Sharked

They’re seemingly everywhere right now. Surfcasters, boat anglers—just about everyone is running into sharks, whether they’re the target species or an unexpected bycatch. And I’ll admit, they’re on my mind every time I step into the surf.

Realistically—or maybe more accurately, rationally—I know the odds of a shark posing any real threat to me are incredibly low. It doesn’t matter. Every shadow, splash, and swirl I catch out of the corner of my eye while casting, wading, or standing on a rock immediately registers as a shark.

When I hook a fish, every frantic run, surge, or sudden change in direction sends the same message to my brain: a shark has my fish.

Back in 2024, Jerry and I devoted much of episode S1E43 to the shark encounters we experienced throughout August. The conversation culminated with my story about an almost unintentional hand-feeding incident involving a large brown shark.

That’s probably where this uneasiness comes from.

It’s not that I’m worried a brown shark will mistake me for prey. What concerns me is the possibility that, in the chaos of attacking a fish I’m trying to land, it accidentally finds my hand, arm, or leg instead.

This has always been what I considered a more likely scenario and the true danger to us as surfcasters.

So, what’s your shark in the surf story?