Trefor Pier April 17th 2011

Gethin enjoyed his first UK sea dive!!

This fish is actually alive - it was having a nice sleep before Tommy woke it up!!

Thanks to Mike McCann for organising a nice dive and even arrranged the weather - how kind!

More Segontium

As it happens, Don (see earlier blog) was in our house last night knocking back the wine and he began rambling further about the Segontium - she was built in Holyhead and went down in 'suspicious circumstances' - all her nets were out and anchors also - it was rumoured she was pulled down by a mystery sub?? and had deployed all anchors to try and slow it down

The aforementioned non-ferrous prop has since been blown off by 'persons unknown' ??!!

First Boat Dive of 2011

The first boat dive of 2011 - current was a bit stong though! Everyone left with a smile anyhow!!
The first group out were Myfyr, Carol, Tommy, Mike and Nina.

The gang kit up!

First Dive site: Maen - y - Fran and Rhoscolyn Beacon
Kevin goes out to Catherdral Cave with the 2nd dive group

The Segontium

During our Dive Planning meeting on Thursday night, the possibilities of diving the Segontium were discussed. This reminded me of the first times we dived it. We went out on a trawler with a fisherman who had mysteriously lost nets somewhere and tried to pull them up but only succeeded in nearly pulling his boat under. Don and Dave H dived (into the mouth of the net!! aaarrrrggghhhhhh!!!!!), also Andy B, Frank and Graham Scouse were there. It was a rolly day:

Don clings on!

Graham and Frank relax amongst the nets

So abit later (or it might have been before the trawler)

we found it in our boat and had a lovely dive: good vis, flat calm, found slack, big lobsters etc. but sadly Jeremenemenemeny was not there so we drew our impressions of the wreck on a paper napkin in the pub to show him what he had missed:

We dived it another time when Jeremenemeny was back on one of those days when you couldn't tell where the sea ended and the sky began:

On this occassion (or was it another one?) Dave and I missed the wreck and I remember swimming along a flat murky bottom in an increasing tide, not knowing where we were in relation to the wreck and not daring to surface in case we were swept into the nets!! Happy days!!

Jeremenemenemenemenemeny's Celebration

A toast for Jeremenemenemenemeny is proposed by Mr Wood

Where's my dinner????

Wojciech, Aleksandra, Suzanne, Kevin and Woody are still smiling.....

Aaarrrr - that's better

(Kevin leans back to make room for his tummy and reveals Dave!)

Our future divers (currently forming the Nintendo Club) - Elen, Tomos and Cerian

Helen embarrasses Jeremenemeny by telling him how brilliant we all think he is.......

(Tommy, Hazel and Sue listen carefully)

Jeremenemeny looks bashful

(also starring Nia and Ann and others previously mentioned, and Caroline and Martin leaned back too far)

(This is taking ages - I'll finish the story later)

from Lig

Ice Times

I have just returned from my field season so I thought I would share a view of the Antarctic summer. The view is not so different to a UK dive, you will see dead man's fingers and a sponge, but there are a couple of differences. Most of the animals in this picture are two species of sea cucumber, the pink one and the brown one. All of them have their feeding tentacles out and are making the most of the plankton bloom. For most of the time I was there the viz was appalling, often 1-2m, but that is summer, when the algae are making the most of 24 hour daylight. There is also a sea spider, a pycnogonid, on the dead man's fingers. This is one of the groups that are very common in the Antarctic and species are larger here than anywhere else. In the shallows there are more mobile fauna, including this nudibranch and the fine clear filaments are the feeding tentacles of a polychaete worm, a group that is also very common around Britain.

The seals in the Antarctic attract some summer visitors and it seems that every year we see more and more orca. We would often see them 3 or 4 times a day, which really stops the diving.







However, when you see pictures like this, when they are feeding on seals, then it is quite easy to see why we prefer to stay out of the water!

Boat Handling Course November 2010

The day started really well - the engine on the boat was flat - but a kind chap from the boatyard gave us a jump start! Some eejit (nobody from our Club!) had parked their 4x4 in the car park - which flooded with the rising tide. Jeremy alerted the Police who must of got in contact with the fishermen as they came speeding down the straights to rescue the car! After an eventful first hour - we got the boat going and Tommy, myself, Kevin and Myfyr did the most of the practical element of the BHC, usually the water was flat calm so we couldn't do the rough water element!! Good fun was had by all, the previous days lectures worked wonders - "which side of the buoy should be??" The rest of the gang have got all this to look forward to!!!