Shark Attack/3 Oil Rigs/24 Nautical Miles/7 Hours/Done

It had been a long wait for the right weather, and my patience was rewarded with a perfectly calm day, never mind the great white shark that attacked me.


I launched from Gaviota State Beach on Monday, August 2, 2010 at about 7:00Am to cross to my last three oil rigs, Heritage, Harmony, and Hondo, and complete my crossings to all 23 oil rigs in Southern California. There was a fog bank offshore, which hid Harmony and Hondo, but Heritage, which I was heading to first, was popping in and out of it. I actually had a little tail wind from the Gaviota valley pushing me perfectly towards Heritage. I reached the oil rig 8 nautical miles offshore in 2 hours.

I had actually paddled by Heritage 10 years ago when Jim Gabriel and I did the 26 nautical mile crossing from Gaviota to San Miguel Island. Here’s a link to the trip report.


As I headed to Harmony, it was still in the fog, so I steered by compass to find it. I had a swell pushing me nicely along the way and paddled the 6 nautical miles in an easy 1.5 hours.


I had another easy 3 nautical miles to Hondo, my last Southern California oil rig.

I left Hondo at about noon for the 7 nautical mile crossing back to Gaviota State Beach. But along the way, I was attacked by a 15-foot great white shark. Fortunately, I was still able to make it back, finishing the 24 nautical mile loop in 7 hours. Here’s the link to the shark attack report.