Beautiful September day!
We had 6 divers on my buddy Scotty's 23 Maycraft. No wind, there was a little leftover swell in the morning and then it went dead calm in the afternoon. I am so glad I dropped everything and headed for the coast.
My sons 15 & 17 joined me and my friend Jay, leaving Durham at 5:09 am and getting to Olympus at 8:00 am to pick up my regulators that were being serviced, and 8 tanks. That included a quick stop at the ATM for some cash, so I was pleased with the trip time. Had I not locked myself out of the house with my keys, wallet and sunglasses still in the kitchen, we would have been able to pull away at the agreed upon 5:00am sharp. Luckily, the kitchen window was cracked, and I was able to pry the screen off with my pocket knife and slither through the window like an arthritic snake.
We got to the buoy at AR330 at 10am and tried to find the 160 pieces of concrete rubble that is south of the buoy. The anchor never hung, and the first dive was in beautiful water, but we found a sandy bottom with very scarce stucture.
Second dive was on the wreck of the Indra. My sons, suited up and got in the water, anxious to see the wreck. I told them to go ahead, but be sure the anchor was secure before beginning to explore. I followed soon after. The water temperature was in the mid 70s and the visibility excellent, probably 30 feet. It didnt take me long to find the boys, poking around the ship and looking into the holes in the side of the hull. There were several large barracuda patrolling around the deck, as if they were the wreck police. Huge schools of baitfish darted around in large clouds, and the decks were covered with the common varieties of fish that make their living on the coral that is now growing on the ship. Juvenile grouper were abundant, being anywhere from 8 to 14 inches long. One very large barracuda exhibited perfect buoyancy control hovering motionless inside a large hole in the west side of the hull.
Jay and Scotty dove a third dive at AR320 on the way home, gathering up a few more flounder. They reported 15' on the bottom.
All in all it was a GREAT day, I was happy to spend the time with my sons and other good friends.
If you want to to read a very detailed account of the day, I am almost finished with my blog, and it will be available late Sunday evening in story format at:
www.lulu.com/krosemond
Blog is at the bottom of the page.
I am going to try again next weekend, and the next, until it is so cold I can't feel my fingers
We had 6 divers on my buddy Scotty's 23 Maycraft. No wind, there was a little leftover swell in the morning and then it went dead calm in the afternoon. I am so glad I dropped everything and headed for the coast.
My sons 15 & 17 joined me and my friend Jay, leaving Durham at 5:09 am and getting to Olympus at 8:00 am to pick up my regulators that were being serviced, and 8 tanks. That included a quick stop at the ATM for some cash, so I was pleased with the trip time. Had I not locked myself out of the house with my keys, wallet and sunglasses still in the kitchen, we would have been able to pull away at the agreed upon 5:00am sharp. Luckily, the kitchen window was cracked, and I was able to pry the screen off with my pocket knife and slither through the window like an arthritic snake.
We got to the buoy at AR330 at 10am and tried to find the 160 pieces of concrete rubble that is south of the buoy. The anchor never hung, and the first dive was in beautiful water, but we found a sandy bottom with very scarce stucture.
Second dive was on the wreck of the Indra. My sons, suited up and got in the water, anxious to see the wreck. I told them to go ahead, but be sure the anchor was secure before beginning to explore. I followed soon after. The water temperature was in the mid 70s and the visibility excellent, probably 30 feet. It didnt take me long to find the boys, poking around the ship and looking into the holes in the side of the hull. There were several large barracuda patrolling around the deck, as if they were the wreck police. Huge schools of baitfish darted around in large clouds, and the decks were covered with the common varieties of fish that make their living on the coral that is now growing on the ship. Juvenile grouper were abundant, being anywhere from 8 to 14 inches long. One very large barracuda exhibited perfect buoyancy control hovering motionless inside a large hole in the west side of the hull.
Jay and Scotty dove a third dive at AR320 on the way home, gathering up a few more flounder. They reported 15' on the bottom.
All in all it was a GREAT day, I was happy to spend the time with my sons and other good friends.
If you want to to read a very detailed account of the day, I am almost finished with my blog, and it will be available late Sunday evening in story format at:
www.lulu.com/krosemond
Blog is at the bottom of the page.
I am going to try again next weekend, and the next, until it is so cold I can't feel my fingers
