- Messages
- 1,546
- Reaction score
- 2
Decided to knock the cobwebs off the boat and head out to the gulf for some diving. Enlisted Kathy (wife), Missdirected, and Sadie199 to come along.
The day started off not so good. I ended up being late to the dock because of a bad battery problem which wouldn't let me raise the engine :cussing: . Without being able to lift the engine I couldn't leave the driveway. Once I got passed that I found the battery had gone bad again, but only after I had launched the boat and was tied off to the dock blocking the ramp :cussing:. Missd and Kathy helped me get through that by borrowing a jumper box from a local marina - See, it pays to dive with hot babe's in a beamer:gorgeous::gorgeous:. After I got the engine running I then spent a few minutes trying to figure out why the electronics (GPS) wouldn't turn on. We didn't worry too much about leaving late from the dock because our 4th ended up needing the extra time to sign her autograph for a local Pinellas Cnty sheriff's deputy while coming up US HWY 19 :cop_2:. On the up side we figured that with sooo many things going wrong before we even left the dock, nothing else was left to happen. For once I was right about that.
Our first stop was at the Pasco Cnty M60 army tanks. 33 feet of water, 74.5 degrees on the surface, slightly cooler on the bottom, vis was 40+. I could see the tanks on the bottom while looking over the side of the boat. Conditions haven't been that good at the tanks (when I've been there) in almost 2 years. Missd and Sadie splashed first, then Kathy and I. Once on the bottom while on one tank, you could just about make out the next tank - vis was that good! There weren't as many fish on the reef as I remember from our last time out, but it looks like the nudabranch's had been gettin jiggy with each other as the tanks were covered with them. Speaking of being covered, the tanks seem to have a bit more growth on them then when I was there last. All kinds of coral and sponge. Incredably, when we surfaced I noticed that the few boats that had showed up since we splashed had actually honored the dive flags and had not parked right on to of us. Does it get any better than this!
We did our surface interval while motoring down to dive 2 at Veteran's reef. 47 feet of water, 74.5 on the surface, slightly cooler on the bottom, Vis again was 40+ top to bottom, slight northerly current on the surface only. Anchored and dropped about 30 feet north east of the yellow bouy as fishing boats were over the barges themselves. Between the two teams we saw 6 Goliath grouper, a stingray with a 4 foot span, tons of bait fish schools thick enough to block out the sun and the barge, and tons of everything else but barricuda, which was mysteriously not present on the reef. Usually there are schools of Cuda on Vet's reef. We even found the memorial plaque on the way in towards the barges. Growth on the barges seems about normal, but the larger of the three barges, the one closest to shore seems to have had it's bow/stern collapse with the hull platting falling out to the sand and the decking coming straight down into the hull leaving just the beams now sticking up above the deck and just 2 or so feet of space underneath it. If you've never seen the barge, the way it looks after the collapse, you'd think it used to have a superstructure on that end.
Last but not least, the most productive spot of the day was Tarpon reef. 27 feet of water, Temps about a degree or so warmer at 76 on the surface and as usual, a bit cooler on the bottom, moderate northerly current on the surface only. Vis 40+ top to bottom. I didn't need to look at my GPS to know we where there as the anchor mysteriously dropped while I was running at 20+ knots, just as I was over the edge of the reef. So, I put it in neutral, and we dove right there. Guess some times the boat knows better than I do, either that or the 1st mate didn't adequately tie off the anchor line to the cleat before we left Vet's reef - oh, did I say that out loud.... Anyway, I found a nice brand spankin' new anchor with 8 feet of chain lodged in a colvert - complete with almost 24 feet of rope, the end cut off no doubt by one P'sd off fisherman. MissD put her spear gun to use and came up with some nice fish. The reef looks real nice with all kinds of corals, sponges, and fish of all kinds.
The day started off not so good. I ended up being late to the dock because of a bad battery problem which wouldn't let me raise the engine :cussing: . Without being able to lift the engine I couldn't leave the driveway. Once I got passed that I found the battery had gone bad again, but only after I had launched the boat and was tied off to the dock blocking the ramp :cussing:. Missd and Kathy helped me get through that by borrowing a jumper box from a local marina - See, it pays to dive with hot babe's in a beamer:gorgeous::gorgeous:. After I got the engine running I then spent a few minutes trying to figure out why the electronics (GPS) wouldn't turn on. We didn't worry too much about leaving late from the dock because our 4th ended up needing the extra time to sign her autograph for a local Pinellas Cnty sheriff's deputy while coming up US HWY 19 :cop_2:. On the up side we figured that with sooo many things going wrong before we even left the dock, nothing else was left to happen. For once I was right about that.
Our first stop was at the Pasco Cnty M60 army tanks. 33 feet of water, 74.5 degrees on the surface, slightly cooler on the bottom, vis was 40+. I could see the tanks on the bottom while looking over the side of the boat. Conditions haven't been that good at the tanks (when I've been there) in almost 2 years. Missd and Sadie splashed first, then Kathy and I. Once on the bottom while on one tank, you could just about make out the next tank - vis was that good! There weren't as many fish on the reef as I remember from our last time out, but it looks like the nudabranch's had been gettin jiggy with each other as the tanks were covered with them. Speaking of being covered, the tanks seem to have a bit more growth on them then when I was there last. All kinds of coral and sponge. Incredably, when we surfaced I noticed that the few boats that had showed up since we splashed had actually honored the dive flags and had not parked right on to of us. Does it get any better than this!
We did our surface interval while motoring down to dive 2 at Veteran's reef. 47 feet of water, 74.5 on the surface, slightly cooler on the bottom, Vis again was 40+ top to bottom, slight northerly current on the surface only. Anchored and dropped about 30 feet north east of the yellow bouy as fishing boats were over the barges themselves. Between the two teams we saw 6 Goliath grouper, a stingray with a 4 foot span, tons of bait fish schools thick enough to block out the sun and the barge, and tons of everything else but barricuda, which was mysteriously not present on the reef. Usually there are schools of Cuda on Vet's reef. We even found the memorial plaque on the way in towards the barges. Growth on the barges seems about normal, but the larger of the three barges, the one closest to shore seems to have had it's bow/stern collapse with the hull platting falling out to the sand and the decking coming straight down into the hull leaving just the beams now sticking up above the deck and just 2 or so feet of space underneath it. If you've never seen the barge, the way it looks after the collapse, you'd think it used to have a superstructure on that end.
Last but not least, the most productive spot of the day was Tarpon reef. 27 feet of water, Temps about a degree or so warmer at 76 on the surface and as usual, a bit cooler on the bottom, moderate northerly current on the surface only. Vis 40+ top to bottom. I didn't need to look at my GPS to know we where there as the anchor mysteriously dropped while I was running at 20+ knots, just as I was over the edge of the reef. So, I put it in neutral, and we dove right there. Guess some times the boat knows better than I do, either that or the 1st mate didn't adequately tie off the anchor line to the cleat before we left Vet's reef - oh, did I say that out loud.... Anyway, I found a nice brand spankin' new anchor with 8 feet of chain lodged in a colvert - complete with almost 24 feet of rope, the end cut off no doubt by one P'sd off fisherman. MissD put her spear gun to use and came up with some nice fish. The reef looks real nice with all kinds of corals, sponges, and fish of all kinds.
