekend delivered warm (22c)water and 25m+ visibility. This was short lived, however ,when the big seas and north easterly winds got hold of the ocean it has been reduced to 20 celsius and 5m visibility.

Shark Park teams battle cold water but still great shark activity!

2008-09-16T22:36:00.000-07:00

The teams at Shark Park have been battling with cold water and poor visibility but they have had great interactions with Blacktips and Duskies. The firt hammerheads of the season popped in for a visit yesterday and the team are still on the lookout for a small tiger for the uShaka Marine World facility. See their full report at http://sharkroute.blogspot.com

Shark Park teams have good dusky and blacktip days!

2008-09-08T03:53:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park have had some torrid wind and sea conditions to contend with but the ever increasing dusky numbers and ever present blacktips are still a huge drawcard. Visibility at Shark Park has been between 5m and 15m. The water temps have been on the low side and this has been one of the contributory factors to the low frequency of tiger sightings.

Shark Park not just sharks there are wrecks too!

2008-09-02T05:22:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park took some time off to enjoy a dive on the M.V. Produce wreck. Gail got some reasonable pictures and as the conditions were reasonable it turned out to be quite a good dive.

There are huge Brindle Bass which live in the wreck and they certainly make for a spectacular dive.

Bollywood has fun at Shark Park:

2008-09-01T01:06:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park have had some great fun of late with a number of fun activities at Shark Park. For their full report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

The team at Blue Wilderness wishes to congratulate Hanli Prinsloo on shattering a number of S.A. Freediving records! Hanli will be offering freediving courses at Shark Park in September and will be an integral part of our Shark Route planning in 2009. Hanli has single handedly grown the base of freediving in South Africa and is destined for great things. to find out more about these products or how you could meet Hanli contact Gail: info@bluewilderness.co.za

Raggies still entertaining all at Shark Park!

2008-08-27T02:46:00.000-07:00

Shark Park gearing up for big Bollywood shoot!

2008-08-27T02:28:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park are gearing up for a high energy Bollywood shoot. The welcome return of Sijmon De Waal to Shark Park to help out yesterday was a great bonus. The team had a good day with a tiger, 20 blacktips and 3 duskies. For a full report see http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com

Team at Shark Park getting the "Tiger Tribe" identification manuals updated:

2008-08-19T23:51:00.001-07:00

The team at Shark Park have been hard at work updating the "Tiger Tribe" file and the data is looking good.

Raggie Days at Shark Park!

2008-08-14T03:51:00.000-07:00

Team at Shark Park having good diving!

2008-08-12T07:03:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park have had some great diving although the tiger shark action has been slow. See their report at http://sharkparksa.blogspot.com/ .

Crocs underwater move easily in the current!

2008-08-05T10:27:00.001-07:00

Some pics from the Okavango Underwater!

2008-08-05T10:22:00.000-07:00

The Blue Wilderness team have had a wildly exciting time with record numbers of raggies at Aliwal and a remarkable trip to the Okavango. Some of the pics of the crocs underwater are included for perusal.

Up close and personal with Hippocam!

2008-07-28T09:41:00.000-07:00

Our brave remote boat approaches hippo pod!

2008-07-28T09:38:00.001-07:00

Blue Wilderness returns from diving the Okavango Delta!

2008-07-28T02:03:00.000-07:00

The team at Blue Wilderness had the pleasure of spending time in the Okavango Delta diving and generally having fun with a group of divers lead by Tony White. The team were charged by lion, chased by hippo and had some memorable dives. Using remote devices they tried to get some pictures of hippo but failed. The learning curve continues!! At least they didn't eat the camera's of Julie Andersen and Pete Wieldon. Some pics will be loaded later today! The crocs were a little elusive due to strong winds and a phenomenal amount of water in the floodplain this year but we did have some inwater success. A short feature of our trip will air on www.theunderwaterchannel.tv in August and should be a fun to see. A big thank you to Tony's team for a memorable trip - as always.

Shark Route teams all back on dry land and preparing for crocs and hippos in the Okavango!

2008-07-09T01:57:00.000-07:00

The teams on Shark Route following the annual Sardine Run are back at Shark Park. The BBC and Japanese filming teams were very successful but unfortunately the recreational boat load arrived in the midst of the massive storm that hit the coast and it put paid to the Sardine Run for 2008. The red eye activity that came in after the dust had settled provided some excitement for the teams but did not quite have the intensity of the sardines. A massive predator load was evident on the coast throughout and they certainly took advantage of the red eye when it was obvious there would be no more sardines..

The team are just preparing for their annual pilgrimage to the Okavango to work with the hippos and crocs.

Shark Route and Shark Park hit hard by recent torrential rains and gale force winds!

2008-06-22T22:37:00.000-07:00

The recent torrential rains and gale force winds have put paid to the good fortunes experienced by the Shark Route Sardine Run teams for the moment. The weather and water is on the mend and as of yesterday afternoon the reports of sardines were surfacing from Port Edward to Warner Beach. The predator load is still on the coast from Coffee Bay in the Transkei to Durban. Large pods of dolphin, both common and bottlenose, gannets and sharks are still hanging on the coast and hopefully a change of fortune will see the teams back on sardine action.

Shark Route teams follow the pilot shoals of sardines and get great results!

2008-06-17T02:25:00.000-07:00

The teams working on the BBC Sardine Run Production have had their hands full with the early pilot shoals of sardines. The teams have had some excellent action in quite poor visibility. The few clean days in the Port Edward area delivered enough stellar material with the netting on the Natal coast to have contributed significantly to the completion of this production. The teams are just waiting for a new target to emerge and are spread between Port St. Johns and Port Edward. The new Sardine Run teams arrive over the next two days and in the absence of any target shaols and associated activity on the coast we have had to reroute all team members to Port Edward where approximately 30 000 gannets, hundreds of bottlenose dolphins, thousands of common dolphins and hundreds of sharks await the team - and of course the sardines! The bad weather expected over the next two days will play a major role in the movements of the sardines and predators but as always we wait to see.

Shark Route teams hit the jackpot with pilot shoals of Sardines!

2008-06-12T05:43:00.000-07:00

The Shark Route teams have nearly completed filming the netting sequences and shallow water action with the pilot shoals of sardines for the BBC production "Earth's Greatest Events: Sardine Run". The teams then plan to head back into the Eastern Cape to find the main shoals and their associated predators. The pilot activity is moving very quickly and has outrun most of the predator load - except the sharks. The first shoals should be in the vicinity of Rocky Bay by tomorrow and will be a huge bonus feature for Shark Park divers on the weekend.

Shark Route team crack the pilot shoals!

2008-06-11T09:58:00.000-07:00

The Blue Wilderness Shark Route teams are chasing the pilot Sardine activity on the lower KZN coast. All of the teams had a good day and things look set to explode. The flight from East London for the helicopter team delivered great results and showed that the bulk of the activity is still around East London. The entire Eastern Cape is full of sardines and their predators at the moment.

Shark Route Teams following Sardine Run have hot news!

2008-06-09T20:05:00.000-07:00

The Blue Wilderness Shark Route teams had a fatastic day yesterday. We launched from Port St. Johns to find the pilot shoals had moved up from their position of two days ago. This meant we were in the thick of the pilot shoal activity and so were 20 000 gannets, 2000 common dolphins and many, many sharks. The news from the flight was that the main activity is still way south and with the current weather and sea temperature patterns looks to be trapped there for the foreseeable future. For the sake of tourism on the KZN coast it will be great if the pilotshoals can make it onto the coast in the next few days.

Shark Route teams head north to get some pilot shoal activity!

2008-06-07T21:43:00.000-07:00

The Shark Route teams in East London are moving to Port St. Johns to catch some of the early pilot activity heading to that stretch of coast. The aerial recon from yesterday revealed amazing activity along most of the former Transkei coast and reports from fishermen south of East London indicate more action is on its way.

Shark Route teams into some great Sardine action!

2008-06-05T07:57:00.000-07:00

The Shark Route teams are now well set up in East London and have been getting some excellent early Sardine Run action. The teams are using an array of high tech tools to capture the action. Charles Maxwell has brought up his high tech tow camera and achieved phenomenal results on his second day at sea. The BBC topside crew headed by Justin Macguire also had some great footage of surface baitball activity. The underwater team headed by Didier Noirot have got some great footage of Common Dolphin in clean water and have had some fast moving bait ball action. All in all a good start an hopefully things keep progressing well.

Kids from Scottburgh PrePrimary have fun with Blue Wilderness staff!

2008-05-26T05:22:00.000-07:00

The Blue Wilderness team held a marine educational morning at Scottburgh PrePrimary School today. Massive thanks to the kids and teachers for the opportunity and to Sponsors: Jeep, Oasis Water and educational materials from Save Our Seas (http://www.saveourseas.com/) and Shark Savers (http://www.sharksavers.org/).

The team at Shark Park have a great day and Shark Route teams preparing for next away trip - Sardine Run 2008!

2008-05-21T07:04:00.000-07:00

The team at Shark Park had a fantastic day with 6 tigers and 30 blacktips. The Shark Route teams are preparing to head off to the best reported activity on the 27th May. It is all systems go for a massive Sardine Run and we are ready to track them wherever they may be! Watch this space for updates.

SA Freediving Champion completes first Freediving courses at Shark Park!

2008-05-19T01:32:00.000-07:00

SA Freediving Champion and AIDA Freediving Instructor, Hanli Prinsloo, has completed her first freediving courses in the Aliwal Shoal MPA. Hanli instructed the staff at Blue Wilderness on the finer points of freediving. The staff all achieved personal bests with Hanli. This should translate into a safer guiding experience for clients. In future clients will be able to shed their bulky SCUBA equipment and learn the freediving skills that make for amazing interactions with marine animals.

Rupert Ormond from the Save Our Seas Foundation swims with the "Tiger Tribe" - pics by Thomas P. Peschak!

2008-05-14T09:43:00.000-07:00

Shark Route teams preparing for big Sardine Run!

2008-05-14T03:02:00.000-07:00

The Shark Route teams are preparing to host a number of film and specialist crews for the annual Sardine Run. The teams are doing their final preparations and we are hoping for a phenomenal run. Early indications are positive.

Shark Route teams battle with visibility but no shortage of activity!

2008-04-28T08:26:00.001-07:00

The Shark Route teams following the early sardine activity have had great activity but poor visibility. The second pulse of sardines has already reached East London. This bodes well for the coming months and hopefully the sardines and their predators will make it onto the KZN coast this year.

The teams on Shark Route working for their money!

2008-04-16T08:34:00.001-07:00

The Blue Wilderness Shark Route teams have been chasing the early Sardine action between St. Francis Bay and Stilbaai. Some days have delivered phenomenal surface activity but the in water visibility has been poor and thus we are still looking for high quality underwater interactions with the Brydes whales, sardines, sharks, dolphins, seals and gannets - a tall order but the Earth's Greatest Events format for the BBC NHU demands it. We have seen this activity and photographed it (Thom Peschak got the images in 2007 with us for his new book - Wild Seas Secret Shores) and hopefully will capture it on film in the next three months.

Bad weather and poor visibility holding teams back!

2008-04-07T02:30:00.000-07:00

The two teams in Plettenberg Bay for the filming of the BBC mega series "Earth's Greatest Events" have had a slow few days after a good start. The big winds and poor visibility have meant that nothing productive has been achieved in the last two days but the conditions should improve and the week ahead could deliver some eagerly awaited results.

Shark Route teams ready for filming expedition in the Eastern Cape!

2008-03-31T10:32:00.000-07:00

While the Shark Park teams are having a few days break the teams on Shark Route are gearing up for an exciting filming expedition in the Eastern Cape. Watch this spot for details.

Shark Route teams blown away by up to 70 Blacktips!

2008-03-26T08:31:00.000-07:00

The teams at Shark Park had great visibility, 70 blacktips and 4 tigers today. The abundance of Blacktips is providing amazing photographic opportunities to visiting photo pro's Mark Harding and Roger Horrocks.

We have also been extremely privileged to have Julie Anderson, the Shark Angel, from Shark Savers with us. Julie has been spreading the important message of shark conservation from Cape Town to KZN. This diminutive blonde bombshell is taking the conservation fight to every level with a comprehensive plan of action. With Julie out there I think we may be able to swing the battle our way!

Shark Route teams battle weather in the south!

2008-03-20T22:24:00.000-07:00

The Shark Route team in the south are battling weather and poor visibility. The team are on their way to Shark Park on Sunday to add more shark species to their list. The team is headed by legendary shark freediver/photographer Wolfgang Leander. The team includes Julie Andersen of SHARKSAVERS and photographer/cinematographer Mark Harding. This "A"-list of shark nuts has given us an incredible opportunity to gain an insight into the fantastic work Julie is doing and the imperative to do more to protect sharks. Julie is one of the "Shark Angels" and is not only passionate about saving sharks she is deadly serious. Her message will not be lost on South Africa!

Shark Route teams have seen 13 species of shark in one location so far!

2008-03-19T09:21:00.001-07:00

The teams on Shark Route have had mixed success over the last few weeks. The teams in the north have either had phenomenal conditions and great sharks or poor conditions and poor sharks. The teams in the south have so far racked up 13 species of shark and had up to 7 species in a day. The unseasonally bad weather and water conditions have made it difficult however.
The current team in the south had 7 species of shark on their first day narrowly missing out on two further species (mako and hammerhead - seen in the area 30 minutes after our departure from the area) and ten only two species today as an earlier than predicted wind came through and chased the teams off the water. Thus despite the poor visibility the shark species abundance in the south appears to be assured and with the hopes of better visibility going forward perhaps we can add a few more species to the list before we leave the south.

The teams on Shark Route have seen 12 species of shark to date!

2008-03-10T10:19:00.000-07:00

The team at the African Continents southernmost tip have had 12 species of sharks sighted since their arrival at Struisbaai. The team have battled with unseasonal weather and poor visibility but on the good days have had some memorable sightings. Yesterday we had baitballs with huge dusky sharks lazily feeding on them with copper sharks and Brydes whales in close attendance. Today despite a strong wind we had six species of shark on the dive and are hoping that the clean water keeps pushing in. The team also dived on the southern most dive site in Africa. Roger Horrocks took the image.