The White Shark Trust Field Research Assistantship is proud to introduce you to our assistants:

Anna PEZALLA (Oak Park, Illinois, USA), Benjamin WESTROPE (Wilmington, North Carolina, USA), Richard P.A. ATKINSON (Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England), and Chris MILNES (Grantham, Lincolnshore, England).
Monday the 1st of March 2004 started as a wonderful day... but a winterlike NWesrly storm has been forecasted for this afternoon... This is what I have been waiting for during the past days... Will this be our first winter storm? Most probably not, but these storms usually drive the Sharks back into the area. Why? I am not sure... maybe because the water gets a bit warmer... maybe because the seals are stuck on the island, and are hungry after a storm... maybe...

No Sharks sighted again today... but all the Yellowtail swimming around the area, the Sharks probably have other menus on their minds... But at least the storm did indeed come in the early afternoon, and the sea got quite rough...
With the coming storm, this might well be Chris' last day at sea... Chris arrived exactly six months ago when he came to South Africa for the first time... after his initial stay till November, we invited him back as a friend for January and February. Very sad and disappointing for him to leave without having seen any White Sharks on his last day...
On the 2nd of March 2004, Chris Milnes left Gansbaai to go back to good old rainy and cold England...
On Wednesday the 3rd of March 2004, we managed to go to sea again. Following the storm, the sea was still quite rough with over two meter swell running across the island... but we could not care less since we observed three Sharks today!!! It has nearly been a week since our last White Shark, so we were all very happy (not Chris most probably as he is reading this)...

It seems like the winter is slowly coming back, with another storm forecasted for tomorrow... but as expected, winter storms and associated NWesterly winds usually draw the Sharks back to the area... Let's hope!