More fishing

This may sound a little extreme, but the long haul of researching and writing the book I'm doing has had me itching for a little adventure, especially a short, intense one with some good photo opportunities.  So when my old friend and colleague Mike Bhana offered me the chance to join him and a bunch of other reckless types on a shark diving expedition, I was in from the start.

So here I am, checking my underwater housing and splash bag, thinking about what clothes to pack and hoping that the forecast 5m swell doesn't keep us from the sheltered anchorage on Stewart Island where we'll be cage diving with White Sharks.  Last time I got in a cage up in Tutukaka, the Makos we were burleying for didn't show, so this is my next big chance to get in the water with a real monster.  I've seen mature tiger sharks close up from topside, and dived in the same water - thankfully all I saw were some reef sharks that day - but I know that if we get the big whites we're expecting, this will be an intense experience.

And the bonus is that if everything else goes well, I'll get some good pictures.  Fingers crossed.  Hopefully I'll still have them all when I get back in a couple of days.  Wish me luck!