Thursday, August 10, 2006
Oriskany
PK came to visit from Canada. Mike decided that was a good excuse to make a "Tall Cotton" run to the Oriskany. Some might think a 30' Catalina wouldn't make much of a dive platform but Mike has been sail/diving for years and it works pretty well. You just need a lot of time. We were hoping for 6kts for the 80 nm trip so we left about 3pm on the 17th July. The sea and the winds were favorable and we found ourselves on some good reef area before the sun began to fade. PK and I dove for supper and PK was able to secure a nice menu of snapper, flounder and trigger fish for us.
We were again underway and would have soon had dinner prepared had it not been for the excitement of a screaming reel, peeling off line from the attack of the coveted Wahoo! I have never really seen a Chinese fire drill, it must look something like the cockpit of "Tall Cotton" when a big fish strikes. Mike begins barking orders for managing the sails, turning the boat, securing the pole with the fish, bringing in the other lines. Somehow it seemed like chaos to me but all tasks were accomplished and PK began winding in the fish. It turned out to be just a small one but it was a good training exercise, just in case a big one got stupid.
The wind held out of the east through most of the night as we sailed on toward our destination. We shared watches and enjoyed the spectacle of a clear night sky, the view not being diminished by the ever-present incandescent lights on land.
We arrived in the vicinity of the "Mighty O" about daybreak. The coordinates from the online site proved to be precise. The bottom machine marked the wreck clearly and we could see the orange balls 10'-20' below of mooring buoys. Not surprisingly we were the first to arrive but decided to wait for a higher sun for better vis before diving. I carried the line down and chained in with little problem. Just that first glimpse was impressive. I took care in securing the chain on a boom at the top of the superstructure, taking time to admire Old Glory. Someone had gone to the trouble to fly the colors from the flag staff and it really was an inspiring site.
After a leisurely breakfast of egg-heads that Monika had expertly prepared for our enjoyment we began suiting up for our exploration. Mike and I dove first and PK followed up solo. The current was pretty well ripping by this time. I was the first one in and decided to call for a granny line rather than expend my energy and air just getting to the anchor line. That being secured Mike and I made our way down to the boat. The absence of fish was remarkable. Such a fantastic structure and only one lone barracuda on watch high above. Just the superstructure is a significant site to explore. We spiraled around the multiple levels peering into the openings, trying to imagine what life was once active there. There was no way to appreciate the expanse of the whole ship. Vis was pretty good at 50' or better but at 985' that leaves a lot unseen. I couldn't resist going to the flight deck just to say I did. With my console on the deck it registered 137'. It doesn't take long to hit deco at that depth and acres of flat deck didn't beg to be explored so I drifted back up to the chain and proceeded with Mike back to the boat. We passed PK on his way down and signaled him to cut us loose on his way up. It was a great wreck but we had other sites in the area that needed our attention.
Our next dive spot was a Chevron oil rig that had been delivered from TX and sunk here for an artificial reef. The rig is at 140' which makes bottom diving a little risky but it is a tall structure. I chained in at about 80' and the rig was busting with fish. I was fighting the current on my way down with the chain so I hadn't loaded my gun. A nice permit watched me wrap the chain and then it swam away as I loaded up. The rig was a formidable structure of pipes and braces, not too unlike Stage I. It was totally encrusted with epifauna and harboring clouds of bait and pelagics. I passed on some nice AJs hoping to find that permit again. If anything the current had increased and moving about was restricted more to pulling myself along rather than swimming. I found the permit after a few minutes and got what I thought was a good shot on it.
It did secure the fish to my spear but did little to diminish its ability to swim and fight. I can easily see why they are considered to be such a game fish on hook and line. It took some time and effort to put it on my stringer. After that I took a trip to the deep and did see some nice snapper but passed as I was looking for trophies. Soon it was time to climb the rope back to "Tall Cotton", any more current and I would have needed a chin strap on my mask. When we all gathered back on deck each of us had a story of strong currents and nice fish. Mike almost had the most excitement when he got swept away while dealing with errant equipment and that took up most of his dive. We would have stayed for another look but for the strong current. We packed up the gear after PK released the chain and headed back east for P.C.The wind that had helped us on the voyage west wasn't so favorable for the return trip. Our progress was slowed considerably but in sailing it takes a lot of patience.
One might think it would be boring but quite the contrary, there is almost too much to do, trimming, adjusting, correcting, and occasionally catching a fish. Then there is a repeat of the above. I don't recall what happened to my night shift, I think PK or Mike must have let me sleep through. I did wake early enough to see the sunrise. We were back in local waters by the next morning. We considered another dive or two but just couldn't get motivated to unpack the gear one more time.Downloading the boat, cleaning fish, gear,boat......, that was enough to complete the day. Memories of a great trip will last a long long time.
