On a sunny morning on the New Zealand Coast, van lifer and 19-year-old kayak angler Matt Wells of Nomadic Kayak Fishing knew the day had big fish in store; he just didn’t know the fish would be a massive shark.
“As always, there’s gonna be that search for a giant fish out there. There has never really been a better place to find one,” said Wells at the beginning of his video before heading out on the water to fish.
New Zealand kayak angler hunted by massive shark while on the hunt for a big fish
The morning wore on as Wells waited patiently for his giant fish. Around the eight-minute mark in the video the text “shortly after this the live bait became nervous” played across the screen. This text was followed by “I noticed a large swirl behind the kayak and turned the camera on…” and then a warning that coarse language was about to be used.
“What the…” Wells said as he noticed a disturbance in the water. “Great white! Great white!”
A massive shark swam in to view off the stern of Wells’ kayak. The shark skimmed the surface of the water and Wells cut off his live bait. As Wells began to paddle away, the shark came up to the rudder of his kayak and began to follow slowly.
“He’s still behind me. He’s just following,” said Wells. “If I get eaten that’s not going to be much fun. Please don’t attack me bro.”
The shark had been following Wells for what he estimated as about 200 meters when Wells tried to distract the shark by throwing a water bottle. The shark was not deterred.
How to convince a shark that you are not edible
“When a great white gets to that size it’s main food source is marine mammals and I am a marine mammal right now,” said Wells, noting that he had about an hour long paddle before he could reach dry land.
Wells estimated that the shark was about four and a half meters in length, most certainly longer than his kayak. As the shark continued following him Wells explained why he wasn’t paddling particularly fast: sharks sometimes mistake kayakers for marine mammals like seals. By paddling at a controlled, steady pace rather than a frantic pace Wells hoped to make himself as distinct from a seal as possible. Additionally, where a seal would dart in toward the rocks if pursued by a predator like a large shark, Wells instead chose to maintain course for the beach.
In a moment that makes you glad to know the cameraman always lives, Wells lost sight of the shark.
Eventually Wells made it safely to shore.
“This is the risk that you take when you are kayak fishing or swimming or sailing or boating in general. You’re going into a big animal’s domain and you’re stepping into their house so you have to be respectful and understand that’s sort of the risk you take,” Wells said from the safety of dry land and his van. “I’m very very grateful to Tongaroa and Moana and New Zealand for getting me off the water safely.”
How much should kayak anglers worry about shark attacks?
Shark attacks on kayakers are rare, with few recorded fatalities. Victoria Scott, a marine biologist, recommends not attempting to paddle away from the shark at all, as splashing from a paddle could make you look like an injured seal. Instead, Scott suggests that sharply tapping on the shark’s snout could deter it.
While rare, shark attacks on kayak anglers do happen. In 2024, kayak angler Ryan Howell was attacked twice in the same day by a great white shark, with large bite marks left in his kayak.
