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Click To Enlarge
From Tom Pritchard . . .
TNI Summer Migration. Terry Martzell tossed his two-headed coin, called "heads" and promptly announced that it was time for the TNI summer migration from the lobster shack to the cement dock at Willow. In addition to Terry and TNI regular Greg Kulp, we were joined by the effervescent Rick Huck. Before Terry splashed in, I was able to give him a message from Liz: a hug. Terry said if the hug lasted any longer, I would have had to put a dollar in his garter belt. (I usually take my garter belt off before I gear up, but I guess Terry dives with his). Huck thought something got lost in the message, but I assured him that I passed it along just as I rec'd it. Gerhard Maree, GMan's friend Chris, and I made the rounds from the dock to the Quest and back to the platform via the mixer and crane in about 50 minutes. Chris surfaced leaving GMan and me to ad lib our way through the east end of the quarry. With viz ranging from 10-20 ft we were able to spot last year's new boat and the easy-to-miss snowmobile during our lap. My spies tell me that we're having stuffed chicken boobs for dinner next Thursday w/ ice creams for dessert. Bring food to the cement dock by 5:30 and then dive - or bring food and go home. 87 minutes, 54 degrees, max depth 140 ft.
BSC - WED NITE
I've learned bits and pieces about Willow and BSC from following others, but I've always learned more on my own. Saturday Gerhard Maree and I learned two things: 1) the rope from the bow of the deep boat to the step van doesn't start at the deep boat anymore; and 2) if you swim off the bow of the deep boat and head just a shade to the left, you can miss the hole. It was like diving Kansas - very flat! After about two minutes we swung to the right, found the line and headed off to the step van and barn. The viz at the rim was 30+ ft, quite an improvement from the10 ft viz at the top of the quarry. From the barn we headed to the east wall, which to our amazement was only a few kick cycles away. We turned the dive and wandered back along the rim to the pipe, deep boat, dozer, shallow boat, and our long deco/safety stop. And we did it without taking a detour into Kansas! Great learning experience and a good base to build upon. Who knows, eventually I might know BSC as well as I know Willow - but I doubt it. 98 ft, 90 minutes, 39 degrees.
From Uptown Jim Brown . . .
BSC Wed Nite - A quiet but nice evening at BSC. Donna decided another Discover Scuba was in order, this time trading the warmth, clarity and comfort of Ephrata Rec for the unknown at BSC. She donned a full 7mm, hood and gloves and braved the snake-stalked waters with Instructor John Gross. Mike Nast expanded his BSC "experience" by leading Topher and ? through the Bowl and beyond while I accompanied John and Donna. Topher reviewed OW module #2 with Mike after they got separated UW and reunited on the surface, much later. Steve and his gang were doing a little platform maintenance under Susie's watchful eye.
Donna and John started on the road to get comfortable and acclimated. After skills completion we took a little UW tour in the confined OW environment we call the Lagoon. She is now looking over class schedules to get the pool/class work done before a sure trip to the warm, clear Caribbean for OW cert dives. I think she really wants to be a certified diver after all; although her battle with the boat in NC may cause her to question the really of boat-based ocean diving! She was a trooper. Many thanks to John Gross for his perseverance, patience and exceptional teaching skills, especially the gratuitous tired-diver tow at the end of the Discover!
5/14-16, Beaufort, NC - Wreck Diving & Sharks!
There is so much to say and so little time in Darth's schedule to post all of it! I'll keep this report brief and save some of the more juicy details for the NC photo album coming up. 15 scuba hoodlums and two bubble watchers journeyed to NC for our first warm-water wreck diving adventure. We stayed in the West Lodge belonging to Discovery Diving. This lodge is actually a pretty nice place with many comforts of home and can't be beat at $14 per night per person. The eight-hour trip to/from was bearable yet challenged us slightly on the ride home. Despite our exhilaration from the fabulous diving, the highway takes it toll. Dennie was the only smart one among us staying over Sunday night and driving back on Monday. Divers C-Lu, Darth, Nate, Handsome, Rock, Palm, Dennie, Sharon, Steve Mooney, JamesZ, Ron Krout, Mike Hostetter, Ray, Mark (yes, Myers!) and yours truly were watched carefully by Donna and Kathy as we plunged five times into the deep blue. Captain Jerry Smith and mate Justin ran a tight ship aboard the SeaQuest II and made us feel like celebrities.
We got our feet wet on the intact, artificial reef wreck, the Indra, inshore 7 miles out, to 72fsw. Temp was 66F. My run time was 1:03. Vis was in the 40' range with lots of penetration on this boat. Day 2 took us first to the Papoose about 22 miles out. The seas got snotty on us with ripping surface current to 35' and a surface wind and chop that made several people green. The dive was spectacular though, to 117fsw for 1:09. Temp was 70F and vis reached 50+ easily. Sand tigers were cruising the sand and a few teeth were recovered by Sharon. Ron Krout learned the art of camera management, the hard way, as he lost his brand new Sea Life Reefmaster digital and strobe. It popped off the lanyard on the way up the line never to be seen again in the ripping current; serious bummer. We moved toward shore to the Aeolus for Dive #2 of Day 2, a troop transport and also an artificial reef site. A nice dive to 112fsw for 47, temp 68F. Vis was pleasing and no less than the Papoose. Did I say more sharks? Definitely! The seas settled, the current subsided and the boaters recovered from the agitation on the Papoose.
Day 3 of our adventure took us east of the shoals to the Atlas tanker and Caribe Sea. The Atlas was covered with sharks and awesome encounters. We have a ton of pics to prove it. A dive to 120fsw for 1:09 with 68F temp. Vis here was consistent with Day 2 to the south of the shoals. The culmination dive of our trip could not have been more perfect; the best vis in this area since the dive season started according to Jerry and Justin. The Caribe Sea was spic-n-span and crystal clear with 70+ vis. The water was so bright and clear that the sharks were casting shadows on the sand at 86'. Simply incredible. A great way to wrap up the trip with sharks and a terrific wreck site to 86fsw for 58, temp 69F.
Everyone but Ray and Dennie breathed 30% gas for extended bottom time and safety margins. The SeaQuest II and Discovery were incredibly accommodating, friendly and fun. Bill, Dave and Julie at Discovery say hello to everyone up here and welcome your presence in their shop and on their charters for more world-class wreck diving with sharks.
Our surface intervals were a bustle of activity from pool sharking at the Royal James to relaxing outdoors with the live tunes at the Dockhouse. A group gathered for a nice seafood dinner at the Channel Marker in Atlantic Beach as well. Ray, Rock and Kathy say that Raps Bar & Grill in Morehead City is a sure bet for F&B. This is a great area with great diving and super people. Don't miss the next trip. A few of us may pull together smaller "walk-on" trips throughout the summer. Stay tuned. I think there are still spaces left on Bob Hanna's trip the end of June as well. He is using Olympus Dive Center in Morehead City with lodging in their large bunkhouse. Look for more trip details in the NC photo album coming soon to Smokey's website.
From Darth Vern . . .
Well I suppose it is up to me to hold up writing duties until divers come thru
with details on our North Carolina trip this past weekend! One lesson I learned a long time ago was not to fall asleep on a dive boat with my fly open. Well not everyone learned this lesson as I have! See the picture to the right. Mark got caught!!! BUT what I did learn is at times a buddy is invaluable and you can never practice your skills enuff!!!A little background about my personal opinions: I am not a huge proponent of the buddy sytem once a diver reaches a certain level. I feel you should be self-sufficient at all times. But what I failed to realize is some situations you can not practice for and therefore you need a dependable buddy and I am lucky I have one of the best!!!
We were on the wreck Aeolus in North Carolina and I was last to drop in. As I descended the line I noticed my right arm was wet and just figured I had my undies in the seal. As I got to the wreck my back was wet and when I hit the sand my socks were wet. After I snapped a few pics, I noticed I could not move my feet anymore. I quickly deduced that my suit was flooding, but I couldn't kick at all. I signaled my good buddy Jim Brown and he came over and I finally hand signaled my suit was flooding, thank goodness we signal u/w all the time. He helped me back onto the wreck, I sorta of shimmied back up and got to the anchor line, where I said "adios" so he could finish his dive and I was hand over hand up the line. My bladder was full and I was just slightly negative so I was holding the line pretty good all the way up and on my hang. Once on the ladder I got up to the last rung, when the mate Justin helped me the rest of the way and into my spot on the bench! After ditching my gear I stood and I still had had water up over my knees in my suit! See the pics above for further proof. Upon thinking it over after I was dried off, I am not sure how I would have gotten back to the anchor line with out Jim's help. My legs were essentially useless anchors at the time. So think about these things the next time you lose your buddy and decide to not worry about it! AND above all PRACTICE - PRACTICE - PRACTICE!!! If you ever need anyone to practice skills with, I am always available!!!!!
Keep On Diving and Live The Adventure!!!
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