Wrecks in tobermory?

[rick00001967]

A couple of things about this (I wasn't there that day of course, but generally)... First, conditions in town don't reflect what's going on on the lake. I suspect that about 30% of the time, our plans change once we get out on the lake. Last weekend, there was a strong SE wind. Looking out from the harbour, the lake was like a pond. But the Arabia had 5 footers rolling over it, Forest City was likely worse.

Second, if this was a "walk-on" charter, the abilities of the divers on board is largely unknown. I think DD requires an Advanced OW cert to dive there, but we all understand that that card doesn't mean squat anymore. Since you mentioned Arabia, I can tell you that there are days when the current there is absolutely ripping. A Captain is responsible for his/her passengers' safety above all. These folks know the water better than you do. They're also the ones that are going to get sued when stuff goes sideways. Given the average diver is about 50, overweight, and out of shape, I trust you can understand their concern. Having a site called is disappointing, but for a truly messed up day, try hauling a dead guy on to the deck... And shipwrecks aren't going anywhere.

I can't speak to the people on your boat, but I doubt they were all "pissed off". Most divers just want to dive and the smart ones defer to a local expert when it comes to choosing a site. That isn't unique to Tobermory, I assure you.

i certainly did not post my comment to slam any particular shop. that is why i did not name them. there was more than one in town at that time.
but trust me.....they waited til we were on the water and then told us we were not diving the arabia.
bottom line is that everyone on that boat would have never got on if they had told us we would not be diving the arabia that day. or at the very least we would have decided to go anywhere other than where we were taken.
so instead they took us to a really shallow "wreck". basically scattered about. if i remember it was like 15 feet deep?
then they tried to convince us to stay there and do a second dive. whaaat?
and trust me again.....there were only about 6 of us on the boat and yes, we were all pretty pissed.
at my suggestion we went to that shore dive people do right near town. we just did it from the boat. i actually enjoyed it. my two buddies dived it. the others stayed on the boat.
i would be the last person to wanna put any diver in a dangerous position. and if it truly is not divable then you don't go.
but you don't wait until everyone is on board and then before even leaving the harbour tell everyone the bad news. you share the latest intel at the dock. the group decides if it is a go or not. then the skipper has final say. if it is a no go then people can either leave or agree to dive elsewhere.

 

[Stoo]

but trust me.....they waited til we were on the water and then told us we were not diving the arabia.

I don't doubt that at all. Weather and conditions change. They may have have left the harbour and seen the conditions or perhaps another boat radioed to update them. It happens all the time. Even outside the harbour, the lake can be very flat in a south wind. But get out three miles and you can be in 5 - 6 footers.

You kinda make it sound like there was some conspiracy to keep you from diving that site, but obviously there would be no reason for that. No business wants disappointed customers and I imagine that their logic was that any dive is better than no dive. I have no idea if they'd have brought you back in if you all just stomped your feet and complained, but I suspect they would have. The wreck you described was likely the Minch. It's the usual bailout site. And yes, it kinda sucks. You aren't the first to dive that site "under protest" and you won't be the last.

Anyway, I wasn't there, so I'll take your word as to what happened, but surely it's easy to see that the Captain figured it wasn't safe to dive there, and ultimately, it's his call. But as I said, the wrecks aren't going anywhere.

 

[Ontwreckdiver]

In addition to the Grotto itself, I published some photos earlier this year of "Baggy Pants Cavern" which is a fun little cave about 150 yards east...View attachment 743663

Stoo.
What depth is this. I have dove at the Grotto several times and have looked for it a couple of times but couldn't find it.

 

[Stoo]

Stoo.
What depth is this. I have dove at the Grotto several times and have looked for it a couple of times but couldn't find it.

Very shallow… 15-30 feet I suppose. You likely just didn’t go far enough east. It’s a bit of a swim from the grotto.

This is what the area outside of it looks like.

 

[ontdiver]

Just to echo what @Stoo noted above, our group of 4 dove Tobermory a number of years ago with the local dive shop. When we headed out the water was calm and the sky was blue. IIRC, it got a bit choppy when we tied up to the Arabia (?) but this did not alter our dive plan. However, about 40 mins into the dive we heard the fateful [clanging] on the ladder and knew that something was up. Well...it was blowing like crazy topside and the boat was pitching like a rocking horse. We managed to get back on the boat and had a safe but white knuckle ride back to the marina. All to say that things change quickly.

PS I don't remember the Captain's name, but she was calm and professional.

 

[Ontwreckdiver]

Very shallow… 15-30 feet I suppose. You likely just didn’t go far enough east. It’s a bit of a swim from the grotto.

This is what the area outside of it looks like.

Thanks, I was at about 20 feet, so you probably right I didn't go far enough.