--------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00060 Date: 08/21/95 From: LEE BELL Time: 06:49pm \/To: SCUBA WOMAN (Read 2 times) Subj: RE: NARC AT 90 FEET -> Hope y'all don't mind me butting in for a second, but that's why -> where ever I'v went, the seasoned divers can tell you where the -> trustworthy shops are to get fill...I just started diving Nitrox this -> year, and am VERY careful who does my fills. I check them myself, -> but it's better to have a little trust with the people who mix... I envy you the ability to do this. I normally go to Diver's Den, here in Davie, Florida. This is a first rate, clean and well maintained shop who've been filling my tanks for years. There's no question their equipment was top quality and well maintained. Nevertheless, I was in the shop when a diver noted a funny taste in his tank and the shop discovered that the compressor had broken and allowed air to be slightly contaminated with oil. We'll never know how many bad fills went out and, since the contamination was very slight, it's possible no one will ever know. Similarly, there was a fairly recent case of a shop in the Florida Keys who's air was found to contain several times the fatal level of carbon monoxide. This is believed to have indirectly cost a diver his life (embolism killed him, but the air is believed to be the reason he came to the surface too fast). Lee --- PCBoard (R) v15.21/M 2 * Origin: The Cross Roads BBS Ft. Lauderdale, Fla 305-791-9325 (1:369/97) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00061 Date: 08/21/95 From: LEE BELL Time: 06:53pm \/To: ALAN BETHELL (Read 2 times) Subj: CRAZY DIVING & TV!!! -> Wonderful, wish I was there as I would have seen it. Quite often at -> night in the inner Sydney harbour beaches, you can see lights of -> night divers from the lookouts and the shore, it's very enchanting, -> and it often startles people who are unaware that people dive at -> night. Somehow, night diving and Great White's don't sound like a desirable combination. Guess the shark problem in Australia is a little overstated (what a surprise>. Lee --- PCBoard (R) v15.21/M 2 * Origin: The Cross Roads BBS Ft. Lauderdale, Fla 305-791-9325 (1:369/97) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00062 Date: 08/21/95 From: LEE BELL Time: 06:57pm \/To: TERRY HOWARD (Read 2 times) Subj: RE: RULES FOR DIVING -> So, several weeks ago we were at site here in the PNW notorious -> for it's swift currents. Neither one of us had dove this area before -> so we relied on word of mouth, tidetables and our massive combined -> experience in esoteric imaginary dive planning. (Hmmmm... maybe that -> should read "combined imaginary experience in.... -> -> Anyway, we get to the site 0630, about half an hour before the -> predicted slack, set the anchor but there's still two knots of -> current running up the channel. I say something totally inappropriate -> like "Damm thats a lot of current Doug, maybe we'd better scrub!" -> -> My buddy (the same as above) Ah... let's say he 'strongly -> protested'. -> -> Well.... the boat was anchored less than 50 foot offshore, the -> current about to slack and after all, the worst that could happen was -> we'd drift upchannel half a mile or so; have to crawl up the bank and -> walk back to the boat. So I get talked into doing the dive. -> -> Out goes the trailer line, on goes the gear and in goes the -> divers! -> -> Being a fairly strong swimmer and not easily intimidated when I -> *have* to swim in current (please be assured I don't go looking for -> it) I finally worked my way forward to the anchor line. It was an -> effort to say the least; especially when one is a charter member of -> the fat old guys (FOGS) society. -> -> My buddy starts swimming up. He buries his head, throws his arm -> out and starts kicking. He kicks... and he kicks... looks up and he's -> several feet *behind* where he started! Down goes his head... now -> he's doing a full power kick, furiously beating the water, using his -> arms to pull himself along the side of the boat; he again looks up (I -> noticed his face was getting pretty red), a little progress. Having -> come several feet, he tries again; (this really was funny, kind of -> like "one step forward, two steps back" routine) and he's covered -> another two feet... This goes on for about half a minute, his facial -> expression one of amazement, his breath wheezing through the snorkel; -> while I'm dangling from the anchor line watching him claw his way -> through the water: and laughing my head off. -> -> Finally, we give up, get back in the boat, drive down the -> channel and do a dive in a nice little sheltered site made 'specally -> for us whimps. What a wonderful story. Send it to Skin Diver magazine for the I learned From That column, it should be worth money. Lee --- PCBoard (R) v15.21/M 2 * Origin: The Cross Roads BBS Ft. Lauderdale, Fla 305-791-9325 (1:369/97) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00063 Date: 08/21/95 From: STEVE ELLIOT Time: 08:30pm \/To: JAMES GAMPPER (Read 2 times) Subj: Flashlight > I know we have had this discussion before, but what is the best > *lightweight* (very important) UW flashlight around? Rechargable > is good if possible (better ecological diving. I get tired of > doing cleanups and finding old batteries!) Personal opinion.... I have two different flashlights that I use regularly and a third that I keep in the trunk of my car for night dives with students. My personal favorite is a Sunlight SL-6 which holds 6 "C" cell batteries. I've got it rigged with a brass split ring so I can clip to my weightbelt, and a lanyard. I also keep a Mini Q-40 in my BC pocket at all times. I keep the standard UK-400 in the trunk. --- Blow tiny bubbles * Origin: [\] Diver Down BBS [\] Ft. Lauderdale, FL. (1:369/134) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00064 Date: 08/21/95 From: STEVE ELLIOT Time: 09:42pm \/To: JAMES GAMPPER (Read 2 times) Subj: East Coast Diving JG>Now that I am located out here near the East Coast, JG>do you have any diving suggestions in the Carolina areas. Hang on to your text editor.... the next six messages constiture everything that I know about North Carolina diving. I would appreciate any additions or corrections that you or anyone else can offer. --- Blow tiny bubbles * Origin: [\] Diver Down BBS [\] Ft. Lauderdale, FL (1:369/134) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00065 Date: 08/21/95 From: STEVE ELLIOT Time: 09:44pm \/To: JAMES GAMPPER (Read 2 times) Subj: North Carolina Diving 1/6 Diving North Carolina Sorry to hear of the cancellation of Nick Simicich's trip to Hatteras but I can offer some advice to anyone wishing to dive the Graveyard since I work as first mate on a dive boat out of Morehead City. The diving has been great so far this year and the numbers of divers visiting is down somewhat, due to economic pressures we believe, so it's a good time to come. That is, you can easily arrange a charter on a moments notice for almost any size group through one or both of the shops. So don't give up yet, Nick. There are two dive shops in the area: Discovery Diving in Beaufort and Olympas Dive Center in Morehead City. Both have several boats docked out back ranging from six-packs to headboats for up to 22 divers. Both can help arrange VERY CHEAP accommodations if you don't require palacial quarters - I'm talking about group houses with kitchens, full baths, etc for $10-15 pp per night. Since I live three hours from the docks (I have a 'real' job during the week), I stay at one of these places and I'm very happy. There are also plenty of motels in the area. Full day, two tank dives run $65-85 per person which ain't cheap, but most f the wrecks are 20-35 miles offshore which accounts for the expense. So heap overnight accommodations are welcome indeed. =========================================================================== Some folks wanted info on diving the shallower wrecks off North Carolina. Shallow here means less than 80 fsw. These are available as half-day harters which are cheaper, of course. They are also used as second dive sites on ull day charters. My first recommendation is the Liberty ship, aka Theodore Parker. It's pretty new and not in Farb's first book. It was sunk as part of the artificial reef program a few years ago. It's intact but with good growth, with large openings for relatively controlled penetration for students of wreckdom [remember, safe diving requires appropriate protection ;-) ] Anyway, the depth is approx 60 fsw or more to the sand but relief starts at 30 fsw fsw. It's easy to do an interesting shallow dive. I'm fond of the little squishy and crunchy critters and the little microcosms that develop on reef structures. Vis ranges from nil to 40-50 ft on a very goodday. I really like this dive. Don't let the snears of some deep water wreck divers and hunters turn you off. Also try the W.E. Hutton and Suloide. Descriptions are in Farb's books, but briefly, both are in 70 fsw about 14 mi off Beaufort Inlet. Both are broken up and have been in the water since the 1942 and 1943 respectively. The Hutton is a tanker, the Suloide is a freighter. The vis is usually only 30-40 ft on good days, but folks enjoy the dives. All these inshore dives remind me of New England diving - somewhat murky, but the water is most assuredly warmer. The invertebrate life is entertaining and folks do hunt on the Hutton and Suloide. The Carib Sea is the other popular inshore wreck and is also described by Farb. It's a freighter in 85 fsw with relief starting at 70 fsw. It is also broken up. Hunters like this wreck and occasionally so do large critters with teeth. A word about sharks - the area is known for Sand Tigers, but they are scarce. As a matter of fact, I didn't see a one last summer and I was out every weekend. They are big puppy dogs. The only "attack" reported in the last couple decades happened last April and the true story is that the guy reached over his shoulder to is first stage and literally shoved his hand into the critters mouth. The critter left nice teeth marks but apparently wasn't interested enough to do any real damage. They are NOT a threat. The story I'm told is that several years ago, a story appeared in some mag about the sharks of NC - when they were bundant. The locals claim that Louisiana shark fisherman showed up in droves and early wiped out the local population of Sand Tigers and whatever else was around. There are very few sharks which is very disappointing. I look for them. You're more likely to run into dolphins. I snorkeled with a pair of bottlenose three weeks ago, within arm's reach for twenty minutes!!! Heaven! When you see them, let them approach you, and *do not try to touch them*. This is the best way to make them go away. They don't like scuba so dig out your snorkel. They seem to like scooters. I snorkel with my hands behind my back. It may be my imagination but I think that they are less leary as a result. =========================================================================== I just got back from a week's vacation in the Wilmington, NC area, and had the opportunity to check on several dive operations while I was there. I am including a listing of the dive ops I contacted and some of my "general impressions" of them. Because this was not a "diving vacation" per se, I only had time for one day of diving, but I will post a review of the charter service I used (Aquatic Safaris, which operates out of Wrightsville Beach). I actually contacted about 3 or 4 dive charter services in the area, and was able to talk at length with someone at all but one of them. The one I didn't get in touch with was Carolina Cape Divers, which operates out of Long Beach (about 25 miles south of Wilmington). They >>> Continued to the next message... --- Blow tiny bubbles * Origin: [\] Diver Down BBS [\] Ft. Lauderdale, FL. (1:369/134) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00066 Date: 08/21/95 From: STEVE ELLIOT Time: 09:44pm \/To: JAMES GAMPPER (Read 2 times) Subj: North Carolina Diving 2/6 >>> Page #2. Continued from the previous message... never returned any of my calls, either before I left home or after I got to NC - all I ever got was a recording. Maybe they have so much business that they don't need to call people back - I'm sure I won't use them in the future as a result of their failure to "follow up". I'll mention up front that my family takes a vacation on Holden Beach (which is about halfway between Wilmington and Myrtle Beach, SC) every year about this time (mid-June). My wife and I were just certified last year, so we were really excited about the prospect of being able to dive on our vacation this year. It's definitely not as busy an area as say, Beaufort, but there appears to be quite a bit of good diving available - mostly wrecks, but there are a few reefs as well. Most of the dive ops go out to the deeper waters far off shore. There are some in-shore wrecks in the area, but the vis is generally poor (less than 15 feet in some cases). The "good" dives cost $75-100 for a two-tank dive, but they're pretty far out (15-20 miles) so the major expense is just getting there. Our biggest problem was finding some one to take us out on a week day - our house rental and travel schedule made a weekend charter impossible. We found only one charter service (Aquatic Safaris, mentioned above and reviewed in a separate posting) that would do this. Anyway, here is who I talked to, and some general impressions: SCUBA South Diving Co 222 South River Drive Southport, NC 28461 919-457-5201 Contact: Wayne Strickland SCUBA South would have been my first pick if I'd had my choice of dive ops to use. I talked to Mr. Strickland several times, but he basically runs weekend charters, so we couldn't go out with them. Maybe next year :-). Mr. Strickland is a NAUI instructor with 25 years experience - I noticed he has an acknowledgement and a couple of credits in one of Rod Farb's books on NC Wreck Diving. They have two boats - a 42' fiberglass boat that accomodates ten divers plus a DM, and a 52' aluminum boat that will take up to 13 divers plus a DM. They require at least six divers before they'll make a trip. They dive on a variety of wrecks and reefs (and one airplane :-) ranging from shallow (40-50 fsw) to quite deep (130+ fsw). Most of their more popular sites are in the 80-90 foot range. Surf & SCUBA Holden Beach Rd Holden Beach, NC 919-842-6899 This is a new place that just opened over Memorial Day weekend. Right now they are selling mostly beach items, but they are in the process of getting their SCUBA equipment and merchandise in. The owner is a PADI instructor and boat captain, and his wife is a PADI DM - they expect to be running dive charters by the end of July. I stopped in and talked to the owner for a while (didn't get his name). He seemed real nice, and was very interested when I told him we took a vacation there every year. I mentioned our problem with getting weekday charters, and he assured me they would be running charters "whenever we have enough for a trip" (kind of makes sense, in a funny sort of way :-). For reasons of convenience, I hope this guy stays in business for a while - his shop is very close to where we usually stay (just a few miles up the road). I bought my copy of Farb's book from him - he was the only dive shop that we visited that had it in stock (some places hadn't even heard of it). Please drop in and buy something if you're in the area :-). Ocean Outfitters West West St. Southport, NC This is a tiny shop in Southport that we stopped in one day. I wasn't impressed with their selection, but what they had appeared to be name brand, good quality stuff. They sell mostly beachwear and their stock of SCUBA gear is minimal. The person behind the counter seemed fairly clueless about dive charters, but did tell me that they ran only on weekends. SCUBA Syndrome 2718 Hwy 501 (at the Waterway) Mrytle Beach, SC 29577 803-626-6740 Contact: Shannon Stone Scott Snyder Based on a net.tip from Jeff Schwartz, we made a run down to Myrtle Beach one day to check out this place. They are a full service dive shop that seemed well-stocked and had an interesting selection of dive sites (again, mostly wrecks). The sales staff >>> Continued to the next message... --- Blow tiny bubbles * Origin: [\] Diver Down BBS [\] Ft. Lauderdale, FL. (1:369/134) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00067 Date: 08/21/95 From: STEVE ELLIOT Time: 09:45pm \/To: JAMES GAMPPER (Read 2 times) Subj: North Carolina Diving 3/6 >>> Page #3. Continued from the previous message... was helpful and seemed knowedgeable - their prices were fairly competitive (I must admit that I am somewhat spoiled, living in Atlanta - we have at least 15-20 dive shops in the area, and some carry a huge selection of stuff). If we were staying in Myrtle Beach, I wouldn't hesitate to use these guys, but it's a bit of a drive through some really bad traffic to get there from where we stay. One amusing thing about the store - they have a huge sign over their parking lot that says "Warning: SCUBA Syndrome is contagious and can lead to addictive behavior involving whole familes". I'm kind of hoping that's true, actually. Between my wife and three kids, we almost have enough people to charter our own boat - then we can go out any time we want :-). Aquatic Safaris 5751-4 Oleander Dr Wilmington, NC 28403 919-392-4386 Contact: Bobby Jeffers Dewey Preast As I mentioned, this is the outfit we actually wound up diving with. They operate out of Wrightsville Beach, and have at least a couple of boats (6-packs), maybe more. They also have a full service dive store on Oleander Dr (US 76) in Wilmington. I'll post a more detailed review in a separate message. =========================================================================== Just got back from a weekend down in Nag's Head, NC, diving on the Sea Fox out of Nag's Head Pro Divers. Had a fine time diving the Coast Guard Cutter Bedlow (which may actually be the Jackson from what I heard). The Sea Fox is a 55 ft. dive boat, very comfortable and stable diving platform. We left out of Manteo about 7:00 AM, not optimistic about conditions. They had only gotten one dive in the day before as conditions had worsened in rough seas and strong currents. But fortunately, we found conditions were much improved, with little current and excellent vis (approx. 50 ft.). It took a while to lock on to the wreck, but once on we had two very nice dives. The water was surprisingly warm, with temps in the 70s. Vis was good, although occasionally obscured by the large schools of bait fish. Lots of fish on this wreck: trigger fish, black sea bass, very large southern stingrays, jacks, a few angels, a couple of groupers, lots of toadfish. The wreck is broken into two pieces, lying approximately east/west bow to stern. The bow section lists to starboard, the stern lies about 25 feet behind it and is upright. In the wreckage of the bow section there are numerous artifacts: .30 cartridges, 3-inch shells, pieces of uniform, various steel and brass odds and ends. Depth charges can still be seen on the stern deck. The deck gun is partially buried off the starboard bow. Although this wreck is frequently dived, there is still quite a bit to see. Depth to the sand is about 75-80 fsw, which gave us about 30 min on the bottom to stay within NDLs. I would say this is a dive of moderate difficulty only due to the possibility of rough seas and strong currents. It would be an excellent introduction to wreck diving for a new diver who already has some ocean/boat diving perience if accompanied by a more experienced diver. As always, dive within the limits of your training, experience, and equipment. A full wet suit is recommended as protection against rough steel and coral. Because of the variable conditions, taking a wreck reel is highly advisable, although you may not need it. A light is also advisable for exploring hatches and overhangs. Be aware that the ammunition can still be dangerous even after half a century underwater; 3-inch shells, depth charge fuses, etc. are best left alone. =========================================================================== I was diving out of Nags Head about a week ago and the water was toasty warm, about 70 F. Water temp will depend a lot on your proximity to the Gulf Stream; you get too far from it and temps can drop to the low 60s. But the water takes a while to cool off from the summer, so diving into October is fine. The problem is that the weather is so variable. Blow-outs get more common in the fall (when wind, current, etc. are just too bad for diving). A lot of the charter boats switch over to fishing this time of year because the business is a lot more dependable. Keep in mind that in the spring the water will be cold for awhile until things warm up. CB> 2) I assume that most of the people in the club won't be advanced CB> divers, so are there any dive sites shallower than 60'? I've heard you CB> need to be an Advanced Open Water Diver to dive the NC Coast. There are lots of sites all up and down the coast appropriate for novice divers. There are several books on NC coastal diving which describe sites, levels of difficulty, charter operators, etc. Let me know if you need specific titles, but your local dive shop should be stocked. Look in the wreck diving books, even if that's not your area of interest; many (most) >>> Continued to the next message... --- Blow tiny bubbles * Origin: [\] Diver Down BBS [\] Ft. Lauderdale, FL. (1:369/134) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00068 Date: 08/21/95 From: STEVE ELLIOT Time: 09:45pm \/To: JAMES GAMPPER (Read 2 times) Subj: North Carolina Diving 4/6 >>> Page #4. Continued from the previous message... of the good sites off NC are wrecks. CB> 3) What's the vis. like at this time of year? Highly variable. We went out on Saturday and had 40-50 ft. vis. The day before is was around 10. Like the weather, it can change quickly. =========================================================================== Diving the Carolina Outer Banks: U-85, The Jackson, and the Adventure II (a new artificial reef) Saturday: The U-85. It's said that if you don't like the weather on the Carolina Outer Banks, ait a few minutes, it will change. Our recent weekend diving out of Oregon Inlet proved that old adage. And the variety in the weather was matched by the variety of the wrecks. In the course of 24 hours, we dived on a WWII German U-boat sunk by gunfire from a US warship; a US Coast Guard cutter, sunk in heavy weather while trying to assist a war-damaged ship back into port; and n ex-research ship (ex-Navy ship) sunk just recently as an artificial reef. Each wreck offered something different: diving conditions, marine life, history, each site was unique. The Sea Fox, which is the charter boat for Nag's Head Pro Diving Center, is a very comfortable 50-footer, both stable and fast. With a full load of 14 divers, things get a bit cramped, though not too badly. Saturday we had a full boat. Our destination was the U-85, a German ubmarine sunk in 1942. It rests in about 100 feet of water, making it an intermediate to advanced dive, depending on current and visibility. The U-85 is largely intact, making penetration possible, but only for divers who have the proper equipment and training. Lee, the divemaster, went down to secure the hook and check on conditions. e reported fair vis and warm water, but a wicked surface current. Down to bout 60 feet, a 2+ knot current was running, making descent on the anchor line imperative. Once on the wreck, current was not bad, under a knot. But descent would be a bit tricky. Bottom temperatures ran about 68 F, so hoods were not mandatory. Lee gave us a quick briefing, emphasizing that we should come up with at least 500 pounds in our tanks. With air on, empty BC, we giant stride off the ladder and make straight for the anchor line. Then it's hand-over-hand down the line. The wreck became visible at about 60 feet. We were hooked into the bow, and the bow torpedo tubes were visible, sticking out from the pressure hull like sewer pipes. The exterior hull is mostly gone now, but the inner pressure hull is largely intact. The boat sits upright, listing to starboard. eading towards the stern, you see the torpedo loading hatch and the deck gun, now pointing up towards the surface. Next, you see the conning tower and the blast holes from the shells the USS Roper used to sink the sub. Continuing back, you can inspect the exterior structure of the boat, such as the ardware of the ballast system. The hull is encrusted with soft corals, and is home o urchins, trigger fish, sea bass, conger eels, various jellyfish, toad fish, and countless bait fish. Coming back up, we did our hang at 15 feet, feeling like flags on a windy y. Back on deck, Captain Doogie told us we had missed the big show, an Atlantic Manta with at least a 30 foot wingspan. Yes, he said 30 feet. Just how much of that was manta and how much was the captain's own embellishment I'm not prepared to say. SInce some divers were having problems with the current, captain decided that diving was concluded for the day. The run back in was uneventful except for some passing thunder showers. Despite a less than promosing forcast, we turned in that night hoping for a better day and better diving. Sunday: The Jackson and the Adventure II Our hopes for a better day of diving were rewarded the next morning. Despite a weather forecast of a 50 percent chance of showers, it looked like it would be a fine day. We had a smaller contingent this day, nine divers, all experienced and well equipped for the planned dives. In calm seas we made good time out to the Jackson, the wreck of a US Coast Guard cutter that went down in 1943 during a fierce storm. The story of the Jackson, and her sister ship the Bedloe, is one of the Coast Guard's worst losses of life during the war. The two 125 foot cutters were escorting a ar- damaged ship back to port when they got caught in heavy weather. Both ships went down within a few minutes of each other (although the Bedloe has not een found). All hands successfully abandoned ship, but because of the high seas and winds, rescuers could not reach them for several days. Many succumbed to hypothermia, thirst, and exhaustion. Only a handful of men from both ships survived. The wreck lies in about 70 feet of water, upright in two pieces. The bow, which broke off, lies listing to starboard about 30 feet from the rest of the ship. The stern section has begun to collapse, and much of the amidships section is open. Artifacts still abound, especially around the crew's quarters and officer's staterooms. With only a slight current running, and about 25 feet of vis, we descended on the stern of the wreck. We decided to go up to the bow section and leave the >>> Continued to the next message... --- Blow tiny bubbles * Origin: [\] Diver Down BBS [\] Ft. Lauderdale, FL. (1:369/134) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 186 SCUBA Ref: CCS00069 Date: 08/21/95 From: STEVE ELLIOT Time: 09:45pm \/To: JAMES GAMPPER (Read 2 times) Subj: North Carolina Diving 5/6 >>> Page #5. Continued from the previous message... other divers to destroy the vis on the stern. There we found a 3 foot Conger eel living in the bow compartment, along with the usual collection of grunts, bait fish and other residents. After about half an hour we were ready to come up, spending some extra time n the line, hanging out and watching the jellyfish swim by. The captain decided that for our second dive we'd chug up a few hundred yards to the new artificial reef, the Adventure II. This is a brand-new reef, sunk only about 3 weeks before. It was a 200-foot marine research vessel, and before that a Navy ship of some type. It's completely intact and upright, making for the classic "sunken ship" of underwater adventure movies. We hooked in easily, and after we were satisfied with our surface interval, went in to inspect this new reef. We descended on the bow of the ship. The first thing we saw was a bow post of some type, which started at about 30 feet. Coming down on the forward deck, we saw a large opening going belowdecks, and a large superstructure looming up towards the surface. I decided to work my way around and up the superstructure to the bridge, where huge schools of spadefish were hanging out. The Adventure II is a huge wreck. On a 40 minute dive I saw only a small part, maybe a third of her, and that included nothing below the main deck. The superstructure stands three decks up, and she's at least two or three decks deep, giving her an overall relief of something like 40 or 50 feet, reminiscent of wall diving. Being a new wreck, there's no silt or sand at all, and only a bit of rust and growth. Under the supervision of a qualified instructor, this would be an ideal wreck for a new diver to learn penetration techniques. Even for folks not qualified or interested in deep penetration, the superstructure offers plenty of spaces to poke your head in, and the main bridge is an easy swimthrough with no obstructions and lots of open windows and doors for exit. While checking out hundreds of spadefish above the bridge, we were joined by half a dozen amberjacks, beautiful silver fish at least 3 feet in length, maybe longer. The ship is very photogenic, with lots of standing gear, control wheels, cleats, bollards, and railings to use as background. This very quickly became my favorite wreck to photograph. We had a quick run back to the inlet, with seas so flat we could have water- skied home. =========================================================================== North Carolina has some of the best wreck diving around, because it's many shoals and dangerous coast (for shipping) that's why it is known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic. Some of the boat rides can be quite long due to getting out inlets etc(avg. boat ride is around 2.5 to 3 hours), but the Gulf Stream does come in so water temps are usually VERY nice in the summer. Some areas of interest that I am familiar with: Nags Head / Hatteras area: Wrecks include: U-85 : German U boat sunk in WWII Dixie Arrow Tarpon: US sub and many more. Morehead City area: U-352 : Another German U boat sunk in WWII Indra: Sunk as an artificial reef Aeoulus: Cable layer (around 400ft long) sunk as an artificial reef many more in this area as well. Wilmington area: John D. Gill : Although I haven't dove on it I understand it is a must. City of Houston: Another one I haven't dove on but is supposed to be a NICE dive. still more in this area. You may want to pick up Rod Farb's book Shipwrecks - Diving the Graveyard of the Atlantic ISBN 0-89732-064-6 or Gary Gentile's books Shipwrecks of North Carolina (two books both a North of Hatteras Inlet and South of Hatteras Inlet) South Book ISBN 0-9621453-5-1 North Book ISBN 0-9621453-7-8 ============================================================================== = Discovery Diving is my favorite since they have small boats. Cap't Bobby runs a 6 pack that last time I was there was called "My Mistress". Discovery Diving is in Morehead City (actually Beaufort NC). Ph: (919) 728-2265. >>> Continued to the next message... --- Blow tiny bubbles * Origin: [\] Diver Down BBS [\] Ft. Lauderdale, FL. (1:369/134)