i’ve always wanted to see one up close. is that possible in Taiwan? while snorkling? i’ve never learned to use a scuba tank. can somebody take me one day?
I’ve seen small sharks when snorkelling in Australia.
At the Nantou rest area on Highway #3 there’s a shark tank. 
There might be reef sharks down in kending somewhere or around the islands, Green and Orchid, but I haven’t seen any…except on ice in front of restuarants.
There are hammerhead sharks that feed yearly off Green Island, but that dive is an advanced dive, in the truest sense of the word.
I cannot imagine you being able to see a shark in Taiwan while snorkeling.
Are there any sharks left in the waters around Taiwan? After all, shark fin soup is still popular, ain’t it? :s
Serious though, I did shark-diving once in Palau. We were taken to a shark-invested little bay and we snorkeled with these creatures about 30 minutes or so. They were kind of aloof and didn’t pay us any attention at all. Sharks were mainly focused on the dive instructor who fed them for our ignorant amusement. I guess I was too flabbergasted to ask any questions at the time so I don’t even know what sharks they were. Probably “friendly” sharks.
I know in some parts of the world you could do cage-diving with Great Whites. Not for me. Too shit scared.
I’ve seen a leopard shark pretty close up as it was resting on the bottom. a thing of beauty. 3 whips of its graceful tail, and gone. and that was with the best viz i’ve had.
First night dive I ever did in Australia I saw a couple of reef sharks.
Also had a baby reef shark come to investigate after I cut my knee on coral while surfing in Nias, Indonesia.
I petted a leopard shark once while it was resting on the bottom. It looked something like this:
It was the last open water dive of my training off Ko Phi Phi, and the instructor had pointed to it, and motioned with his hand stroking his forearm, then an OK signal, indicating that he was familiar with it and knew it was ok to stroke it. I was a bit surprised, but I figured he was the expert and I knew leopard sharks are harmless, so, practicing my buoyancy control by controlling the depth of my breathing, I managed to approach it very, very gradually, so as not to spook it, and I came to a rest right next to it and stroked its skin. It was cold, and rough. I thought it would take off, but it didn’t. It was a very interesting experience. However, I don’t think petting sharks is generally a good idea, nor at this point would I generally recommend molesting the wildlife, unless you’re at a dive in the combat zone. 
Ran, why not head off to Ko Phi Phi for diving? It’s not too expensive, and they have shark dives too.
I’ve seen reef sharks in Australia and Thailand, and a leopard shark in Thailand.
I’m dying to see the hammerheads next year off Green Island. Supposed to be totally amazing!
Searching for great whites in a cage? Not on your life!
where is ko phi phi? thighland? great. i can go diving and see some thighs. just as long as they’re really female.
what is a good brand of snorkle,mask, and fins to buy? i wanna be decked out for this summer. i already have an ultralite wet suit that i was supposed to use for sun moon lake last year but they canceled it.
do any of you boys spear fish while snorkling in taiwan? if you do bring me. i’ll cook those fish up real nice for you. heck you can do it yourself. just rub some cajun spice on it. everything tastes great with some paul prudon on it. rub it in and throw it on a grill.
I’ve also seen leopard sharks while diving near Koh Phi Phi. Very fast swimmers. To stroke one would be something else… Sounds like you had a really interesting encounter, DB.
I’d like to see sea turtles, and whale sharks.
I’ve seen a lot of fun things while diving, manta rays, sharks and many other fun things! Diving in Taiwan? I have done a bit of diving here but I haven’t seen any sharks, but I also haven’t gone looking for them. Which you generally need to do in order to see them usually. I did see them while snorkeling in Thailand, which to be honest was a scary hair raising experience, I also dove with them as in swimming with about 15-20 sharks and that was amazing! With sharks I recommend learning to dive because you are more in your element and thus not nervous, besides diving is GREAT!
If you want some diving information or want to ask someone who dives a lot locally (where the cool places to go diving and snorkeling, or where to find sharks), send me a PM and I will give you some contact information.
Cheers
I really wanted to love snorkelling, but it completely creeped me out, the few times I tried it. I went back again and again, thinking I’d get over it and love it, but I didn’t, I hate that feeling. It was dark, and big and asymmetrical (I know the asymmetrical thing makes me sound mental, but…) and I couldn’t touch anything.
I wanted to see the fish and stuff, though. Fish are my favourite animals.
Friends who dive tell me I should try that instead.
When I was a kid, swimming in the ocean kinda freaked me out because there was this huge, dark depth underneath me, and things like sharks down there that I couldn’t see. Then I saw JAWS. 
Oh, shit, I didn’t want to go near the water again, for the next 25 years.
That’s why I took a SCUBA course. To get past that. It was worth it.
[quote=“Dragonbones”]
That’s why I took a SCUBA course. To get past that. It was worth it.[/quote]
Yes, a few friends have said that. I swim a lot, and I AM interested, otherwise I never would have bothered in the first place, but the sea just freaks me out.
Try Green Island for snorkling Bcup. Lots of fish close to the shore and in water you can stand up in.
Dragonbones, JAWS freaked me out for two decades too. But now I realize how absolutely stupid that movie was.
The scariest thing in the water is the current. Everything else will leave you alone or bolt when you get too close.
Thanks for the recommendation. I’ll have to try it. I’ve only ever been in Thailand. Didn’t fill me with confidence when the guy driving the boat was shouting into a mobile 'phone; ‘So where do I stop the boat?’
[quote=“jdsmith”]Try Green Island for snorkling Bcup. Lots of fish close to the shore and in water you can stand up in.
Dragonbones, JAWS freaked me out for two decades too. But now I realize how absolutely stupid that movie was.
The scariest thing in the water is the current. Everything else will leave you alone or bolt when you get too close.[/quote]
Peter Benchley did offer an apology…
I was snorkeling in the Perhentian Islands in the North of Malaysia a few years back.
The visibility was about 10 metres or so. I saw a big black mass in front of me and pursued.
In front of me was a Black Tipped Reef shark about a metre and a bit long. Gorgeous.
It sped off as soon as it noticed me.
There’s sharks everywhere in Taiwan and you don’t even have to go into the water to see them.
joking aside,Phi Phi Don is a great place for diving but have never seen a shark there yet. .Over at Coral Island, I did see a few sharks and the sealife was much more abundant.
While diving off the west coast of Fiji, I looked down at the bottom about 3 meters and was amazed to see 2 LARGE reef sharks cruising the bottom. They saw me and I saw them. They went one way and I gladly headed in the opposite direction.