It was just a man and his boy versus a 7-foot shark. And they were alone in a kayak during the fight about a quarter mile into the Gulf.
Hunter Stevens, 9, wants to be a marine biologist when he grows up. His father, Kevin Stevens, takes him fishing all the time. This weekend they got an up close and personal lesson in the study of sharks.
"Well I was hoping to catch a shark, but not that big," said Hunter.
It's a Saturday fishing trip Hunter and his father won't soon forget. After three hours in the heat and on the water, the pair were about to call it a day when Kevin felt a bite. He then struggled for another hour, reeling in what turned out to be a black tip shark.
They were less than a mile off Galveston Island.
"You notice I don't put my fingers any where near the business end," Kevin told us.
He estimates the shark was six to seven feet long. The kayak they were in was only 12 feet. Still, Hunter says, not too close for comfort.
"Oh, I did touch it. It slapped me in the face. Its tail slapped me in the face," Hunter told us.
The whole time Hunter manned the video camera. He admits concern that the shark might tip their kayak, but it never did.
"I don't put enough pressure on the line to let him put that much pressure on me," said Kevin.
After getting some good pictures, they agreed it was time to cut the shark loose.
A large shark and a bond now greater than ever between father and son.
