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Divers: Ben (plus Lee-ann), Phil (Saturday), Mayte(Sunday) Inge, Briony, Sally, Alice, Brian (sad but cold infected non diver) and me( Adrian)

 

Started Saturday morning for six of us from Swanage Coastal Park (a brand new caravan (three twin room +double) for 8.00am start on the pier.

 

First dive – Kyarra(9.15am) for Inge/Adrian, Sally/Briony, Phil/ Ben. Shot on bow section, so me and inge did this section which I have not done much before. Went a bit camera crazy and results a bit disappointing. Good vis though about 5 – 8 meters and good hull sections covered with colourful anenomes.

 

After the dive, four of us booked onto Aoelian Sky trip late after noon and we had a few hours basking in the sunshine. Phil and Alice ( our keen trainee sports diver) got in there and went off on a drift dive at 12.30 pm. Brian and Mayte had gone off with the Siswick children (Alex and Sebastian) steam train riding and storming of Corfe castle.

 

Afternoon dive on Sky started (14.30pm) for a scenic boat trip down towards kimmeridge bay in a glorious cloudless blue sky. Just the four of us: Briony/Sally, Inge and me. Bit of current but manageable. Still 5 to 8 meters vis and all four of us had reasonable good dive, big wreck so not sure which areas we covered, mid section I think. Back to the pier for 5.30 pm to get off before they closed.

 

All caravaners spent the evening chilling out, four in the caravan and me and Inge out in the town to eat and take the Swanage evening air.

 

Sunday early start to get on pier but off for breakfast to build up strength for the hard diving day of diving and sun worshiping. Day 2 was a Siswick swap, Mayte to dive and Phil off to the tank museum.

 

First dive again on the Kyarra, bow section again but this time me and inge drifted back alone the wreck toward mid section and the boiler. Still go vis 5 -8 meters in places. The girls, Sally /Briony and Mayte also had a good dive as we all drift along in a similar path. After dive back to pier for about 5 hours sluggish behaviour in the sun. Bit too long, should have gone under pier and helped with the underwater clearance day that was happening while we were out diving. Would have dived with Alice but she was unwell.

 

After our good five hour surface interval off to the Firth Fisher (old name). Mayte sicky so, me and Inge dived together and Briony dived with a single diver who needed a bubby. Fisher is a bit further out from the Kyarra and bit deeper (35m). Going down the vis looked poorer than the kyarra in the morning and as me and inge went deeper it went dark, bit of a night dive.

 

We were last pair in so given task of sending the shot anchor back on a lifting bag. As we got to the bottom after about 5 minute decent (a lot of line on shot), discovered that shot was off the wreck and wedged in a ledge. Bit narked and struggled with the lifting bag, opened it and placed air gun near open end to fill. But made error in putting only a small amount of air in that closed the bag and twisted it at the same time so struggled to get it to lift or put more in. Looking at time had done 10 mins of dive already so in my narked state looked at the bag thought with one tug from the boat above and it would go. So indicated to inge to come away from the shot. I moved off and turned to see inge emptying the bag to try again, dam!! Went back to her and brought her away from the shot. As it was not on the wreck it would be safe to leave. Away from the shot, No wreck and saw briony who was in before us, had done search with no luck. There was no marks made by the shot, it must have bounced on the flat part of the wreck and caught on the rocky out crop. Dive time now 20 mins( felt like 5 mins said inge), dive terminated and returned to surface. Bit disappointed with dive but good experience for inge and kept me on my toes. Still sunny on surface.

 

Excellent weekend, weather good, three good dives, good company and another successful trip. I stayed Sunday evening in the caravan and went to work from swanage monday morning early. So once everybody had gone I ate a Chicken donar kebab down on the sea front and watched the sea lapping on the swanage beach, what a nice weekend.

 

Adrian