‘CLOSE ENCOUNTER OF THE SHARK KIND’
Roger Freeman was glad he didn’t wind up as breakfast for a great white during a close encounter in the waters off Nauset beach in Orleans on Sunday.
The Hingham man said he was “taken aback” when he saw just how close he came with the seasonal predator prowling the beachfront just 50 yards from shore.
“I was shocked and amazed,” Freeman, 54, told the Herald. “What an awesome photo. It was surreal because I didn’t experience the shark the way the photo shows. When you’re down on the water, there is glare. He was probably five to six feet under. I was glad I got to have breakfast and not end up as breakfast.”
Freeman had just spent an hour and a half on the water on a stand up paddleboard (SUP) for the last day of his family’s reunion.
“It was a beautiful, sunny summer morning on the Cape,” he said. “It was spectacular. The seas were calm. The sun was rising. The water sparkling and the waves were perfect.”
Freeman was aware that there may be sharks in the water, having heard that a shark had eaten a seal the day before.
“I knew there was shark activity in the area,” he said. “I was hyperaware and I remember thinking to myself, ‘Some would say it’s crazy to be out here surfing with sharks, but on this glorious morning I say it’s crazy not to be out here.’ But I didn’t really think I would have a close encounter of the shark kind.”
On the water, he heard a drone circling from above.
“I heard the drone overhead while waiting for a wave to ride,” Freeman said. “I thought maybe he’d come down to warn me if needed. Still, my small surf SUP is pretty squirrely and I was focused on staying upright.”
Out of the water, a man who knew the drone operator, Cody DeGroff, surprised him with the photo of a shark feet away.
The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy tweeted yesterday, “Close encounter of a peaceful kind. Yesterday morning Cody DeGroff (@Cdegroff10) captured these amazing photos of a white shark near a SUP just north of Nauset public beach. The paddle boarder did not see the shark.”
“We are sharing the beach and ocean with all the wildlife. From the tiny plovers to the Great Whites,” Freeman said.
“That is awesome but entails responsibility. Sharks are now a big part of the Cape Cod ecology. We should respect these magnificent creatures, and still do what he can to keep people reasonably safe. Perhaps we should take a page from other countries that have large shark populations and set up more comprehensive spotting and warning systems to mitigate the inherent risks of swimming and surfing with sharks.”