Spectre
Contributor
Bushman and I got 'Til Snow in the water on Saturday. Given that estimates were 3 weeks to get his trim motor fixed, and it only took a week, I was definately psyched to get out on the water.
We loaded up with his 10 traps and two of mine. Bushman filled 'er up while I ran across the street to get some herring to start the traps with. Due to the weather we prepped the traps in the Rock Harbor parking lot so we didn't have to deal with the smell from the pogie oil soaked rawhide on a pitching boat with no horizon.
Bushman had left the GPS at home, so we had to go by memory out to the wreck. We got to the red can marking the wreck without any problem. Unfortunately there wasn't enough traps out there to clearly define where the wreck was so we had to go by feel. I stood on the bow while we motored up until I could see the wreckage.
We gathered our bearings from there, and started laying traps wide. We worked our way around the red can and headed across to lay traps down the starboard side bow to stern. We tossed a couple, and I noticed something strange. Bushman sensed it too and we quickly realized we had gotten completely turned around and were running along the port side, within a few feet of the wreckage!
We rode the tide out on sunday, so we were out at the target ship at low tide. Attached below is a photo from last July at low tide. I didn't have my camera this time, but it's pretty much the same, with a little more collapse on the bow [to the left] and the important part.... the 3 ribs to the right back by the stern that stick out of the water except for about an hour around high tide? Yea... those broke.
So it's about 3 hours around high tide now that the ship is completely submerged. If you go out there, go out AT LOW TIDE until you know this wreck. There has been talk about dynamiting it, and given the fact that there was at least 10 traps dropped right on top, someone's going to end up with their boat impaled. I've been out there dozens of times, and bushman hundreds; and we both got ourselves turned around. Be careful if you head out there, and since this seasons batch of trappers don't know what they are doing; don't count on the bouy field to tell you where the wreck is.
We didn't explore much underwater, just from the bow to about midships on the port side. From what I saw it was basically the same. Perhaps next weekend we'll get under for some more extended time to truely see what all has changed over winter.
We loaded up with his 10 traps and two of mine. Bushman filled 'er up while I ran across the street to get some herring to start the traps with. Due to the weather we prepped the traps in the Rock Harbor parking lot so we didn't have to deal with the smell from the pogie oil soaked rawhide on a pitching boat with no horizon.
Bushman had left the GPS at home, so we had to go by memory out to the wreck. We got to the red can marking the wreck without any problem. Unfortunately there wasn't enough traps out there to clearly define where the wreck was so we had to go by feel. I stood on the bow while we motored up until I could see the wreckage.
We gathered our bearings from there, and started laying traps wide. We worked our way around the red can and headed across to lay traps down the starboard side bow to stern. We tossed a couple, and I noticed something strange. Bushman sensed it too and we quickly realized we had gotten completely turned around and were running along the port side, within a few feet of the wreckage!
We rode the tide out on sunday, so we were out at the target ship at low tide. Attached below is a photo from last July at low tide. I didn't have my camera this time, but it's pretty much the same, with a little more collapse on the bow [to the left] and the important part.... the 3 ribs to the right back by the stern that stick out of the water except for about an hour around high tide? Yea... those broke.
So it's about 3 hours around high tide now that the ship is completely submerged. If you go out there, go out AT LOW TIDE until you know this wreck. There has been talk about dynamiting it, and given the fact that there was at least 10 traps dropped right on top, someone's going to end up with their boat impaled. I've been out there dozens of times, and bushman hundreds; and we both got ourselves turned around. Be careful if you head out there, and since this seasons batch of trappers don't know what they are doing; don't count on the bouy field to tell you where the wreck is.
We didn't explore much underwater, just from the bow to about midships on the port side. From what I saw it was basically the same. Perhaps next weekend we'll get under for some more extended time to truely see what all has changed over winter.
