Sunday 11/25/2007
All,
Correy, Paul and I got a couple of boat dives in yesterday. On our first dive we did a wreck dive, night dive, deep dive, navigation dive all in crazy one dive. We dove the Mating Amtrak's by Lovers. The water was red and the vis was crappy at the surface. As we went down the anchor line it was mucky dark. So dark I couldn't even read my gauges right in front of my face. After descending about 50 feet the vis cleared to about 4 feet. It was dark and eerie and there was a bit of surge. I had a small focus light from my camera and a small flash light with weak batteries. We went down deeper to 85 feet and stopped at the anchor. It was so dark we couldn't see the the wreck. I looked at Paul and Correy and laughed at them cause they were both looking at me with big eyes and wondering what we were going to do next. We can abort the dive but what the hell I tell myself. I signal to Correy to break out his spool. He looks at me and I think he gives me the bird. So I reach over to him smack him in the head and unsnap his spool from his backplate and attach the bolt snap to the anchor. I give the signal to swim and we head off into the surge and darkness. I prayed we placed the anchor close to the Amtrak's. We let out about 80 feet of line and start to circle. I could feel the line snag on something and we reel back. The amtracks appear out of the darkness. It looks very large especially when you can't see the length of it due to the vis. We do a lap or two around the wreck and I try for a picture or two. No luck with the pictures the surge is too strong for my macro setup. We regroup check our air and start reeling back to the anchor. I was happy to find it where we left it. Up the anchor line into the muck. Think swimming in a chocolate milkshake. I am having a hard time reading my gauges because the vis is so crappy. Thousands of jelly fish are all around us. We do a 4 minute safety stop and surface. What a fun dive. We get into the boat and the topside water is flat. We run the inflatable at full speed back to the dock for more tanks. For a small boat she really fly's when the water is flat. Bummer no waves today to practice having my passengers fly out of the boat. Oh well.
Correy, Paul and I got a couple of boat dives in yesterday. On our first dive we did a wreck dive, night dive, deep dive, navigation dive all in crazy one dive. We dove the Mating Amtrak's by Lovers. The water was red and the vis was crappy at the surface. As we went down the anchor line it was mucky dark. So dark I couldn't even read my gauges right in front of my face. After descending about 50 feet the vis cleared to about 4 feet. It was dark and eerie and there was a bit of surge. I had a small focus light from my camera and a small flash light with weak batteries. We went down deeper to 85 feet and stopped at the anchor. It was so dark we couldn't see the the wreck. I looked at Paul and Correy and laughed at them cause they were both looking at me with big eyes and wondering what we were going to do next. We can abort the dive but what the hell I tell myself. I signal to Correy to break out his spool. He looks at me and I think he gives me the bird. So I reach over to him smack him in the head and unsnap his spool from his backplate and attach the bolt snap to the anchor. I give the signal to swim and we head off into the surge and darkness. I prayed we placed the anchor close to the Amtrak's. We let out about 80 feet of line and start to circle. I could feel the line snag on something and we reel back. The amtracks appear out of the darkness. It looks very large especially when you can't see the length of it due to the vis. We do a lap or two around the wreck and I try for a picture or two. No luck with the pictures the surge is too strong for my macro setup. We regroup check our air and start reeling back to the anchor. I was happy to find it where we left it. Up the anchor line into the muck. Think swimming in a chocolate milkshake. I am having a hard time reading my gauges because the vis is so crappy. Thousands of jelly fish are all around us. We do a 4 minute safety stop and surface. What a fun dive. We get into the boat and the topside water is flat. We run the inflatable at full speed back to the dock for more tanks. For a small boat she really fly's when the water is flat. Bummer no waves today to practice having my passengers fly out of the boat. Oh well.
Second dive was at the Steam Engine. At the surface I get a mouthful of the red water and throw up. What a foul taste and smell. Down we go again into the darkness. I pee into my borrowed wetsuit and it feels like a wet dream. I was happy to see I placed the anchor right next to the steam engine wheel. We use the crack in the ocean floor as our navigation line up and back. We get caught in the surge on the return trip back to the anchor and Paul is running low on air. We have to do a 80 foot free ascend in the mucky darkness. We lose Correy I stay with Paul. The jellies sting the crap out of my face on our safety stop. I was happy to surface but I rubbed my face with my gloves to get the snot off my face. My eyes swells shut from the jelly stingers. Correy drives the boat back to the dock. After a fresh water shower my eye feels better.
We dine at the Ocean Sushi Deli on Webster Street. The food tasted so good.
What a fun day of diving. Good times.
Roy
1 comment:
oh roy! so typical! you never have a successful dive with safety involved. you are one strange man... but a great story to tell. i enjoyed it.
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