This is October??? What a day! The forecast for the day was 5-10 kt winds and 2-4 ft seas. While there was a bit of a chill in the air as we left the dock, once the sun rose in the sky the air quickly warmed up. The water was in the 65-70 range on the surface, and there was not a breath of air. The seas were flat calm without even a ripple on the surface. This is October????With the flat seas Captain Bill was able to hit the Tuna Seizure’s top speed of 26 knots. We were on the wreck in no time. We hooked in quickly, and Kenny got ready to tie the hook in. Bill was racking up surcharges quickly given the clear skies, clear water, and calm conditions. He tried for the marine mammal encounter, but no one was able to verify the sighting.
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| Kenny gears up. |
We were on the Copper wreck. It was an old wooden steam ship that had copper cladding. The report is that she burned to the water line before sinking. There is quite a bit of charred wood about the wreck which seems to substantiate this store. The main feature is the huge engine which raises 30 ft off the bottom, and the prop shaft. The remainder of the wreck is broken down debris with copper sheets here and there.Over the years a few nets have caught on the engine draping it in layers. These are now covered with muscles and marine growth, making it both a hiding and feed place for seabass and tog.
We could see Kenny dropping down through the clear water as he descended the line. The surface water was clear to 40 ft. There was a thermocline at 70 ft, but the bottom was still in the 50+ range. Kenny was set on doing some digging on this trip. He brought his DPV to blow away the sand and a lighted helmet to help him see in the cloud he generated. Fortunately for the rest of us, the bottom was sand not silt, and there was a slight current to keep the visibility clear. He did dig up what appeared to be the bow of the ship. The shape was rounded and covered in shining metal.
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| Flat Seas during SI |
Winter flounder were seen about the wreck, but not that big. While they are in season, small ones are too much work compared to the mammoth fluke we have seen this season. I looked for fluke about the wreck, but did not see any. Several large lobsters were found on the wreck. The bigger two were 6 and 3 lbs. I had my hands on a big one, but his hole was far too deep to get behind him. While preparing to look in one hole, I was startled by a huge fluke that I almost laid on. He swam off into the distance, as I wept a tear or two. I consoled myself with a bag of seabass, and headed to the anchor.We were back at the dock before 1:00. Bill took the lobsters over the the marina to get them weighed.What a great day of diving!!!
Tags: dive, SCUBA, scuba nj, scuba training, wreck diving