Diving with great whites on an expedition with Australia’s ‘shark whisperer’

Rodney Fox had to face his fears after a traumatic early encounter with this apex predator of the deep. Now he’s helping tourists and wildlife lovers do the same. Justin Meneguzzi reports

Australia’s most wanted: the much misunderstood great white shark (Rodney Fox Shark Expeditions)

Being submerged inside a shark-diving cage feels a lot like being stuffed into a washing machine. The churn of the ocean hurls the steel cage against the hull of the ship it’s been dropped from, creating a repetitive, sonorous boom. It’s matched by the pounding of my heart and a roar of air bubbles as I briefly flounder, trying to right myself.

I get my footing just in time to spot the great white shark as it emerges – slowly, silently – from the blue, headed straight for me. Hollywood has taught me that this is the moment when we swim frantically away, but I find myself rooted in place by a mixture of exhilaration and fear, gripping the bars as the apex predator approaches. At the last moment she turns, her dark blue eye regarding me with indifference.

The rugged Neptune Islands are a pair of remote specks cut adrift near the entrance of Spencer Gulf in South Australia. The islands themselves are bare, home only to a long-abandoned lighthouse, but they’re a world-renowned hotspot for great whites (also known simply as ‘white sharks’). This area is a regular pit stop for the species, lured by Australia’s largest colony of long-nosed fur seals, which inhabit these islands’ craggy coves.