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February 11th, 2007, 09:14 AM
Anyone been down to Pensacola to dive the Oriskany this winter? I dove it in August last time and was wondering how it was in the winter - water temp, viz, life.....
Since I'm asking, I'll tell you a bit about my trip in August. We had two Trimix Divers with scooters on the boat (a smaller boat, set up for 12 divers, but only 7 this trip). Captain Lloyd brought us up on the site and Jerry, the divemaster, dove down and hooked us into a submerged buoy marker about mid-deck. The trimix divers went first, then we did the giant stride off the platform, swam around on the tag line to the anchor line and dropped down.
There were five in our group, I was teaching a wreck class for three students and my wife was tagging along for the diving. We gathered on the line at 20ft, then dropped down to the deck. Viz was ok, but not great. From the mid-deck area all we could see was deck spreading out flat in all directions. I then noticed an arrow painted or scratched into the deck near where the buoy line was tied in, so figured it must point to the island. I could also just make out a darkish blob in that direction too (but I've been fooled by those darkish blobs before). I took out a reel and tied it to the same metal ring that held the buoy line and we took off. Worked out great, the island appeared in no time and we soon swimming all around it, noting hatches, companionways, sketching features and estimating distances. We spiraled up, circling the island, until the dive time was up.
Rather than drop back down to the deck to retreive the reel, we came up one of the lines tied into the island and found Captain Doug and his crew tied into the surface marker buoy. It was a short swim over to our boat. We sat out for an hour, a bit more really, then geared up for the second dive, a planned limited penetration. The Oriskany island is pretty well open, so calling this a wreck penetration is not entirely accurate. They've cut holes just about everywhere so it's pretty easy to get out at any time. But for a class, it's a good practice dive.
We again dropped to the deck and we swam over to the island. This time I retrieved my reel, swam back to the buoy line mid-deck and untied it then went back to the group waiting at the lower catwalk. As a team they had planned the entry and I sat back and watched them tie off the reel, then one by one single file, they entered. I followed along, while my wife followed along on the outside. Every 10 feet or so a hole would open and she'd wave and smile as we passed. Then the lead diver took a turn, went in deeper, then down some stairs and off into another room that was rather dark. I saw the other two divers hesitate and stop, flashing their lights to the lead diver's attention. But he didn't get it and continued deeper into the island rooms.
The two turned the dive and as they turned saw me. They signalled that they were low on air and needed to exit. So as they proceeded back along the line, I went in after the lead diver, who had already turned and was coming out too wondering where everyone had gone! We all exited and returned to the surface without incident. We also had a nice discussion on the boat about communication, attention to team members, etc. Well it was the first day, and we had another day of diving some other wrecks, so there was plenty of time to demonstrate lesson learned!
While we sat on the boat waiting for the trimix divers (dang they stay down a long time!), suddenly we heard shouts and saw divers on the other boat (Capt Doug's) pointing and waving. An orange sausage was floating off, little more than a speck. Capt Lloyd stared through binoculars and said, "It's one of our trimix divers!" Jerry dove in to release us from the marker buoy so we could go pick him up. The other trimix diver was on the line, doing his deco!
We left him there and just as we got things stowed and were about to head off, a small fast boat was heading for the orange sausage. We watched as they retrieved our lost diver. Coming alongside, we transferred his gear and helped him up and into our bigger boat. He was ok, just exhausted. After he rested a bit and we tied back in to the marker buoy, he told us he never even made it to the Oriskany! He was just short of it and his scooter battery died! He then tried swimming, but after a good long while it was obvious he wasn't going to make it, so began drifting back and down to the sand, hoping the Oriskany would block the current down there. It worked, sort of, but he was now to tired to swim! He rested, checked his gas supply, and eventually shot his safety sausage to the surface and ascended doing his deco stops as needed.
He was obviously disgusted with himself and kept shaking his head and frowning. The other trimix diver came aboard and said he'd had a fine dive. He scootered all around the wreck, making a total circumnavigation, then tied off his scooter down at the hangar deck and entered for a bit of a look-see inside. He then spent most of his deco coming up along the island and just playing around it, towing his scooter.
All was well, and we were heading back to the marina, the dive shop for fills for the next day's dives, and the motel. We spent the evening eating and drinking, and talking and planning the wreck dives for the next day. They turned out to be great dives (90-110 feet deep), and the team worked together with lines, communication, light signals, shooting bags, and all the fun stuff of wreck diving in the warm waters off the coast of Pensacola.
-skip
Since I'm asking, I'll tell you a bit about my trip in August. We had two Trimix Divers with scooters on the boat (a smaller boat, set up for 12 divers, but only 7 this trip). Captain Lloyd brought us up on the site and Jerry, the divemaster, dove down and hooked us into a submerged buoy marker about mid-deck. The trimix divers went first, then we did the giant stride off the platform, swam around on the tag line to the anchor line and dropped down.
There were five in our group, I was teaching a wreck class for three students and my wife was tagging along for the diving. We gathered on the line at 20ft, then dropped down to the deck. Viz was ok, but not great. From the mid-deck area all we could see was deck spreading out flat in all directions. I then noticed an arrow painted or scratched into the deck near where the buoy line was tied in, so figured it must point to the island. I could also just make out a darkish blob in that direction too (but I've been fooled by those darkish blobs before). I took out a reel and tied it to the same metal ring that held the buoy line and we took off. Worked out great, the island appeared in no time and we soon swimming all around it, noting hatches, companionways, sketching features and estimating distances. We spiraled up, circling the island, until the dive time was up.
Rather than drop back down to the deck to retreive the reel, we came up one of the lines tied into the island and found Captain Doug and his crew tied into the surface marker buoy. It was a short swim over to our boat. We sat out for an hour, a bit more really, then geared up for the second dive, a planned limited penetration. The Oriskany island is pretty well open, so calling this a wreck penetration is not entirely accurate. They've cut holes just about everywhere so it's pretty easy to get out at any time. But for a class, it's a good practice dive.
We again dropped to the deck and we swam over to the island. This time I retrieved my reel, swam back to the buoy line mid-deck and untied it then went back to the group waiting at the lower catwalk. As a team they had planned the entry and I sat back and watched them tie off the reel, then one by one single file, they entered. I followed along, while my wife followed along on the outside. Every 10 feet or so a hole would open and she'd wave and smile as we passed. Then the lead diver took a turn, went in deeper, then down some stairs and off into another room that was rather dark. I saw the other two divers hesitate and stop, flashing their lights to the lead diver's attention. But he didn't get it and continued deeper into the island rooms.
The two turned the dive and as they turned saw me. They signalled that they were low on air and needed to exit. So as they proceeded back along the line, I went in after the lead diver, who had already turned and was coming out too wondering where everyone had gone! We all exited and returned to the surface without incident. We also had a nice discussion on the boat about communication, attention to team members, etc. Well it was the first day, and we had another day of diving some other wrecks, so there was plenty of time to demonstrate lesson learned!
While we sat on the boat waiting for the trimix divers (dang they stay down a long time!), suddenly we heard shouts and saw divers on the other boat (Capt Doug's) pointing and waving. An orange sausage was floating off, little more than a speck. Capt Lloyd stared through binoculars and said, "It's one of our trimix divers!" Jerry dove in to release us from the marker buoy so we could go pick him up. The other trimix diver was on the line, doing his deco!
We left him there and just as we got things stowed and were about to head off, a small fast boat was heading for the orange sausage. We watched as they retrieved our lost diver. Coming alongside, we transferred his gear and helped him up and into our bigger boat. He was ok, just exhausted. After he rested a bit and we tied back in to the marker buoy, he told us he never even made it to the Oriskany! He was just short of it and his scooter battery died! He then tried swimming, but after a good long while it was obvious he wasn't going to make it, so began drifting back and down to the sand, hoping the Oriskany would block the current down there. It worked, sort of, but he was now to tired to swim! He rested, checked his gas supply, and eventually shot his safety sausage to the surface and ascended doing his deco stops as needed.
He was obviously disgusted with himself and kept shaking his head and frowning. The other trimix diver came aboard and said he'd had a fine dive. He scootered all around the wreck, making a total circumnavigation, then tied off his scooter down at the hangar deck and entered for a bit of a look-see inside. He then spent most of his deco coming up along the island and just playing around it, towing his scooter.
All was well, and we were heading back to the marina, the dive shop for fills for the next day's dives, and the motel. We spent the evening eating and drinking, and talking and planning the wreck dives for the next day. They turned out to be great dives (90-110 feet deep), and the team worked together with lines, communication, light signals, shooting bags, and all the fun stuff of wreck diving in the warm waters off the coast of Pensacola.
-skip