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WINTER 2012
m
y interaction resulted in
a decidedly cool postdive
reception. As I climbed
into the skiff, my dive buddies greeted
me with groans and boos, and someone
pelted me with a wet towel. Despite
the tough crowd, I was unable to wipe
the enthusiastic grin off my face until I
heard a hushed threat about my camera
being thrown overboard. Although
I had scored some amazing shots,
perhaps my trip hadn’t gotten off to the
greatest start popularitywise.
My fellow passengers didn’t stay
angry with me for long, however. By
the end of the week nearly everyone
had been treated to a whale shark
interaction. Anywhere else in the
world, this might seem unbelievable,
but in Cocos, pelagic interactions like
this are commonplace. You really need
only one word to sum up Cocos Island
and its underwater offerings: wild!
ISLAND OF THE SHARKS —
AND SO MUCH MORE
When filmmakers Howard and Michele
Hall were tasked with choosing the
location for their 1999 IMAX film Island
of the Sharks, they looked for a place that
was utterly shark-infested. Enter Cocos
Island, described by Howard Hall as
containing “more sharks per cubic meter
of salt water than anywhere in the world.”
Despite El Niño-related weather snafus,
the Halls managed to capture mind-
blowing shark footage. However, the
resultant film also contains extraordinary
sequences of nonshark subjects.
Schooling fish, bottlenose dolphins,
marlin, marbled rays, mantis shrimp
and eels all play strong supporting roles.
Sharks aside, Cocos’ waters contain an
abundance of fascinating (and fabulously
photogenic) marine life.
Cocos Island is a tiny speck in the
middle of the Eastern Pacific, located
more than 300 miles from mainland
Costa Rica. A 30-hour boat ride is
required under the most favorable
conditions simply to view its shoreline
from a distance. Of course, Cocos’
isolation is also its biggest strength:
Pelagic creatures are regular visitors
to these waters. Despite its diminutive
size (about 10 square miles), one
would be hard-pressed to find a more
amazing place. It rises steeply out of
the Pacific, consisting of cloud-topped
cliffs covered with lush, green vegetation
and careening waterfalls. Jacques
Cousteau called this place “the most
beautiful island in the world.” Cocos
is also rumored to be the inspiration
for Jurassic Park’s Isla Nublar as well
as Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure
Island. Legend has it that Cocos is
the site of a horde of buried pirate
treasure, though no booty has ever been
discovered here.
“more sharks per cubic meter of salt
water than anywhere in the world”
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