We had an interesting summer, here in Massachusetts. A summer scripted by the 1970’s megahit movie Jaws, in which actor Roy Scheider improvised the iconic line, “We’re gonna need a bigger boat,” after the Great White Shark movie puppet leapt out of the water onto the back of the studio boat at him. The waters off the beautiful and wild beaches of Cape Cod are swarming with Great Whites. Drawn to the shorelines by an abundance of seals, they have settled into hunting close to shore, where they encounter the humans who enter the waters regardless. Sharks test what they encounter with their teeth the way we use our hands. Even if the shark decides it does not have hold of what it really likes to eat, the testing is extremely damaging.
Swimming With Sharks
After Labor Day there are no lifeguards patrolling the beaches of the National Seashore on the Cape, but there are more than adequate shark warning signs. Despite those, humans are still entering these waters to swim and surf. This summer a middle-aged man was attacked while standing close to shore—he survived. Just last weekend, a young man was attacked on his boogie board—he died. The beaches have closed. The ordinarily great end of summer and early fall tourist season on the Cape is in tatters.
Be Proactive
Earlier in the summer, the local newspapers carried articles about the sharks, with titles like “How to Avoid An Encounter With a Great White Shark.” How to avoid such an encounter seems obvious, but if a person is hell bent on taking the chance by entering the water, the articles also explained what to do during an encounter. The victim is urged to be proactive and attack the shark’s eyes and gills, which are very sensitive. Even so, one must be in a position to do so, especially since the eyes and gills surround the mouth. Not an easy task when your body or your surfboard is being chased by a 20 foot, 1000 pound eating machine that can swim 25 mph.
You’re Gonna Need A Bigger Boat
Even a Great White expert studying the Cape Cod phenomenon had a close encounter. Standing on the flying bridge of a research boat, his feet were nearly caught in the maw of a Great White as it leapt up to his level. Sharks hunt seals from depth, launching them as high as ten feet into the air. Surfboards and kayaks just don’t cut it—shark infested waters require a bigger boat.
The Here and Now
In the more placid waters of the hills of Western Massachusetts, we’ve little to fear from sharks. However, the amount of water that has poured down on us this summer has been disconcerting. There were weeks when our weather was tropical—very hot and humid, with deluges every afternoon. As the swollen rivers, creeks and brooks raged, and the tomato plants suffered, climate change became the here and now. Not a future event, but now. And it showed its presence everywhere in the country and the world, from the wildfires in our west, to the drought in Ireland. As the remnants of Hurricane Florence blew through New England this week, we pondered the amount of water pouring down the hillsides and wondered if we too were in need of a bigger boat?