Shark Attacked Kayaker in Shelter Cove
David Alexander, Superintendent at Bellevue Union School District in Southern Santa Rosa, said with the fires and the stresses of the recent time, he knew he needed a break. He decided to go to fishing at Shelter Cove but didn’t have a partner. “You never go alone,” he said. So he reached out through an online group and found a partner. “I don’t even know his last name. His handle is Three money J. His real name is John. I met him for the first time at Shelter Cove.”
They launched about 6:30 in the morning and had a good day of fishing and wildlife encounters. “Earlier in the day I saw the most interesting whale,” Alexander said. “It came straight at me and he goes right under my boat.” Alexander said he was worried about accidentally hooking the whale but luckily did not. Then, he said, “About a half hour later, he comes back and cuts right in front of my boat….Typically I like seeing whales…but that was close.”
The two kayakers were through for the day and heading in, Alexander said. “We were heading south and…rounding the lighthouse…I heard a thud…It felt like the front of my boat was lifting up …I heard a sound sort of sandpaperish…a grinding sound. For a second I thought I was being lifted up onto a wash rock…I saw grey and then I said, ‘That’s not a rock. That’s a shark!’
What Alexander saw then keeps replaying in his head. He saw the shark chomp down on either side of the tip of his vessel. He told us. “He had the front of my kayak literally in his mouth…It was like he was smoking it like a cigar…It was surreal.”
Simultaneous to seeing the shark, Alexander was being thrown from the kayak. “I hear the thud.. feel the push and I’m rolling to the right,” he said. With his gear and his glasses falling into the water with him, he went under then bobbed up.
“I was probably about 4 feet from the shark,” he told us. “I’m in the water…I don’t know if he is looking at me, but I’m looking at him….When he hit the boat, I fell off on the same side his face…I could see both eyes–one side more than the other…His eyes are so dark…I could see his teeth and his gums. You see those rows of teeth…that’s something else.”
He paused…”I wonder how many times that is going to play in my head.”
He said he asked himself, “What do you do when he let’s go?” Alexander said he really thought the shark would let go of the boat and then come after him. “He is facing me, he has to swim towards me,” Alexander said. He mentally prepared himself for the worst. “I thought he was going to let go and then go after me,” he said. I thought…I’ve had a good life. I hope it doesn’t hurt too much.”
But, the shark didn’t come towards him. “He kinda loosened his jaw from where his teeth were embedded in the kayak,” Alexander explained. “He turned on a dime. He almost went 180 degrees from the direction of where he was at.Then he headed towards John.” Alexander said he was worried that his kayaking partner would be attacked. Then there was a splash and the shark disappeared beneath the water.
“I heard [John] on the radio,” he told us. “He asked if I was okay. I said, ‘I’m not bit or anything.’ And John spoke over the radio telling whomever he was talking to, ‘He is okay and he is alright.’ But a bunch of boats came over quick, which was really cool.”
Alexander got himself out of the water and back into his kayak. “I did a self rescue,” he explained. “[If you kayak,] practice your self rescue. When it happens under stress in rough water, it’s different than in a pool…When you are dangling on the side, it’s hard to be calm.”
It took three tries to right his boat.and he thinks he smacked himself in the process. “I think when I was flipping it back over it came and smacked me a couple of times,” he told us. “I think I broke my hand.”
Then, once in the kayak, he discovered that the shark had bitten so deeply it was leaking, but he had a bilge pump still attached and was able to follow his partner to shore while pumping out the water.
He wanted to be sure to clarify the situation for our readers. “I wasn’t dragging fish,” he said. “I don’t bleed fish unless it is salmon, But I didn’t have any.”
He thinks the shark was “a little Great White.” He said that he believed the creature was only 13-15 feet long.
Alexander said that he’s glad he was prepared. “I was wearing a dry suit,” he explained. “I wear a personal flotation device. I had a bilge pump…That little bilge pump is a life saver.” He also was glad his partner had the VHF radio. And Alexander said he was glad he had a partner to help him navigate the situation. “He kept his cool,” Alexander said. “You got to go out with people, you don’t go out by yourself.”
After he got safely to land, he could see how the shark’s teeth had sliced through the walls of his yellow kayak “like butter.”
He said he told everyone, “Life’s good…I guess I’m ready to go home.” And, when he got to his house, he said he just kept petting his dog over and over.
“I lost my prescription glasses,” he said. “I lost my rod and reel…I guess I need a new kayak…but it’s only stuff.”
But then he added, “All I can think about right now is his mouth on my boat… He repeated again in an awestruck tone, “It was like he was smoking it like a cigar…you can see teeth marks on both side… It’s kind of surreal.”
Eric Stockwell, a local kayaking guide, said that shark attacks are very unusual–even seeing sharks are unusual. He told us, “I’ve been doing this sport since 1999 and abalone diving much longer than that, and I’ve seen the one big white in November of 2018 and a big mako at the Cove just recently. Neither one was aggressive, and many of us think (know) that we are seen by the sharks much more than we see them.”
He shared this video of the encounter he had with a shark.
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Anyone want to buy a Kayak I’m done
Ya I do. I need a quality sit on top
Need a bigger boat !!
Got ya
I’ve got a 12 ft heavy duty aluminum rowboat I’d love to sell. Not kidding. Kym’s got my email.
Hi, Is it in good condition…need any repairs, etc.? Also, How much and in what county are you?
I’m in downtown Redway. $350. Firm. 672 5550
Old boat. One seat is cracked- has been cracked for over a decade, and it has black Rhino coat over it. But it’s very heavy duty aluminum from the 60″s I think.
We used to take it down the Eel, it’s practically indestructible. Heavy- need 2 people to load on a PU truck.
Do u have pictures you could text to 916-997-4573 ? Thanks mike m.
I’m looking for one let me know….. [email protected]
just don’t take it in the ocean. Fresh water is an option.
Gators in fresh water…….
No gators in fresh water on the WC… just big trout.
I agree. The only problem is bull shark has come into fresh water. Up around me in NJ , there have been several bull shark sightings. The State FG and Wildlife is investigating.
There are sharks in the rivers also.
Duh nuh! Duh nuh! Duh nuh! Duh nuh!!!🦈
You have to bring snacks for sharks.
Lmao, I feel you!
Say if you ever win big at the lottery
And you live to tell the tale
Flex Seal tape will repair that damaged kayak.
The whale was warning him of the shark. I know of three abalone divers that have been attacked by sharks between fort brag and bear harbor over the years and lots of surfers at humboldt bay entrance area. The attacks are not rare.
Exactly what I was thinking!
I thought so too…that the whale was warning him…
when I saw this headline I thought “never go alone” but he didn’t! Guess I am getting a bilge pump ….. So glad you are OK David!
Me too! Bilge pump for the win!!!!
Wow. What an adventure story. Scary but good ending.
🕯🌳A story for the grandkids.
I understand that sharks don’t usually go after people. They get confused as people can look like seals and sea lions from underneath. Your kayak may have looked like a yummy sea lion? Like biting into a rubber chicken? 🤭
Whoah. Glad to know he made it out okay.
They say that getting attacked by a shark is less likely than getting hit by lightning. But when you play in the ocean off northern California, it changes the odds dramatically.
Wondering if possibly the shark had been following the whale that may have been sick or injured and then bit the kayak that she thought was the whale?
Or the whale was giving him a warning or trying to prevent his Hobie from becoming a Hoagie, or in the kayakers’ words, a stogie.
The shark in the video looks like it has some injuries to its’ side.
That can turn them into maneaters.
Or maybe in this case, kayak eaters.
I know it wasn’t necessarily the same shark. It’s possible.
There is definitely one out there that has a taste for kayaks.
More people are killed by falling coconuts every year than are killed by sharks.
For that matter, more people die in the USA from bee stings each year than shark attack.
Cows on farms kill more folks. So do dogs.
So what your saying is would u rather get ate by a dog or shark? How about neither, stay out of the ocean, and never crawl into a dog house to see if anyone is home!
That’s hilarious!😂
Agreed. And here a person was literally in a potential shark zone.
More people die from wearing a red hat and no mask.
That’s hilarious!
And its fair to remember that over 100 MILLION sharks are killed by humans every single year. Many of them are killed for their fins (soup) and the rest is often thrown away.
I know…it’s awful…poor sharks..
I want a fact check on this…
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/onward/2013/03/01/100-million-sharks-killed-every-year-study-shows-on-eve-of-international-conference-on-shark-protection/
Google it. Or read this. There are tons of articles.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/onward/2013/03/01/100-million-sharks-killed-every-year-study-shows-on-eve-of-international-conference-on-shark-protection/#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20most%20comprehensive,many%20populations%20need%20to%20recover.
Ya I do. I need a quality sit on top
Of course the “Yak” was “Yum Yum Yellow”!!!
Wasn’t the fellow in SC recently on a yellow board too, so much for that theory.
Welcome to the club!
A 17-18 ft GW knocked me out of my kayak then used it as a chew toy in Monterey Bay back in 2017.
The boat sits on my back patio now.
Take your time to decide how you feel about getting back out on the water. It’s not a decision anyone else can make for you. It took me a month. I jumped at every splash for months.
brianc
Wow… Someone should come up with a design to paint underneath and around the boat to scare sharks away…
Stay at home, save lives!
Gavin said so💩
There is no excuse to be traveling around spreading coronavirus and killing elderly people just so you can ride around on a kayak two counties from your home.
Real Nor-Cal is not not a recreation zone for you white supremacist suburban boobs.
Go to Trader Joe’s if you want a thrill, and stay out of our towns!
Wow if this is what triggers your neo-liberalism please stay home. Vote Donald Trump 2020!
Exactly. I’m voting for him too. In person. Not by mail. Trump 2020! We’ve got to have 4 more years(at least)🇺🇸
You realize that’s a waste in CA, where this blog is based, right?
Scarier than any shark!
That was so good I thought it was satire, or at least something similar
I think you are confusing neoliberal with neanderthal. Oh, you must mean Dead Man Walking.
Where’s your integrity?
Fake president + bullshit,con = fake news.
NEVER!!!!!!!!
I’D VOTE FOR A DOG FIRST
Oh knock it off looney lib. We happen to live in a free country and it’s going to remain that way. Besides that, he wasn’t endangering anyone, so mind your own business, the whole paragraph was completely uncalled for and you are a bully, plain and simple.
Stop being a halfwit. I’m white and like to go out and Kayak and fish but doesn’t mean I’m racist. Why does everyone always have to bring race into everything. Shit a 12 to 15 ft shark is small. We just had are first recorded shark kill off the coast of Maine. Glad you made it home.
WHAT a thing to say, the ocean is for everybody to enjoy. I would like to tell you my thoughts greedy.
Wow….and where is this hate and racism coming from ?….Also they were in open water far away from crowds…. Your comment is pure non sense…..
WTH ?
I have seen the Owl.
Maybe, just maybe, that whale returned to
Warn you of danger. Maybe.
I was thinking the same thing!
You darling dears do appreciate the fact that a lot of the population never see shark infested salt water… If were talking SATITICS that is! 👄
Hey y’all, a 12′ great white is still young enough to be learning what-all is edible besides the fish-diet they grew up on…
Gotta taste to find out.
But they rarely bite people on purpose; we smell pretty yucky compared to their usual fresh seafood.
Bet that adolescent shark now has a scary story of his own, about the stinky bad-tasting alien who broke into pieces but wasn’t injured & kept staring (“menacingly”) at him until he “escaped”..!
But seriously, glad all is well, dude.
Li-
That shark definitely has his own story to tell lol 🤣
I too, have seen the owl. Likely the whale was a harbinger.
What is the ‘owl’?
[…] https://kymkemp.com/2020/08/29/shark-attacked-kayaker-in-shelter-cove-yesterday/ […]
Dude almost got smoked!
I was a waterhead down there for many years. Mostly belly boarding but I also sailed a board and a 14 foot dinghy out of the cove.
I once saw a shark as long as my boat come up behind me while I was ghosting along just offshore with a light breeze. I was going maybe a couple miles per hour. First the dorsal fin broke the surface then the tail which was 8 to 10 feet behind the fin. It swam closer then gradually went under my boat and disappeared.
There were a couple ab divers a couple hundred feet ahead and I yelled at them to get out of the water and into their boat ’cause I had just seen a big shark heading their way. They did!
When I moved to the lost coast after surfing in Santa Cruz it took a real change in mind set to go out here. Down there I cursed the crowds but up here I definitely knew I was not the top of the food chain.
And I never ate shark…
I’m glad you made it back to shore intact to tell the tale!
Oh my goodness just reading ur story makes me so jealous. Lol. I’ve grown up in boring Columbus Ohio all my life & long to live in California or Oregon or somewhere beautiful like that, by the ocean. It would b so nice!
I actually went kayak shark fishing last year ( stupid bucket list thing) in Texas and will never try that again. I caught one, only about 3′ long and it pulled me all over the place faster then I could ever paddle. I finally pulled it close (black tip) and let it go. I couldn’t imagine one big enough to put my kayak in its mouth, that nightmare would never go away! Never again, marked off list now.
Wow. You definitely need a bigger boat. Someones gonna get EATEN B4 LONG
Wow what an experience. Thank you for sharing and glad you lived to tell the tale. Everytime I go into the sea I remember that I am at her mercy and practice the art of letting go of any misconceptions of control. This is a good reminder that we are heading into shark season in Humboldt. I saw a dead seal on the beach of the Herrick exit recently. Be safe out there folks seems Mr. White is on patrol.
It’s a KNOWN fact that 90% of shark attacks are in yellow kyacks. The yellow is a stimulant to the sharks eye. Its the one color that causes a shark to attack
That’s correct I have read that multiple times
Is that true? Like a giant shark lure? Trolling for sharks?
[…] on his way in with another kayak fisherman he partnered with through an online group, according to Redheaded Blackbelt , a local news […]
Glad u are okay!!! Had my own encounter years ago on a surfboard, and it was definitely over 11’ long… bumped my board and luckily I stayed on. I had to get back in the water quick or I knew I never would again… but that decision is yours alone. Just glad ur okay!!’n
A great white followed my row boat in Shelter Cove. I stood up and watched it swim past my boat, which was small in comparison. The following week a diver was killed by a GW in Bear Harbor. Ill never forget those events. That was in Sept 1965.
They dont call it Yum Yum Yellow for no reason
Sharks are color blind my friend.
Holy cow what a great tale that has reached Atlantic Bch, Fl. Not just Cali folks. Can’t believe all the political convo that followed. I do agree that the comment on staying home so you don’t kill our elders was ridiculously over the top. Kyacking sounds like social distancing to me. Thank you for the great entertainment everyone!!! Made me smile, laugh.
Does anybody know where i can get a .50 caliber spear gun with armor piercing incinerating rounds.
God blessed that man because the whale was warning him and then God protect him from the shark and then he met someone in the water talking about God is good but my suggestion is get a bigger boat and be more careful please sending blessings your way to the young man that helped and to the gentleman that was not harmed in this situation peace be with you
“Very first light, Chief, sharks come cruisin’.”
Hope the Shark is okay!
I live in Cape Cod. We’re totally infested with sharks right now. My boy in cali sees them all the time too. Their numbers are making a huge comeback due to the population explosion of seals. The ocean is their home. Just always show them the respect they deserve
Paint your kayak so it looks like an orca and hang a speaker making their noises. That should clear out the whites with their big tasty livers.