Oceanside — On August 9, 2007 Ted Lorey was on duty as a Lifeguard at the Oceanside Surf Camp. It was 1:45 PM under a sunny sky with an 8 – 10 mph west wind. Air and surface water temperatures were recorded at 72 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit respectively. There was a light chop with 1 – 3 foot west wind swells. The water depth was 15 – 25 feet with 5 – 10 feet of visibility. Lorey recalled; “I was standing on the beach scanning the activities of the Oceanside Surf Camp. I noticed a large dark shape, 10 – 12 feet in length, just under the water outside the surf line about 1,000 yards North of the Oceanside Pier. I was able to see it clearly as a swell passed by. It was moving fairly quickly, swimming side to side, moving North. It did not surface. I pointed it out to another staff member and we watched for quite a while to see if it would surface so we could dismiss the sighting as a dolphin or a whale, but it never did. I have over 20 years experience as a lifeguard and have been surfing these waters since 1969. I know the difference between dolphins, whales, and sharks. This was much wider in girth than any dolphin I've ever seen. Another sighting of this same object was made about 1/4 mile down the beach within a few minutes, and they said it was a shark. There have been other sightings of a ‘shark’ over the past couple of weeks as well.” Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.
La Jolla — On August 15, 2007 David Pollock was spear fishing off the coast of La Jolla, California at a location referred to as ‘Wind and Sea.’ It was early evening, 5 – 6 PM, and he had been in the water about 45 minutes. The sky was clear and the sea calm. Air and water temperatures were estimated at 78 and 72 degrees Fahrenheit respectively. The water depth was 15 feet and a sandy ocean floor with several areas of kelp plants. Pollock recalled; “I was spear fishing about 50 yards off the coast of ‘Wind and Sea’ in La Jolla. As I was following the current and looking for fish, about 30 minutes into my escapade I turned to my right and saw a White Shark, about 7 feet in length, following me. I steadily balanced my weight so that I was able to possibly defend myself if necessary. The shark came to within an arms length of me then scurried away. All I know is that the shark looked quite aggressive with a white body and pointed nose. I warned other swimmers as I exited the water.” Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.
Laguna Beach — On August 4, 2007 Cassidy Guyer was about 1 mile from shore engaged in a long distance outrigger canoe race off Laguna Beach. It was 10 AM and the sky was clear. Air and water temperatures were estimated at 85 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit respectively. The sea was calm with water visibility about 4 feet. Guyer recalled; “We had launched our outrigger from Doheny State Beach in Dana Point. There were 50 outrigger canoes and 50 escort boats for the 20 mile race. Since it was a 9-man race with only 6 people in the canoe we did water changes to get breaks. At any given time there would have been 15 people in the water at various stages of the race. We were paddling pretty hard so I’m assuming we had some decent speed built up when the shark approached our canoe. The shark must have been traveling at a fair rate of speed as well because it stuck its nose out of the water and bumped our AMA (the lateral canoe support), and then slowly swam away. The shark was about 5 feet in length, lighter medium gray on top with a white underbelly.” Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.
Oceanside — On July 17, 2007 Geri Buchholz was bodysurfing off the beach near Cassidy Street in Oceanside. It was 1 PM and she was in the breakers with a water depth of about 3 feet. There was a young boy on a short board about 60 feet from her location. She recorded air and water temperatures at 76 and 72 degrees Fahrenheit respectively. There was a light haze with little or no wind and small waves 1 – 2 feet. She had been in the water about 1 hour. Buchholz recalled; “I was bodysurfing for an hour in shallow water when I saw the top of the shark's body almost surface coming toward me 60 feet from the South. I've seen dolphins catch waves on their stomach, so I thought it was a dolphin really close in. But then I noticed the dorsal fin wasn't the same and it had a weird shaped body and swam like a turtle towards me. I thought it was a type of sand shark, so I took a small wave in closer to shore but never turned my back on it. When it swam past me to the boy on the surfboard, he saw it before it got to close, and he took a wave in. We both watched the shark swim away to the North. We did not feel threatened and we both kept surfing, keeping our eyes out.” Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.
Newport Beach — On July 22, 2007 Juan and Angela Gardea were surfing at Newport Beach by 18th Street near Life Guard House #18. It was 5 PM and they had been in the water about 20 minutes. Water and air temperatures where in estimated to be in the mid-60’s and 70’s respectively. The sky was overcast with a very slight drizzle and water visibility was about 5 feet. Two dolphins were observed about 600 yards from their location. Juan recalled; “My wife and I had just started surfing for the day. Before going in the water the people next to us where telling us that they had just spotted 2 dolphins popping in and out of the water. We stayed about 10 yards away to avoid injury. I was already out about shoulder level on top of my surfboard facing parallel to the shore waiting to catch a wave. Angela was just starting to get in again and was at waist level. While waiting for a wave to come, water is calm at this point, I saw a fin pop-up out of the water, and then disappear for about 5 seconds, then pop back up. It was swimming very smoothly and I knew it wasn’t a dolphin because dolphins usually jump in and out of the water; also the color of the fin was darker than a dolphin. I saw the shark swimming parallel to the shore then it turned towards the shore and Angela. It accelerated slightly but was swimming smoothly and going up with a wave. At that point I was able to see it was a shark as its tail protruded above the waters surface and looked similar in shape to the dorsal fin. I knew it wasn't a dolphin because a dolphin’s tail is like a whale's tail. I then yelled "Shark" and pointed towards the shark to alert Angela. She started swimming toward shore and I proceeded toward shore as well. After getting out we were approached by 2 lifeguards on a truck asking us about the shark. They said they would keep and eye on the water and that possibly that shark was sick and lost but that it wasn't common for sharks to be that close to shore. The shark was dark grey in color and 6 – 7 feet in length ” Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.
