Randy g
Contributor
Our Manta Story.
We had made plans all week to make a long run 55 miles down to the Normannia to scooter it and Eds Lobster Wreck to collect dinner this last saturday with our favorite local MHC Dive Boat Capt onboard Tortuga. We were really looking forward to diving the 400+ ft Normannia, reported to be the most beautiful wreck in the NC coastline and bringing home some big bugs. We watched all the video's to get an idea about how the wrecks are laid out and get a plan of attack for our little scooter team.
We arrived at the boat at 0630, not really paying attention to the weather since we last checked the day before. Unloaded and loaded the boat at twilight then all the sudden Kate looked south, towards the direction we were to be heading and woke us all up, very quickly. A HUGE storm moved in overnight and the wall of clouds looked "Evil" to put it mildly. Capt James pulls up the radar and it's a solid red wall coming across from the west. Right were we were supposed to be going. Capt asked me what I thought and I told him there are way to many nice wrecks east of here to be dealing with that stuff. Asked for an alternate site and the first thing that popped in my head was The Atlas! Sharky with good structure and big. Great for scootering!! We dove it last year and really enjoyed to dive site. This season we are scootering and getting a lot better feel for the wrecks and creatures that live there.
We promptly set about and headed east over the shoals. Honestly I was a little sad that I couldn't see the N and get some bugs at the lobster wreck but when the best laid plans are unexpectedly changed due to mother nature. You just have to go with the flow.
We were well rewarded for "going with the flow".
We dropped in on the stern quarter and the bottom was so thck with bait balls it darked the area around you. Big sharks and babies were everywhere and some big barracudas. I jumped in to look at the hook and when I get down to the anchor, it's barely holding on, with one tine. I take up the extra chain and wrap the structure with it and attach it back onto the lead chain. All good and we go about our dive plan.
Kate and Patrick are leading the way towards the bow checking out the great wreck that The Atlas is, following some juvenile sandtiger sharks along and seeing some really, REALLY BIG females. Full grown, healthy 12 footers and lots of them. We zoom with forward momentum up to the bow area. We are looking at some BIG female sharks and look up to see a Manta circling the bow structure.
All of us were in awe!
In shock!! How freakin cool is this!!
None of us had EVER expected to see such a rare and unique creature on this dive, or any dive in the area. They are that rare here. I was dealing with a free flowing wing inflator from the get go and having to burp the wing every few minutes. So I was very aware of going up in the water column to play with the Manta on the scooter, could get me in trouble quickly. Getting out of sight of the wreck was also on my mind. I quickly got a few seconds of video and descended back onto the wreck and disconnected my hose. I really wanted to stay and video the animal but good training told me otherwise with this given situation. Better safe than sorry.
30 seconds at 110 ft made my day last saturday!!
Video to follow. Gotta unload and clean gear now.
Thanks Capt James! You always deliver!
Thanks for reading.
Quicky video that Kate threw togather.
[video=youtube;cfWiqd54REQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfWiqd54REQ[/video]
More to come.
We had made plans all week to make a long run 55 miles down to the Normannia to scooter it and Eds Lobster Wreck to collect dinner this last saturday with our favorite local MHC Dive Boat Capt onboard Tortuga. We were really looking forward to diving the 400+ ft Normannia, reported to be the most beautiful wreck in the NC coastline and bringing home some big bugs. We watched all the video's to get an idea about how the wrecks are laid out and get a plan of attack for our little scooter team.
We arrived at the boat at 0630, not really paying attention to the weather since we last checked the day before. Unloaded and loaded the boat at twilight then all the sudden Kate looked south, towards the direction we were to be heading and woke us all up, very quickly. A HUGE storm moved in overnight and the wall of clouds looked "Evil" to put it mildly. Capt James pulls up the radar and it's a solid red wall coming across from the west. Right were we were supposed to be going. Capt asked me what I thought and I told him there are way to many nice wrecks east of here to be dealing with that stuff. Asked for an alternate site and the first thing that popped in my head was The Atlas! Sharky with good structure and big. Great for scootering!! We dove it last year and really enjoyed to dive site. This season we are scootering and getting a lot better feel for the wrecks and creatures that live there.
We promptly set about and headed east over the shoals. Honestly I was a little sad that I couldn't see the N and get some bugs at the lobster wreck but when the best laid plans are unexpectedly changed due to mother nature. You just have to go with the flow.
We were well rewarded for "going with the flow".
We dropped in on the stern quarter and the bottom was so thck with bait balls it darked the area around you. Big sharks and babies were everywhere and some big barracudas. I jumped in to look at the hook and when I get down to the anchor, it's barely holding on, with one tine. I take up the extra chain and wrap the structure with it and attach it back onto the lead chain. All good and we go about our dive plan.
Kate and Patrick are leading the way towards the bow checking out the great wreck that The Atlas is, following some juvenile sandtiger sharks along and seeing some really, REALLY BIG females. Full grown, healthy 12 footers and lots of them. We zoom with forward momentum up to the bow area. We are looking at some BIG female sharks and look up to see a Manta circling the bow structure.
All of us were in awe!
In shock!! How freakin cool is this!!
None of us had EVER expected to see such a rare and unique creature on this dive, or any dive in the area. They are that rare here. I was dealing with a free flowing wing inflator from the get go and having to burp the wing every few minutes. So I was very aware of going up in the water column to play with the Manta on the scooter, could get me in trouble quickly. Getting out of sight of the wreck was also on my mind. I quickly got a few seconds of video and descended back onto the wreck and disconnected my hose. I really wanted to stay and video the animal but good training told me otherwise with this given situation. Better safe than sorry.
30 seconds at 110 ft made my day last saturday!!
Video to follow. Gotta unload and clean gear now.
Thanks Capt James! You always deliver!
Thanks for reading.
Quicky video that Kate threw togather.
[video=youtube;cfWiqd54REQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfWiqd54REQ[/video]
More to come.
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