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Lucky whale watchers catch ‘incredibly rare’ sighting of great white sharks off of Gloucester
By Sarah Mesdjian Globe Correspondent,Updated June 26, 2025, 3:06 p.m.
Guides and passengers on a whale watching tour near Cape Ann caught a glimpse of two great white sharks 10 miles north of Gloucester, according to 7 Seas Whale Watch.
“It’s rare enough to see one, to see two within such close distance of each other is incredible,” said Amanda Johnston, lead naturalist and educator at 7 Seas Whale Watch.
Johnston, who has led tour groups at 7 Seas Whale Watch for seven seasons, said that it was her “first time getting this kind of look” at a great white shark.
“The sea was in this sort of glass state,” Johnston, 28, of Newburyport, recalled. “Our captain Jay said, ‘This is one of those days we’re gonna see a shark.’”
The tour group decided to “go out and explore” instead of heading straight toward a far-off group of whales. That’s when Johnston spotted a fin cutting through the water from a half‑mile away.
“The shark came right in front of the boat and we recognized that it was a great white,” Johnston said. “Then we saw another fin and thought, ‘What are the chances it would be a second great white?’”
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Both sharks were identified as juvenile, meaning they were between six and 10-feet long, according to Johnston.
“It’s incredibly rare,” Johnston said. “In the 7,000 trips [Captain Salvatore “Jay” Frontierro] has done, he has seen great whites six times, and this was his first time seeing two at the same time."
The most common sharks whale watchers in the area encounter are basking sharks and blue sharks, according to Johnston.
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“We have only seen this species a handful of times in the 42 years we have been in business,” 7 Seas Whale Watch said in a social post following the encounter.
The two sharks “did not seem to interact with each other,” Johnston said, but it is “not uncommon” for great whites to be looking for food in the same area.
“They were just doing what sharks do, circling, looking for food, giving us some close looks,” Johnston said.
Crews and passengers on a 7 Seas Whale Watch cruise spotted two great white sharks swimming in the water 10 miles north of Gloucester on Wednesday, June 25.
On the same excursion, crews and passengers also saw a group of three humpback whales — a female named Tripod and two males named Whirlwind and Chromosome — according to Johnston.
Johnston said that several recent great white shark sightings off of Massachusetts could be a result of a heat wave, which increased water temperatures, driving the fish further north.
On Tuesday, a 10-foot long great white was spotted in Cape Cod off of Eastham, according to The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy Sharktivity App.
White sharks rely on grey seals as a primary food source, Johnston said, and as the once-endangered seal population rebounds, it’s also helping the shark population grow — leading to more frequent sightings.
“I wouldn’t be shocked if we see another on this year,” Johnston said.