(dramatic music) - [Mark] Welcome to Tiger Beach. Located off the coast of
West End Grand Bahama, this location is
not a beach at all, but rather, a world famous
destination for shark diving. More specifically,
tiger shark diving. It also happened
to be the location of our very fist
shark dive ever. If we wanted to kick off
Blue Wilderness in a big way, let's just say, this
location did not disappoint. From the powdery
white sand basin, we encountered four
different species of sharks. There were reef
sharks, nurse sharks, the snaggle tooth lemon sharks, and of course, the mighty
and magnificent tiger sharks. (dramatic music) Being in their presence
was exhilarating. The recipe of
danger, tranquility, mixed with a dash of adrenaline, resulted in a truly life
changing experience. Everyone on our team
went into this dive with a high level
of uncertainty, and admittedly, a
healthy dose of fear. But, we all survived
and came out with a bond that all shark
conservationists share. Sharks are truly
incredible creatures. However, there was
one character missing from the cast of
sharks at Tiger Beach, one we'd hoped to see, but
had seemingly alluded us. In fact, this shark was
held in such high regard for its rarity and greatness, the crew of the boat would only acknowledge its name
by way of whisper. Hammerhead. But as we finished our
final dives at Tiger Beach, and prepared to make way
for port, it became clear the great hammerhead
encounter was not to be. Or so we all thought. Luckily, with a few moments
left before pulling anchor, I decided to fly our drone. Wow, look at all those sharks. Hold on a second. Hey Mario, is that
what I think it is? You gotta see this. Come check this out. That's a hammerhead. That's for sure a
hammerhead we're looking at. Mario, go tell the captain
we need another dive. The entire boat lit
up with excitement as we all raced to
reassemble our dive gear. This was it! This was the moment
we'd been waiting for. It's a good thing fellow
diver, Jonathan Bird, came along with us. His years of
experience kept us all locked in on the task at hand, which was not only
to get our cameras in front of that hammerhead, but was to put our
safety always first. Ahem, in shark infested waters. Remember, there
were still hordes of sharks surrounding the boat, but this dive was different. This was not our
first shark dive and it was all about
the hammerhead. - One thing that's really cool about scuba diving guys is like, every time you're
about to go in, you kind of get butterflies. You kind of get
tingly and excited, and you can't wait to get in. Let's do this.
- Let's go-- - You ready?
- Go for it. - All right. - [Mark] Without hesitation, we all jump back into the water. First Jonathan, then Mario,
and then, yep, there I am. Once again, we drifted through countless lemon sharks
and made our way back to the white
sands of Tiger Beach. At this point, the
tiger sharks that greeted us upon landing
almost seem like old friends. Well, three hour old
friends, that is. But hey, once you
do a barrel roll to escape the path
of a charging shark, I think that definitely
makes you friends for life. But as strange as it may seem, the circling tigers
almost vanished. Well, almost. Still had to keep a
watchful eye on them, but the other sharks? Well, they might as well
have all been guppies. Everyone in our crew
wanted to see one thing, and one thing only,
the hammerhead. Yet, it was nowhere to be seen. I started to think,
was that really the shadow of a hammerhead? Maybe my eyes were
playing tricks on me. Will I forever be known as the
diver that cried hammerhead? But then, it happened. Suddenly, the sand grew dark, almost like the long shadow of a thunderstorm rolling in
from some far off place. We all looked up, and there, the perfect silhouette of
a great hammerhead shark. It glided across the sun like some kind of aquatic phoenix. But then it turned and
it dove straight for me! I froze as it plummeted by. Wow, that was close. Man, the speed of that 15
foot shark was so incredible that I decided right
then and there, I would be blinking
a whole lot less for the rest of the dive. (eerie musical notes) Of the nine species of
identified hammerheads on Earth, the great hammerhead
is by far the largest. Some individuals have been known to exceed lengths of 20 feet, and weigh well
over 1,000 pounds. Of course, more impressive
than their sheer size has got to be the
shape of that head. Just look at it. Perfectly designed to increase the surface area of their face to fit more electrosensing
ampullae of Lorenzini that help them
detect their prey. This makes hammerheads quite
formidable food detectives, able to sense a stealthy sting
ray hiding beneath the sand. Just seeing this
shark at Tiger Beach was an absolute stroke of luck, as great hammerheads are
not common at this location. But today was our lucky day. Well, as long as we made it
back to the boat, that is. Now compared to the tigers, this hammerhead was
downright ornery. Between the multiple
dive bombs at our cameras to knocking down our dive
master Houston flat on his butt, it had no shortage of tricks
to keep us on our toes. It was fast, vigorous,
and you know, I think its antics even had
an effect on the tiger sharks. Check that out. Where was that in
the last video? Of all my expectations
of coming on this trip, seeing giant sharks do
tricks was not one of them, but hey, it sure was cool. After around 60 minutes of
putting on quite the show, the hammerhead decided it
was time to take its bow. And with that, it
headed back into the unknown regions of the reef. What a perfect ending
to the perfect day. - Woo!
- Dude, most cooperative
hammerhead ever. - Is this real life? Did that just happen? - Unbelievable. - Woo, man, guys
what an epic dive. We actually did it. We shot an entire video with
a great hammerhead shark. I'm Mark Vinz, be
brave, stay wild. We'll see you on the next dive. In life, we are so
rarely able to identify the moments that truly
reshape our existence, and even more so while
they're actually happening. But the bond I formed
with those sharks, on this day, is unmistakable. They have indeed
changed me forever. From here forth,
I'm committed to being a champion of
their preservation, a true believer on a mission to educate others through
the lens of my camera. I mean, just look at them. They are, in a
word, extraordinary. As for Tiger Beach, I'm not sure when we'll return
to the brilliant white sands beneath the waves, but I can say, soon won't
be nearly soon enough. - [Narrator] Do
you want to become an official member
of the Coyote Pack? If so, make sure to pick
up your starter kit, which includes the
iconic pack tag, adventure guide, and of course, the one and only
brave crew bracelet. The Coyote Pack
starter kit is the best way to show the world that you are one of the pack. It's available right now. - [Mark] If you
enjoyed this adventure, make sure to go back and watch
our first shark dive ever, where the crew and I make
contact with giant tiger sharks. Make sure to follow
me on Instagram, @RealMarkVins, for
behind the scenes looks at future episodes
of Blue Wilderness. (dramatic music) (coyote howling)
