Great White Shark Spotted at Stinson Beach

Snack attack

​There isn't a cloud in the sky; the temperature is picture-perfect, and tomorrow is summer solstice. We can't think of any good reason not to skip out on work and hit the beach. Yet we woke up this morning to the dreadful news that nobody will be allowed to swim at Stinson Beach this week after a great white shark was spotted cruising a little too close to the shore yesterday afternoon.

A lifeguard told reporters that a nearly-10-foot shark was seen about 200 yards from the shore yesterday at 2 p.m. while families enjoyed a day in the sun.

"It was pretty close to the shore," lifeguard Scott Palmer told the Marin Independent Journal.

The National Park Service is saying that people can only wade in the waters at Stinson Beach until Thursday, while it keeps tabs on shark sightings. If no more sharks are seen, the deeper waters will be reopened on Friday.

Park officials have good reason to keep people from swimming too far from the shore. Marin County holds the record for the most great white shark attacks in the world, according to the Marin Independent Journal. The newspaper reports there have been 12 shark attacks off the coast of Marin over the years.

Scientists call the waters at Año Nuevo between the Farallon Islands and Bodega Head the "Red Triangle," where at least 200 sharks traverse the large area of water, looking for food.
 

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