View Full Version : Anchor man at the Caves
I did a couple of dives with Bob at the Caves on Sunday and had a great time. The surface didn't look great with murky green cloudiness for the first couple of metres so I thought I might be in for another low viz experience similar to early April. However, the murk was some sort of plankton layer ,I think, as below two metres there was cool greenish blue water surrounding the valleys, canyons and cliffs of this site.
It was darker at thirty metres as the ambient light faded but still clear. We drifted up five metres or so every five minutes before turing the dive round at about twenty minutes. The profusion of marine life covering every angled facet of the huge reef structures never fails to give me the impression that I am gently gliding over and alien landscape. So I was very happy and relaxed. It wasn't until after the dive that Bob told me that his second stage hose had some strange kink in it that made it want to pull out of his mouth. So, there's me having a great time while Bob is nearly cutting through the rubber of his mouthpiece to hold in the recalcitrant reg. Just shows you what a very subjective experience diving actually is and how a small discomfort can radically alter the perception of a dive.
However, all was not lost for Bob. With the surface interval over and the hose routing sorted out we set out once again. The plan was to stay shallower, with a max depth of 25metres. We turned the dive at about twenty minutes and a few minutes later we spotted a jammed anchor with about eight metres of blue nylon line running from it but no vessel or buoy on the end. Spiraling nastily around the nylon rope was some very heavy duty fishing line with about half a dozen recently baited mackrel hooks attached. A big cod-like fish was caught and struggling on one of the hooks. Bob sprang into action and released the fish from the hook- although he did tell me that he contemplated dealing out a blow to the back of its head and putting it into his goody bag. Anyway the fish swims free- although it looks rather lethargic- and Bob the eco-warrior turns into the Salvage God. Firstly he frees the anchor from the crevice that it is jammed into. I suggest cutting the rope and before my knife can be deployed Bob has a big shiny Northern Diver blade slicing through the blue nylon. I coil up the rope, taking care not to hook myself and Bob is off with his treasure. The remainder of the dive was great fun as I watched and listened to Bob's progress along the bottom. Clang, scrape, batter... he used the thing like a plough and I am sure that a foot deep furrow marks his progress back to the entry point.
We ascend to swim out the safety stop and I spotted a big lobster in its lair and signalled to Bob to come and have a look, which he just about managed to do without obliterating a patch of gorgeous orange anemones. Bob is very excited by the lobster and I wonder if he is going to ditch his treasure and go for the marine life. Not on my watch I think, as I prepare to inflate his jacket, but all is well and Bob decides that his precious anchor is enough for one dive.
We finished the dive laughing like drains at the whole performance and Bob was beaming as if his birthday and Christmas had been rolled into one big ball. So, as if it actually need saying, a great day's diving.
Airmonster
28-05-07, 13:06
Excellent dive blog Gerry.
Have to agree with you. The last two dives I've done in Loch Long have been at this site and if you get the conditions right it can be truly spectacular. Coming up the rock face to see all the Plumbrose Anemones on the top is akin to the snow on the top of a mountain range - wonderful
Well worth the effort of actually getting in to the water.
Well done!
/Colin. :D
alexmaclennan
28-05-07, 13:47
:)
alex
Magic Mark
28-05-07, 14:12
I did a couple of dives with Bob at the Caves on Sunday and had a great time. The surface didn't look great with murky green cloudiness for the first couple of metres so I thought I might be in for another low viz experience similar to early April. However, the murk was some sort of plankton layer ,I think, as below two metres there was cool greenish blue water surrounding the valleys, canyons and cliffs of this site.
It was darker at thirty metres as the ambient light faded but still clear. We drifted up five metres or so every five minutes before turing the dive round at about twenty minutes. The profusion of marine life covering every angled facet of the huge reef structures never fails to give me the impression that I am gently gliding over and alien landscape. So I was very happy and relaxed. It wasn't until after the dive that Bob told me that his second stage hose had some strange kink in it that made it want to pull out of his mouth. So, there's me having a great time while Bob is nearly cutting through the rubber of his mouthpiece to hold in the recalcitrant reg. Just shows you what a very subjective experience diving actually is and how a small discomfort can radically alter the perception of a dive.
However, all was not lost for Bob. With the surface interval over and the hose routing sorted out we set out once again. The plan was to stay shallower, with a max depth of 25metres. We turned the dive at about twenty minutes and a few minutes later we spotted a jammed anchor with about eight metres of blue nylon line running from it but no vessel or buoy on the end. Spiraling nastily around the nylon rope was some very heavy duty fishing line with about half a dozen recently baited mackrel hooks attached. A big cod-like fish was caught and struggling on one of the hooks. Bob sprang into action and released the fish from the hook- although he did tell me that he contemplated dealing out a blow to the back of its head and putting it into his goody bag. Anyway the fish swims free- although it looks rather lethargic- and Bob the eco-warrior turns into the Salvage God. Firstly he frees the anchor from the crevice that it is jammed into. I suggest cutting the rope and before my knife can be deployed Bob has a big shiny Northern Diver blade slicing through the blue nylon. I coil up the rope, taking care not to hook myself and Bob is off with his treasure. The remainder of the dive was great fun as I watched and listened to Bob's progress along the bottom. Clang, scrape, batter... he used the thing like a plough and I am sure that a foot deep furrow marks his progress back to the entry point.
We ascend to swim out the safety stop and I spotted a big lobster in its lair and signalled to Bob to come and have a look, which he just about managed to do without obliterating a patch of gorgeous orange anemones. Bob is very excited by the lobster and I wonder if he is going to ditch his treasure and go for the marine life. Not on my watch I think, as I prepare to inflate his jacket, but all is well and Bob decides that his precious anchor is enough for one dive.
We finished the dive laughing like drains at the whole performance and Bob was beaming as if his birthday and Christmas had been rolled into one big ball. So, as if it actually need saying, a great day's diving.
Gerryo,
I may have missed the point here....(but)
If a diver has a problem no matter how small he is obliged to let his buddy know fefore it becomes a big problem, and to me a kinked hose is no small thing. If I had a problem keeping my reg in my mouth I would want it sorting.
It may be just me or is it??
Magic.
Yes, I think its just you I'm afraid. I think you have missed the point in a big way.
Bob did not make me aware of the problem, moreover, he did not look in distress during the frequent air checks that we carried out. It was only after the dive that he enlightened me about the problem. My point is that a small problem such as a tight hose or mask steaming up can alter your perception of a dive, even if it does not multiply and become a larger safety issue. Is there anyone else out there who has put up with a niggle rather than end a dive?
Anyway, my buddies experience of the day culminated in the biggest grin I have seen in a while. Should he have thumbed the first dive? That was his call to make.
Excellent blog, Gerry. :)
The Caves offer great diving: one of my favourite local sites.
If we cancelled every dive in our club because of minor niggles half the divers would never get wet. I guess it's a case of keeping things in perspective. Would an issue be classified as a minor inconvenience or a potential risk? I had such a decision to make on a boat dive that I led last week where one of our group developed a nasty nose bleed underwater. I was quite alarmed & was ready to curtail the dive but he insisted that he was OK. The bleed occured immediately after the descent and had no frothy component so I was confident that it was nasal in origin rather than pulmonary. I cancelled the shared ascent that was planned for the dive. After surfacing, it turned out that he'd had a nose bleed earlier that day. If he'd divulged that information before the dive then I would have been much less anxious underwater. You live & learn... hopefully! :rolleyes:
Cool blog! Cheers Gerry.
:)
great blog as ever Gerry,
nice to see you posting them here also.:)
it would appear your popularity is increasing on a daily basis....
any posts planned for tomorrow? :D
Nice blog Gerry, however without wanting to stir up controversy would like to raise this:
Anyway the fish swims free- although it looks rather lethargic- and Bob the eco-warrior
I watched and listened to Bob's progress along the bottom. Clang, scrape, batter... he used the thing like a plough and I am sure that a foot deep furrow marks his progress back to the entry point.
Anyone else notice something contradictory about this, or is it just me??
i think its called 'humour' chris as it was suggested just after this quote.
although he did tell me that he contemplated dealing out a blow to the back of its head and putting it into his goody bag
think you would have to know both guys to understand.
Sorry Chris, its just you. Sorry 'bout that, but the problem with rhetorical questions is that they beg the wrong answer. "I mean do I really look stupid!" is the wrong question to ask thirty fourteen year olds? Of course you do they reply in unison!
Actually, you are damn right, I used the term "eco-warrior" somewhat loosely. Like many of us my esteemed colleague Bob has a multi-faceted personality - maybe eco-warrior means one at war with the environment. No, you are right that really is stretching it. Anyway the joys of salvage overcame his eco- instincts and I used a light touch of hyperbole in the interests of story-telling, although there was the odd clang of metal on rock.
wonder how many soft corals and urchins were destroyed in between the rock clanging??
Chris it was a massacre man! The water became a short animal turf emulsion and shell fragment flew like shrapnel as the vast object devastated the sea bed. I looked on in utter revulsion as my deranged dive partner indiscriminately pulled a scallop dredge along with his teeth, just for sheer devilment. I attempted to restrain him but he ignored the three minute safety stop- and exited the water. What wanton risk-taking. I tracked him down eventually, hunched over a camp fire in deepest Argyll, an otter roasting on spit and an omlette of osprey eggs sizzling away in a pan. With both our eco-warrior credentials now in tatters I tasted the omelette- delicious!
The sublime savoury tast swept me to the dark side instantly and I bought a copy of the CITES red list of endangered species to use as a menu:)
…which just proves that if you skip the safety stop, you have ample time to cook an egg! :p
but what were the biscuits...I hope not fairtrade!!
Tunnocks finest tea cakes and caramel logs were deployed at strategic points in the day, along with some savoury Nairns cheesy oatcakes. Contrary to recent reports, no animals were hurt in the eating of lunch.
Chris it was a massacre man! The water became a short animal turf emulsion and shell fragment flew like shrapnel as the vast object devastated the sea bed. I looked on in utter revulsion as my deranged dive partner indiscriminately pulled a scallop dredge along with his teeth, just for sheer devilment. I attempted to restrain him but he ignored the three minute safety stop- and exited the water. What wanton risk-taking. I tracked him down eventually, hunched over a camp fire in deepest Argyll, an otter roasting on spit and an omlette of osprey eggs sizzling away in a pan. With both our eco-warrior credentials now in tatters I tasted the omelette- delicious!
The sublime savoury tast swept me to the dark side instantly and I bought a copy of the CITES red list of endangered species to use as a menu:)
WOW can i come diving next time
http://www.freewebs.com/scubaportal/metalsub/anchorman.jpg
Dive Tramp
29-05-07, 01:33
Nice, clean, obviously first (and last! ) time used anchor. No chain attached? The chain would have been worth more than the anchor! I trust the Receiver of Wreck has been notified of this valuable piece of Wreck ( about £14.50 on E-bay). Only joking! Should make a nice paper weight;)
Hi, I feel that I should back myself up hear. On no account would I ever cause damage to the environment or take anything from the seabed or from land for that matter that is not from, environmentally sustainable source.
There has only been one misfortunate incident that has led to legal proceedings, and I would like to indicate that I was cleared of all charges! As follows.
Whilst up in Glencoe I decided to try my hand at shooting, (emphasizing that I will only eat meet from a environmentally sustainable source only). I was lucky enough to get a hare in my gun sights, as I squeezed the trigger to shoot the hair, a Golden Eagle came down to pounce on the hair. Unfortunately the Golden Eagle got caught in the line of fire, Killing it instantly! Fortunately the hair escaped unscathed. As you can imagine this deeply disturbed me and I felt it was only proper to give the bird a fitting end rather that just letting it rot away. I strongly believe in eating only what you kill, so I thought I should uphold my beliefs and decided to have the bird for dinner.
Legally the locale police had to be informed and this lead to a court case! On explaining the terrible incident to the judge and in my strong belief in protecting the environment and in only eating meat that has had a free and natural life and also explaining that I upheld my beliefs by giving the bird a fitting end (my dinner). The judge felt fully satisfied that my intent was not to intentional to kill or harm an endangered spice of bird and fully understood it was through misfortune that the bird was killed. So all charge were dropped.
Speaking to the judge later he did ask me what did golden eagle taste like. I replied Not as strong tasting as Osprey but a bit more milder than lesser spotted woodpecker !
Thanks for turning this round and explaining your ethics a bit better. I now retract any previous implications I may have made, hope you made a little trophy out of the Eagle foot!!
And they all lived happily ever after.
The end……:)
alexmaclennan
29-05-07, 21:55
Chris it was a massacre man! The water became a short animal turf emulsion and shell fragment flew like shrapnel as the vast object devastated the sea bed. I looked on in utter revulsion as my deranged dive partner indiscriminately pulled a scallop dredge along with his teeth, just for sheer devilment. I attempted to restrain him but he ignored the three minute safety stop- and exited the water. What wanton risk-taking. I tracked him down eventually, hunched over a camp fire in deepest Argyll, an otter roasting on spit and an omlette of osprey eggs sizzling away in a pan. With both our eco-warrior credentials now in tatters I tasted the omelette- delicious!
The sublime savoury tast swept me to the dark side instantly and I bought a copy of the CITES red list of endangered species to use as a menu:)
Ah...........the joys of LSD coated Lidl dive masks :p
alex
Absolutely Alex, most people think that I squeeze a little drop of defogging agent into my mask before a dive. Yeah, right man...
Cheers,
Gerry
Chris it was a massacre man! The water became a short animal turf emulsion and shell fragment flew like shrapnel as the vast object devastated the sea bed. I looked on in utter revulsion as my deranged dive partner indiscriminately pulled a scallop dredge along with his teeth, just for sheer devilment. I attempted to restrain him but he ignored the three minute safety stop- and exited the water. What wanton risk-taking. I tracked him down eventually, hunched over a camp fire in deepest Argyll, an otter roasting on spit and an omlette of osprey eggs sizzling away in a pan. With both our eco-warrior credentials now in tatters I tasted the omelette- delicious!
The sublime savoury tast swept me to the dark side instantly and I bought a copy of the CITES red list of endangered species to use as a menu:)
Would have prefered Eagle eggs really. :D :D
Steve
billy mills
30-05-07, 23:05
I've heard stranger stories about burds from Bob.
LMAO.Aye burd flew he had until he shot it!