iStockphoto / Alessandro De Maddalena

Two kayakers from Oakland headed south to Half Moon Bay to fish. It was their first trip to the area. They captured surreal footage of a huge Great White Shark and eerily followed one of the kayakers.

Ian Walters and his friend were on their first kayak fishing trip in the world famous Half Moon Bay, home to Mavericks, one of the largest surfable waves in the world. And everything was going well, but the trip turned into an unforgettable experience when Walters saw the huge fins of a great white shark appear behind his friend’s kayak.

Ian Walters took out his camera and filmed the truly gigantic Great White Shark swimming behind the small kayak, showing no signs of aggression but instead what they perceived as curiosity.

Walters told local news in the video above:It’s disturbing because it’s a new experience for me, not so much that the shark did anything scary.“He added”The crazy thing was that the back moved and the tail didn’t move until much later, so you get a sense of the size of the animal. It’s big, but I was lucky and above all it was a special experience.”

Ultimately, they were fine and the shark never showed any aggression. That is the lesson to be learned, as most people tend to believe that great white sharks are born man-eaters (thanks The Great White Shark for that!).

But this was an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime encounter for Ian Walters and his friend. He continued:Everyone grows up thinking that the great white shark is a mindless killing machine, but it plays a really important role and generally has no interest in killing anyone.”

When asked if they would return to Half Moon Bay for kayak fishing anytime soon, Ian Walters joked that he would, but “maybe not for a minute. Maybe with one or two kayaks. Maybe three.” Understandably. It’s not like anyone who has had an encounter with a moose or bear wants to be face to face with them the next day. You have to let the experience sink in for a while to appreciate it.