A 16-Year-Old Shark Hunter Has Found His Favorite Hobby

No time for video games for this Australian teenager. He’d rather prowl the beaches with buddies at night catching-and-releasing big sharks.
Will Glasson with a shark
Will Glasson would rather catch sharks than play video games. Courtesy Will Glasson

Australia is well known as a shark haven, with giants of many species – especially bulls – prowling beach shallows and nearby offshore reefs. But 16-year old isn’t spooked by the toothy predators as many folks are. Instead, he enjoys night fishing for them in Western Australia near Port Hedland Spoilbank beach, reports the United Kingdom’s Daily Star.

After the sun sets when the tide is high, Glasson and a few select pals canoe out 100 yards or so to an area called “Spoilbank basin,” a popular spot for Australian surfers and swimmers. There, Glasson and crew drop baited hooks and lines, then return back to the beach to tend rods and reels connected to the baits.

Glasson and his angling buddies have caught dozens of sharks, mostly heavy bulls.

“We usually take photos and size them, then within a minute we try and get them back in [the water],” he told the Daily Star.

Glasson says the sharks just keep getting bigger.

“The fastest one we’ve pulled in was only a small shark and it (took) about five minutes,” he reports. “But the bigger bull sharks we get now take 30 to 40 minutes to land. We sometimes have our mates hanging off the end of the rod just holding it up helping us fight it.

“I’d rather go out throughout the night instead of staying at home playing games. The adrenaline is going and everyone’s going crazy. Once you land it (a shark), it’s wicked.”