‘If one dives and returns to the surface inarticulate with amazement...then he deserves to go again and again. If he is unmoved or disappointed, then there remains for him on earth only a longer or shorter period of waiting for death; there can be little worth while left in life for him'.....................William Beebe1877-1962. 5AM is very early in the morning. 4:45..... Is even earlier. Again, I was not late (I am on a roll). Enough said. And so began our trip to the Helis aboard the Tomkat. Mark, Big Jim, and myself. We headed out under clear skies and calm seas with 5 divers, 2 mates and the Captain. I curled up and awoke to dive .................... the Maurice Tracy. A change in plans. Built in Ohio in 1916 as the Nordstrand and later named the Sekstant, in June of 1944, the Maurice Tracy was en route from Maine to Virginia carrying coal, when she was rammed by the liberty ship, Jesse Billingsley. There were no casualties and the crew of the Maurice Tracy was rescued by the sub-chaser SC-412 which had been escorting the liberty ship. 253 X 43 feet and 70 fsw, the Maurice Tracy is a huge scattered debris field off of Barnegat Inlet and due to its inshore location has hit or miss visibility. Today was a hit. I will say 20 feet as we moved about the wreckage Bottom temperatures have been cool lately and I dressed accordingly. I am still not a fan of the step up to the gunnel but managed with minimal help. One giant stride in and I was on my way down the line. The scattered pieces of ship held much interest and promise and we set about exploring. The first bug was grabbed and returned as short. It was borderline...... The next I missed and Mark did a quick lunge and grab and had it. I was told this one was my call but it looked short....I was skeptical but I am not a good judge of these things and so another was set free. http://njscuba.net/~images/sites-img/maurice_tracy_2.jpgI settled for searching out some fish to poke. There were too many to choose from, in all sizes, tucked in everywhere. We ran out the reel to investigate sections about the sand, returned to the line and ran out in another direction. There was way too much to see, swim about and look in and under. The time went all too quickly and at 66 fsw with the temps at a cool 48F I was starting to get chilly. Up the line we went. I am still not adept at the ladder. They need a closer rail and so I unceremoniously climbed, fell, tripped onboard. We snacked and talked and traded stories until it was time to go again. I added another layer for warmth and geared up. But could not find my glove. Luckily I brought an extra pair and quickly switched over. This time Mark was taking his spear. He was going to be selective and only wanted a big one. So we were going hunting. As we descended I noted two things. One.... It was dark. The visibility was worse and Two.... It was colder. My computer registered the same temps but it was ice cream headache chilly none the less. Upon reaching the bottom the water cleared and we headed out in search of the “Big One”. There were fish everywhere and my neck hurt from swiveling around, but while of respectable size, there were no impressive ones about. We headed out towards the boilers and as while the viz was not quite as good as earlier , it was not disappointing. As the water cleared and the boilers came into view I had to stop and take it in. They are huge, like an enormous canvas stretched out in front of me, painted with the shapes and textures and colors of sponges, anemones, corals and hydroids. Mark laid down the reel and we started to look around. I saw the spear take aim but come back empty and then I was being called over in a very animated manner. There, tucked waaaay back in a crevice, was enormous-fish. I know it wasn’t a whale shark but I also know, had Mark been able to reach him...... He wasn’t fitting in my bag... or Marks .... Or anyone else’s. This was “The One” and he wasn’t budging. Mark patiently hovered and I could see his brain calculating distance... angles ... range ..... how much time we had to wait. He wanted this one and all the rest paled in comparison. Eventually we moved on looked about and headed back to the line empty-handed. The spear was left at the tie in in disappointment and we took the reel and ran out past more of the wreckage in another direction. Thoroughly chilled but quite content with two great dives for the day we headed up. As I packed up my gear, I found my errant glove, tucked in the pocket of my jetfin like a stow-away. It had made the second dive after all. Too much sunshine, too much visibility, too much wreck to see. A nap was called for. I awoke to a flurry of movement. Everyone was on the stern watching 3 dolphins glide past, stretching in and out of the water in unison as they went on their way. It is always a pleasure to just sit and watch these graceful animals swim about and we followed their path until they were out of sight . A short while later, the water grew black and thick with bait fish and we took a short break while fishing poles where cast a few times to see what was about.... and then we were on our way again. Jim was the hunter with several lobsters and one collateral damage blackfish (he blocked access to a lobster...jeesh) Back in dock safe and sound. Another good day on the water.
