iStockphoto / Nautilus Creative
19-year-old kayak fisherman Matt Wells learned firsthand just how small and insignificant a kayak feels when you are suddenly in the presence of a massive apex predator. In this instance, Wells was solo fishing off Cape Rēinga when a huge great white shark popped up next to him and began stalking him.
With the camera already rolling, Matt Wells was able to capture chilling footage of the great white shark swimming menacing circles around him as he tried to evacuate the area. He first noticed something was up when the live bait on his line started swimming as if it was spooked, which it would do if there was a big fish in the area ready to take the bait. But this big fish was potentially looking for a much, much larger meal…
As the huge great white surfaced he began speaking to himself… Because what else do you do in that situation? Panic was setting in and speaking aloud as if he was a hiker trying to scare off a bear appeared to bring him comfort.
At one point while paddling away he says to the shark ‘please don’t attack me, bro’ and his pleading appears to have worked because he wasn’t eaten. There is some colorful language in his video, in true Kiwi fashion. At one point he can be heard saying “f— me, there’s a huge great white behind me. F— me” so be forewarned about that.
Speaking with the New Zealand Herald after having time to digest the close encounter with the massive great white shark, Matt Wells says a run-in like this with a huge shark “was bound to happen eventually.”
He says he’s been kayak fishing in New Zealand since he was 6 years old so it was only a matter of time before he came face-to-face with one of these apex predators which are not uncommon there this time of year. Wells added “this is the risk you take when you are kayak fishing. You are going into a big animal’s domain and you are stepping into his house.”
I’ve been kayak fishing myself since I was maybe 8 or 9 years old, both saltwater here in Florida and freshwater up north. At no point have I ever had a close run in with a shark in SW Florida but Wells is right, it’s a numbers game. If you spend enough time on/in the water you are bound to see incredible things happen.
Great White Sharks In New Zealand
Ultimately, he made it out of there safely and called his family after he got back to land. The area where this took place, off Cape Rēinga, is at the far northern tip of New Zealand’s North Island, the end of the line:
Google Maps
This region offers world class fishing with deep water in every direction and unencumbered fishing channels for hundreds of miles. It is teeming with life. So if he was to run into a great white shark at any point in his fishing adventures it would make sense for it to happen here.
This close encounter with a massive great white reminded me of this incident in New Zealand two years ago. A kayak fisherman was rammed twice by a white shark going after a seal:
Seeing close brushes with massive sharks like the ones above, it’s no wonder that many people prefer to stay on land.