We had planned to take the first opportunity try out the tractor launch from Aberdaron that is on offer to us but, althouigh the conditions were ideal for it, I completely overlooked that option until Wyn reminded me on the way back to Pendre!! So we launched from Porth Ysgadarn yet again and headed down, somewhat hopefully, to Maen Mellt, where not unexpectedly at mid morning, given a 9 metre tide at midday, it was doing a fair impression of a minor maelstrom. So we, i.e Andrew & Mike and myself and Tim dropped in at the north edge of the rough water which defines the approach to the Mellt, expecting a fast drift back to Porth Ysgadarn but instead finding ourselves on a very extensive and interesting mussel bed with little current. Don’t ask me how or why this was but it’s worth remembering. Wyn & Peter chose to go back to the Mellt, where conditions had settled down somewhat, for their dive, with Peter finding that he had never before done the northern side of the rock, describing it as one of the best dives around. This is something that some of us did know already but now Mike has it on his must do before I die list, having previously ridiculed those of us who kept heading back there. I can’t bring myself to remind him that he has actually dived it many years ago with me and Hugh, but the washing machine was on that day and we didn’t make it round to the overhanging west walls that so impressed Peter. Lunch was a restful affair on the beach at Whistling Sands, where Nia had us trying to conjure up the image of Brett at a recent wedding in a “light linen suit”!! Maen Mellt had already turned nasty by the time we got ourselves going again so we dropped in off Porth Colmon for what did turn out to be very fast drifts which had us almost back at the Mellt by the end of the dives. So, not a bad day’s diving. Pity about forgetting Aberdaron though.
David
Due to the wind forecast it was decided to dive the slate wreck and launch from Nefyn beach. This is a reasonable launch providing you don’t overload the boat !!
There were five of us, Andrew, David, Peter, Wyn and myself. We divided into 2 teams of 3 and 2. Myself (pathfinder) Andrew and Wyn on the first wave.(LSAC film unit)
The wreck was shotted, direct hit, depth 19 metres. The vis was 10 metres, calm conditions on a neap tide, lovely dive. We were followed by David and Peter (the wetsuit boys). They took measurements of the anchors (smaller anchor raised) Then lunch at Mike’s beach hut. Tea provided by Mike but Vi let us down on the scones.
Second dive was in Nefyn bay, on the site of the WW11 Mosquito wreck at 14 metres. Dropped straight onto some remains i.e. coolant radiators etc. The surface could be seen from the sea bed. Another nice dive, would like to find the other engine. A good day was had by all. Don’t let Wyn tuck your neck seal in.
Mike
A 7.0 metre neap, as good as it gets, and plans for Caswenan, but after a week of hot, settled conditions it blew up on Saturday from the east with the forecast being much the same for Sunday. So, with thoughts of the forthcoming visit of the marine archaeologist, Ian Cundy, we launched, eventually!!, from Nefyn beach and headed out to the slate wreck off Porth Dinllaen headland. Low water was at mid-day but with a long slack expected Mike volunteered as pathfinder and dropped in early to check it out. Wyn and Andrew followed, surfacing after 40 minutes, with Wyn declaring it his best dive ever, enthusing over the life seen, which included shoals of fish and big Three Bearded Rockling and conger. Mike didn’t see any fish but was equally enthused!! Peter’s job was to measure the anchor, which turned into anchors as a second one had been found. This we did, with me once again on the wrong end of the tape, before setting off to explore the pile of slate that is the wreck. With the viz. being much improved on that of our previous visit the wreck site seemed to be much smaller, although slates are spread over a wide area around parts of the main pile. Turning these over soon attracted large numbers of female cukkoo wrasse which seemed to get the blue males quite upset and they took to rushing around trying to keep their harems in line. It was almost 90 minutes after low water when we surfaced with little sign of slack having ended.
Lunch was very comfortably taken sitting out at Mike’s beach house on Nefyn beach before heading out to check out the wreck of the mosquito in Nefyn Bay. We managed to drop the first group onto part of the plane’s cooling system, thus making Mike’s day, with both waves enjoying an interesting dive in the gentlest of currents even though it was mid tide. We ended our dive with an interesting encounter with an octopus, which was a repeat of the end of the morning’s dive for me. The wind had blown quite freshly all day but conditions were excellent and for once we were actually in exactly the right place.
David
The biggest spring tide of the summer and a spell of unsettled weather should have been a warning!!
Peter was zoro and I was tonto. Llanddulas and San Badrig was the plan and that is what we set off to do.
Early start for Peter and myself at Pendre to prepare the rib and off to Pwllheli slipway for 10 to meet the gang. Mike wasn’t feeling up to it (wise head on old shoulders!!) so it was Dave, Andrew, Wyn, Peter and myself in the boat. We set off for the Llanddulas and after some time trying to determine the location of the site we put down the shot and in plopped Dave, Wyn and Andrew.
It was less than 10 minutes later before the 3 resurfaced into a swell (where did that come from!!). The viz down at sea bed level was zero and the guys were wise to abandon the dive immediately and resurface. Even dive computers on wrists could not be seen!
Off we merrily went south east for San Badrig. Half way Pete fancied a bit of suffering and opted for Muddy bloody Hollow. Now there are times in our diving careers when we should listen to our inner instinct. This was a time that I should have done just that.
I wasn’t all that comfortable kitting up knowing that the 1st group had experienced zero viz on or near the Llanddulas. Dropping in on Muddy Hollow in such conditions therefore wasn’t high up on my wish-list. However, in we dropped. Falling onto the edge of the hollow at 24 meters the silt erupted and caused zero viz and I became disorientated and started to slide down into the abyss. I will be honest and admit that a certain amount of panic set in initially before Pete regrouped us and composure was regained. I requested a resurface and we both headed skywards.
I have no doubt that Peter could have continued happily in the murky waters of Muddy Hollow but this type of diving environment is not for me. It was however a learning curve and I am now confident that in future I will always listen to my self preserving mojo and refuse to go into any dive that I’m not completely comfortable with.
After the near death experience of MH all events following on the day could only get better….and indeed improve they did. The weather for a start got better, the swell receded and we got a bit of sun in by the San Badrig bell for lunch.
2 sets of drift dives were undertaken. Again dive team 1 were hampered by poor viz. Pete and myself managed far better. A visit to San Badrig reef was a first for us all and Pete the snorkeller managed to stand on the reef!
A return to Pwllheli was swiftly made and the boat performed very well in trying conditions. Pete and Gwyn returned to Pendre to put the boat to bed with hope that weather conditions would improve for the end of the summer season……foolish optimism!
Gwyn bog snorkeller Jones
Although the weekend diving has been surprisingly successful in August, given the weather, the same cannot be said about the Wednesday dives, although somebody did actually manage to do something each week. On the 1st, Irfon, Mike Wyn & Andrew ventured out to Vivian to be greeted by very poor viz. but an excellent meal in the Glyn Twrog, or so Wyn tells me, and he didn’t order one!! We did get a good dive in the Menai Straits on the 8th, with Irfon taking Nia for her first visit, Andrew led Gwyn on his first visit for about 8 or 9 years while I led Brett as he was compassless which, when I got lost and disoriented somewhere in the middle, he learnt is not the way to go. We actually made it back to the entry point, which impressed Brett and surprised me!! Mike kept an eye on all three groups untill he discovered rust coloured lobsters and hence signs of a wreck. Initially, there seemed to be a lot fewer crabs and lobsters than on our previous visit, 2 weeks earlier, but we were diving a bit earlier and they all came out later in the dive. Conditions on the 15th weren’t fit for the sea so with Dewi off work we headed for Vivian in the afternoon with Brett, Nia & Andrew for Sports Diver training, the assisted ascent and mask clearing. Andrew was the body for each for the AS ascent as the other attermpted the mask clearing, successfully in Brett’s case but not quite so in Nia’s, although she did the whole sequence perfectly in standing depth. It’ll soon come with a bit more practice. During the subsequent dive we encountered a severe thermocline at about 13 metres which soon had those of us wearing gardening gloves leading the charge back up the slope, so we ended with a very pleasant swim at 6 metres back along the vertical wall to the platform. The weather running up to the 22nd was again very windy so we hit it on the head only for a couple of diehards, one of whom had missed the last few weeks while away, to take a dip in the NWIDC, where the water temperature was recorded as varying from 5 degrees at depth to 20 degrees in a pocket at about 7 metres. The weather was yet again seriuosly amiss for the final Wednesday of the month, 29th, so Irfon organized Ocean Diver training at Vivian during the day for Ian and Steven, with Andrew providing the body and me the backup instructor. Ian had the final two lessons to do and did both well, finishing with the weight dropping exercises in the adjacent Llyn Padarn, to complete his qualification.
Steven had 3 lessons to go and although he had problems in coming to terms with the quarry he managed two dives of about 30 minutes each. The weather, contrary to the forecast, turned out to be warm and sunny so lunch was a pleasant interlude spent listening to nursery rhymes over the nearby tanoi system sung by someone who had just been on helium.
Well, no day can be perfect!!
David
