I hope you still feel small When you stand by the ocean
Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens
Promise me you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance ~Lee Ann Womack
Wednesdays dive got cancelled, Fridays dive got cancelled, Saturdays dive got cancelled, Sundays dive got cancelled…….this was getting old.
Monday was not getting canceled. I was there and loaded on the boat before they could change their minds. It was time to dance. This was my first trip on the Venture III and I had heard nothing but good things about Ruth and Capt Paul. They were all true.
Twas a bit chilly this morning and I was informed that it was the first day of fall and long pants time. I was dressed in shorts and a sweatshirt, I never get the memos. The skies were a bit gray and there was some chop but nothing to stop us and so out the inlet we went.
There were 15 of us, a bit of a squeeze but Ruth is a master at making room and fitting gear. Most of the divers were going wet, the last of the seasons die hards. Word was that the water was high 60’s down to depth over the week end, so it really didn’t seem so odd. I was diving dry with just my light long sleeve shirt and wooly socks to hold my feet in the boots, and looking forward to it.
Our first stop was the NE Sailer. I have been here before and it is a pleasant dive. Old wooden sailing ship, low but decent relief with lots of hidey holes for lobster an
d fish, and a huge chain pile that looks like a fishy high rise.
d fish, and a huge chain pile that looks like a fishy high rise.I geared up and it was nice to just giant stride off the side of the boat into the water instead of clamoring over the gunwales for a change. Swim over to the line and drop down and …. and… and it was warm just like they said it would be. And even better than that…..it was clear, a clear 30 feet and a most pleasurable dive.
My buddy for the day was Chris and he had a mission to collect enough lobsters for dinner. Let’s just say mission accomplished. As Chris locked himself in life and death battles with fearsome crustaceans, I peeked all around and played tag with the numerous, albeit small sea bass and black fish. The only fish worth mentioning size wise were the fluke and they are out of season, and the eels. The eels were epic in size and everywhere. In one hole there were two nestled together like teenagers in heat. Yes I poked them. No they didn’t really care. Go figure
We swam the length of the planking and ribs and turned to come back and have a look around the chain pile. There was some surge on the bottom as we swam along but nothing harsh. No need for a reel on this dive and with the viz and warm water we could have stayed down forever.
But alas, it was time to go up and so we did. This was my first time maneuvering the dive ladder and with the surface current a tad brisk and the seas a tad rambunctious it was a challenge getting on the ladder. This ladder is a bit steep and with my 120 and a pony I just couldn’t manage it alone. I got about half way up the ladder and a little lift on my tank valve helped make the rest of the way.
I stowed my gear and we made plans for dive #2. But, I had a little bit of a problem. I was wet; not just a sleeve or a leg wet but wring out my shirt and my socks kind of wet. You do have to love good dive gear though. When it wicks well you really don’t feel a thing. But none the less…..Nothing is easy. Luckily I had another shirt and it was warm enough to just wear wet socks. Dive #2 here I come.
We stopped at the Spring Lake Sailer and before I ever got in the water, divers were coming up the line. Some miscommunication had caused some trouble with the tie in and the visibility was nil. This site was not to be and we moved on to the Cranford, a 205 ft commuter ferry, sunk off of Sea Girt in 1982 as part of the artificial reef program.
Now I have been on the Cranford before also, but not with 30+ feet of visibility. Again, warm water and clear seas made this dive much different than my previous time there. While it is a small site, you could take in the entire wreck and look out in the sand as we swam about. The fish were more plentiful on this site and the lobsters were still to be found. Chris finished his grocery shopping while I caught up on some long overdue poking. I usually take a shell on each dive and save them in a bucket as kind of a memento for diving. There were sand dollars, and moon snail shells and gi-normous clam shells everywhere and I collected a few in my pocket as I swam along.
The eels were on this site also and black sea bass were abundant. Just behind where we were tied in was a hole in the wreck and swimming just in and out of there were the kind of fish you wanted to take home to your mother. I know at least one diver did just that.
Again, too soon it was time to go up. The surface still held a bit of a current and a chop and grabbing the ladder was still a timing challenge. I am still not getting up the ladder on my own. With a smaller HP100 tank on the ladder was a bit more manageable and as always Paul and Ruth were right there to help. Pulling 15 divers simultaneously out of the water and onto the boat has to be a bit of a timing challenge in itself and they made it look effortless.
I had felt the water running in on my left arm as I descended this time and made note to look for a hole and sure enough…….I was “wring em out” wet and there was a respectable hole in my wrist seal causing my wet demise. My later adventures with Aquaseal and this hole would make the Bartman proud, but back to the dive.
The sun began to peek out as we made our way back in. A most pleasant day out on the water. Jokes and dive stories and a never ending bag of chips. Finish those, I am not taking them off with me!
Jersey diving at its best.