The Sardine Run

That should be Vince with his GoPro

Vince really wanted to scuba dive with the sardines this July during the annual Sardine Run in the Indian Ocean off the coast of South Africa. He wanted to do it last year too but just like last year, he is simply too busy at work at this time of year. That pesky job! And unfortunately diving with the sardines is not the kind of thing where you can just bop in on the fly if you get a free day or two over the weekend. It takes advanced planning. It is quite a production. To be more precise, scuba diving during the Sardine Run is an "expedition."

So what is the phenomenon exactly? The sardines migrate from the colder waters of the Cape into the warm sub-tropical waters of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal in a northwards direction, coming close to shore in the Wild Coast area during autumn and winter, moving further offshore in the Durban area and finally, disappearing into the vast blue yonder.

Because of the cold currents along this stretch of coastline and their appetite for plankton, these fish converge close to the shoreline and to the surface, making ideal targets for hungry predators and perfect viewing for snorkelers (that would be me)  and scuba divers (that would be Vince.) And by predators we mean cormorants and dolphins, okay. And sharks and whales, not okay.

In order to participate in an expedition you have to first be a master diver. Check, Vince is. And you have to be willing to dedicate a week to the experience. No check, Vince isn't. For a week (the minimum length of an expedition,) the drill is the same. First the sardine safari organizers use reconnaissance planes and helicopters to locate the sardines in the open ocean. If they find them, then they communicate the location with the group on shore who race to the identified sweet spot by zodiac. It is very controlled and very monitored because it is also very dangerous. Did I mention there are sharks? And you are not in a cage? And whales who come flying up from the deep with their mouths wide open to catch any or all of the food in their path before they burst out of the sea? Yeah.

Anyway, I am sure it is super cool to see live and I feel bad that Vince can't do it this year. During the height of the sardine run, he will be way off-shore back in the US of A. Here's hoping for next year! In the meantime watch this great video called The Sardine Chase by Nick Bernhard from the 2013 Sardine Run.