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A KAYAKING fisherman has caught the dramatic moment he came inches from a large great white shark, slapping the water with his paddle to scare the stalker away.
Ken Gerke and his mate Dave Barwise were paddling around Urunga, on the New South Wales Mid North Coast, when they realised they were being “chased” by the animal.
In what could be a terrifying scene from a movie, the shark’s fin emerges from the water as it makes a beeline for their kayaks, before circling around underneath them.
Despite the heart-stopping close-calls, the pair manages to get a camera underwater and capture the extraordinary moment on Saturday morning.
“It’s chasing me. Hey Dave, come here please,” Mr Gerke says in a panicked voice.
“That’s a huge white shark, I’m f***ing shaking.
“He’s a good three — what do you reckon — maybe four metres.
“I can hear him coming. Like I’m paddling, and I can hear him thumping away behind me.”
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Ken Gerke and his mate Dave Barwise were fishing on their kayaks.Source:Supplied
Then they spotted this “beast” coming towards them.Source:Supplied
Mr Gerke, posted the video to his Tournament and Adventure Angler Facebook page, calling it an “awesome encounter”.
“The footage kicks in after it had circled me once already and I decided to move away … unfortunately she decided to give chase, she was very curious,” he wrote.
“Such an awesome experience. I’ve caught small sharks in the past, had juvenile bull sharks cruise past the (kayak) in local estuaries … but nothing like this beast.”
Mr Gerke said the last part of the footage was taken by Mr Barwise after he moved over near him.
“He caught some awesome footage of the shark checking me out,” he said.
“Please excuse the language, panicked breathing and shaky footage … but I’m sure considering what happened you can understand my excitement and fear.”
Mr Gerke stressed to his followers to not make stupid comments about killing sharks.
“I don’t condone or agree to the culling of any sharks,” he said.
“These type of apex predators are to be admired and respected. It’s their backyard … I’m only visiting.”
And in case anyone was still wondering by the time they got to the end of this recap — Mr Gerke’s fishing was “slow” that day.
Eventually they managed to get the camera in the water to get a closer look.Source:Supplied
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