James Eagan Layne

Adrian (tower), Chris (boat handler / assistant dive manager), Grant (assistant boat handler), Debbie, and myself (dive managing) launched from Mount Batten. Inital plan was to dive the shallow reefs off Rame Head, sheltered from a NW breeze. On site however (wind actually SW and we had a slightly bumpy ride out and back), we decided to look around the headland at sea state and possibly dive the Scylla. But buoys were missing from Scylla and position not in GPS, so we dived the James Eagan Layne; itself requiring location with the echo sounder.

Adrian and Grant went in first, Debbie made the decision not to dive, and boathandled - which allowed Chris and I to dive straight away. Shot lift successful after attaching bag to correct shackle and assisting through deck. Vis wasn't too bad at all - about five metres - and water was 7° and [I was quite pleased not to notice the cold - perhaps it was the excitement of diving - perhaps it was my layer of fat]. We had a good look round the holds. Lots of starfish, anenomes, hydroids, and plenty of fish - mainly bib, plus the odd cuckoo wrasse, 2-spot goby.

It was great day out: brilliant to be back in the water, and excellent training and practise.

I was able to try out the Green Magic underwater filter. Cut to size and taped inside Ixus housing. Very promising. I set white balance using my dive slate and colours came out very nice. But quite blurred - need to use higher ISO and need plenty of light (filter must cut out a bit). Discovered that I need to use auto white balance for close-up flash pictures. Picture above has a small amount of colour correction applied.

Babbacombe

First dive of the year! Hooray! Not too cold out and water was 8°C. Dry and bright. There was a little breeze, not really felt at Babbacombe however, with much stronger SW winds forecast.

On the bottom - not very nice, it being a bit murky (lot of rain lately), our torches and any few pieces of bright equipment were just about perceptible at 1.5-2 metres; but concentrating on the macro there was plenty to see. There were hermit crabs (above in a netted whelk) including a few largish ones; and also very many squat lobsters (new to me) around the rocky reef we pottered about after our short swim 040° or so from end of slipway. Also one or two small edible crab and usual abundant velvet swimmer crab. There were very few fish. I saw a dragonet and a juvenille wrasse. Geoff said he saw some blennies.

Great to be back in the water and exploring and taking a few pictures. My Canon G9 case buttons still sticking despite careful use and recently some hotter water. Will try some silicone spray next. It's done about 27 dives, and despite reading that some regard them semi-disposable, this just too few.

We located bit of an engine (?) I hadn't seen before and a large wheel. I found a silt covered cloth that was a jumper or fleece, but didn't retrieve it. Think it was a bit small for me. We had nearly an hour (getting cold at 50 minutes) and max depth 10 metres. Newly serviced- and DIN converted- regs were perfect.

Mandrago

Palma Aquarium

Baygitano

A change of plan put me on first wave, buddied with Caroline. Also diving were Paul L and his friend Paul. Chris and Debbie boathandled. Bumpy but quick ride out. Was nice to get in the water, which was noticeably warmer than the air. Sorted a few minor snags etc on way down. Vis 4-5m.

Shot was near engine block and from there made our way to the boilers, then past winches and plates to bow. My first time at the bow - having explored the stern section on previous dives, and was very pleased to see it - quite impressive. Conger and John Dory as well as plentiful bib, pollack, ballan and cuckoo wrasse. Brown sponge fingers on slab. Blobbed at bow. Felt a bit cold on ascent - and even colder in the boat. Snorkel useful today, sorting out a clip in C’s BC, and retrieving fin.

Boat handled in afternoon. Quite choppy (and cold) very good practise chugging up to shot and marker buoys. [Rip off (£8+) parking at Lyme Regis and toilets locked].

Brixham

Babbacombe

Weather looking a bit rubbishy but Babbacombe would be fine. Strong NW winds 30-40mph were forecast and later on it was very windy; water riffled in the bay, and white horses further out. Tide was neapy and low tide put in not a problem (and the vis ok too 5-6m). Gloomy weather to begin with, then some sunnier spells and rainbows. Geoff H soon appeared and I finished my leisurely kit up. I took the blob and led - it seemed much easier than last week, and took pictures and navigated. I made more use of the QR clip and simply used a finger to hold it aside if required going about. Only one minor kit addition (after losing knife on Friday) was Jon's hosepipe knife-holder and ordinary kitchen knife for a spare.

Part of plan was to go out and find anemone covered anchor. Early in dive Geoff managed to catch my attention and point out the John Dory. Snapped a few pictures and got a few ok ones [I only noticed later that it was infested with ectoparasites]. We got to some larger reef, with lots of snakelocks and velvet swimmer crabs, had a look around that before heading out over the sand. I quike like the sand, especially in good, there is actually lots to see. There were hermit crabs and a few harbour crab, and delicate anemones. After a while (thanks to the 5-6m vis) we located the anchor. As before there were large long-legged spider crabs, tunicates, and sponges; also [again spotted in photographs later] several unidentifiable species 'possibly' nut crabs', and a Pisidia longicornis (a little crab with round shell and big right claw).

We had a look round the anchor then headed back to the reef, and followed that. There were some nice big bits to look round and lots of debris. Some of the 'items' I'd seen before, some I hadn't, like the piece in the picture below that had a row of parallel bars, and a cylindrical base(?) that had angled pipes coming in at the side. Onwards and eventually a dark bulk loomed up, it was 'mushroom' rock. Mushroom rock is a big rock shaped like a mushroom. Its sides and overhang are covered with a dense and colourful carpet of sponges, as well as tunicates, anemones, and algae. We surfaced here ending the dive, with only a very short surface swim back to beach. I was pleased with my navigation. Usually it's crap.

Swanage Pier

Had a day off, so we went to Swanage in Dorset to snorkel under the famous pier. 30-40mph NW winds, and quite cold; but vis was good 5m. Useful facilities, dive school/shop, air, very easy access and entry to water, toilet (open in winter!) and a shower. Chip shops and cafes are a short walk into town. Imagine extremely busy in summer.

Anyway, the pier is fantastic. Went in down steps and over stony and weedy shallows to the left of pier (lots of crab burrows). Then under the pier and worked my way along, (careful to mind anglers lines - they moaned noisily anyway) and tied blob to a girder while under pier. There are a few clumps of fishing line to avoid. Interesting bits of metal, pipe, and rubble etc litter the bottom.

For fish there were Wrasse, gobies, sand smelt, a dragonet. Probably because the tidal range is minimal there is interesting turfy growth very shallow (usually piers just get covered with barnacles or mussels or bladderwrack). All kinds of colourful sponges are embedded in the growth, and tunicates, sea firs, etc and there are lots of hiding places for small life in the crumbling wooden parts of the structure - which itself is quite picturesque. Also found edible crab, and prawns on the 'new' pier. The old pier is similar and also good for a look round, it's stony and weedier. I found some fan worms here. Fine sand beyond.

Was in the water 2 hours. Cold getting in, and felt cooler later, with numb toes but otherwise warm enough in 5-7mm wetsuit (10kg on belt just right). Lost a knife, not a big deal, just glad I hadn't bothered cleaning it.

Babbacombe

Paul L, Derek and Lucy, and myself dived Babbacombe on Sunday; vis wasn't great - a bit misty - but it was a lovely day and very nice dive. WNW/flat calm. High tide at 8am was ideal. Did the brief, then I led Derek and Lucy according to plan, while round and about Paul on his re-breather lurked 'in stealth mode' and assessed my leading. Ballan wrasse, gobies, lots velvet swimmer crabs, prawns, a long-legged spider crab 'skin'. No underwater pictures - too busy!

On the way back we stopped at Smugglers Cove (Holcombe) to look at access for shore-diving Parson and Clerk rocks.

Shoalstone (Brixham)

Forecast was 45mph WSW, and not looking great, but decided to have a look - and it turned out well. Shoalstone Point sheltered; it was also neapy. Vis was ~3 metres. So had a very good dive of 67min (max 10m) with Derek and Geoff. Headed out from near the swimming pool 330° (then left) and explored the low reefy and bouldery stuff. Derek and Geoff got a few scallops, but they were sparse and of these not many were big enough. I concentrated on photography.

Quickly the kelp thinned out and there was good weedy turf, and lots of trumpet anemones. Apart from the gobies there didn't seem to be any fish around, but found there to be amazing variety of crabs: harbour, long-legged spider, hermit (in whelk, top, and tower shells) velvet swimmer, angular, and a particularly interesting spot - a Bryer's nut crab (above).

I took quite a few pictures. I use the custom settings on my camera to allow me to switch between close-up mode (where I need, and it's ok, to use flash) and general shooting. It was made more of a challenge as Derek's new flexible split fins wafted the silt from the bottom most effectively.

Started to feel quite cool after 40-60 minutes but was nice and light when the sun was out. No headache or anything - drinking plenty before the dive seems to be working well. All in all a very interesting and enjoyable dive.

Babbacombe

Rainy. Stong NW. Arrived 07:30. Derek and Geoff H just behind me. Geoff H decided to do weight check in new suit. Derek and I went N then E (over rubble and bouldery stuff, then box pattern over sand). Very early in dive Derek spotted a cuttlefish, and simultaneously a dog-fish, and a largish wrasse. Onwards, lots of gobies, another couple of cuttlefish. Lots of velvet fiddler crab around the boulders.

Derek and I separated at one point - noticing this I headed for the hazy water, and had a quick look round. No sign of him so I surfaced to locate his marker (which was only ~3m away!) and dropped back down (5m). Over the sand was very interesting, lots of hermit crabs, some quite big, and harbour/swimmer crabs (top). Various anemones. Netted whelks. Then we found an anchor inverted and upstanding. It was covered with orange plumose anenomes. There were also some mussels. With a closer look I found a few (relatively large ~7cm) long-legged spider crab, and Derek found a nudibranch. There were also some pasty white tunicates in small clumps.

Several sights brought to mind Jeff Wayne's musical version of the H.G Wells classic, The War of the Worlds. The empty shells of crabs like defunct alien war machines lay strewn across a desolate landscape; and later we found a rock covered with vivid red algae - I could hear The Red Weed' in my head.

We made our way back on to the rocky stuff and slowly W and S towards the beach. The water was 14°C but was getting cold after about an hour; I felt I was ideally weighted for dive (with 15l bottle and usual kit), I had 12kg on belt 1kg in jacket, but more air in the suit would have been a good thing. Total dive time 67 min and surface air consumption was about 17l/min. Drank plenty of water beforehand. Excellent dive and photo oportunities.

Teignmouth (canned)

Misty start but 3-400 m surface vis; gradually improving. Flat calm, and a few hours later it was hot and sunny. Adrian, Debbie, Brian, Hilary, Geoff H were on the boat (Brian and Hilary towers, Adrian boathandler). We were going for the Bretagne, but unfortunately we didn't dive as the GPS was not working properly and we had engine worries - so seemed sensible to return. We saw a seal coming back into the estuary, and I got a decent picture.

Baygitano

Hilary and Brian organised a club dive out of Lyme Regis and two waves enjoyed the Baygitano. Hilary and Brian towed, Adrian boathandled, and Chris and Debbie towed the boat home. The diving was superb. Tides were springy, but weather was perfect (just a slight haze) calm and sunny.

Hilary and I dived first, and arriving at the boilers found the vis to be an excellent 10+ metres. The 'Baggy' is flattened but very picturesque and covered with fish - masses of bib, and pollack. We also saw wrasse of various kind, leopard spot gobies (below), several very large conger, a red mullet, and a John Dory.

We swam about the boilers a little then headed in the direction of the stern. We found the spare propeller, various engine parts, hatches, bollards, winches and coils of cables. All very interesting, then we came back - and on the way near the boilers met Brian and Christian. Hilary and I had a few more minutes look around, and returned to the shot and used that for a nice easy ascent.

Back to Lyme Regis, and those of us diving again - Geoff M, Dave, and myself, swapped cylinders and picked up some food and drink for the boat and went straight back out. Soon after arriving at the site we discovered the shot had come away from the wreck, so had to be redeployed (I hadn't been able to lodge it very well). Anyway ready to go again. Geoff, Dave and I went in and had another very good dive. There was more current this time, but we managed to stay on the wreck, swimming slightly across it, and it was not a problem.

Back to Exeter (not a bad trip actually) happy and tired, we washed and tidied up the boat.

Exmouth Dock (Blenny Cove)

Dived with Derek and Geoff H. at Blenny cove - other side of the marina to the fish quay off where I've dived before. An easy put-in at the beach and we surface swam to boulders. In the water at 7:10am.

Descent and down a steep rocky slope, littered with mangled 'stuff' into the abyss. Ballan wrasse on the way. Very dark. Levelling off a bit at about 20m. Sponges, starfish here. Boulders and shelly/gravelly sand. Derek's torch was running down (the light from a working torch didn't exactly carry very far) and we went back up the slope.

On the way up spotted a pipefish. Over a large clayey boulder collected some lead scraps and fishing weights. Swam round assorted sponge/turf crusted boulders, and up to pilings. Lots of blennys (below). Just the one picture (!) partly because of the vis and murk, partly because a vital button sticking on my camera housing. Managed to work it, but not great; pried it loose later.

Some current later in dive, but nothing much, and easy getting back to the start. After the stump round the marina all were ready for breakfast - and went to the cafe along from the fish shop.

James Eagan Layne

Arriving at Mountbatten early (to be ready for 9:30) it was raining steadily, but by the time we launched the boat it'd stopped. Winds were light SW and the ride to the JEL and back was smooth. Later on the Sun came out. As well as towing and organinsing Brian and Hilary boathandled. On the first wave were Nick and Julie, Phil and Dave, Hilary and me.

Hilary and I splashed first. There was some current and we pulled ourselves longways down the shot. At about 15m the last bit of the shot and stern wreckage loomed into view and Hilary ever so casually landed upright on the bottom and saluted!:)

Vis was about 4m, though a little gloomy, and out came the torches. Off we went to poke about the wreckage. We saw lots of fish: bib, pollack, wrasse (cuckoo, ballan), usual gobies etc,. and several John Dory. An attraction of the stern is the abundance of pink and white plumose anemones, there were some dahlia and plenty of ghost anemones too- all very nice. We did a circuit of stern and found the gun mount (the big wheel thing) and boat davits. Too soon it was time to go and I sent a blob up - I took it for granted it'd be easy as ever with the DSMBi (bottle inflated) - and the line snagged round the reel handle; I let it go before it started to pull me up, and we used Hilarys.

A very nice relaxed dive. It was great to be back in the water!

Brixham

Another weekend of moderate/strong SW winds, so choice down to somewhere sheltered (like Babbacombe) again. On the way Derek suggested Brixham; and we got there and put in east of the Breakwater, off the lido (just west of Shoalstone Point). Despite a gloomy warning of 3-4m vis (!) and a "don't" from local dive operator who was there having a look; we had an excellent dive. Vis was good 2-3 metres, and there was an abundance of small life. We spent just over an hour (6m average, 9m max) going along NW and back, below the kelp; where it's interesting and turfy if a bit 'dusty'.

Spiny, long-legged spider-crabs, harbour, velvet swimmer and some small edible crabs, hermit crabs in top, cone, and whelk shells; lots of anemones, sponges, various sea-squirts, small fish, etc,..

Access was easy, it felt especially so after Anstey's the other day; and entry and exit not too bad, just a little rocky. Tides were close to neap and not a problem (otherwise, since there's nowhere good to land to the east - arrange to be with the tide back to exit).

Anstey's Cove

A shallow pootle with Tony W, out of Anstey's cove. With winds >20mph and a bit gusty, and no other diving looking likely, Babbacombe looked the spot for the weekend (either day). I felt like a change, and though I'd snorkelled at at Anstey's a few times had never dived there, so was keen to see what it might be like. Checked the weather/tides and arranged to meet Tony there for a dawn raid. Parking was free (meter broken), and walk down not too bad - with a 12l, you even have a choice: steep tarmac slope or steps. Coming back up was a bit more effort but do-able for anyone reasonably strong/fit,.. or with trolley or kit-wallah.

Vis wasn't great (2-3m) and it was very kelpy around the boulders about Long Quary Point, where I hoped the scenery would be better. Simple route - straight out from Anstey's cove, down (6m) then clipped the rocks at the side of the cove and carried on NW along Redgate beach. Worms (casts and holes), hermit crabs, pollack here.

Sand marks, depth and compass used to navigate and arrived at rocks (checked position). Some larger boulders with kelp on top, with turfy bits and colour. Edible crab, dead mens fingers, beneath an overhang.

We had a look along rocks to the north (vis worse round here) and below the kelp line it was stony and, so it seemed, lifeless (9m). Surfaced with 70 bar (Tony had more) and we surface swam back.

Admittedly not the greatest dive, but all went very smoothly, it was good practise and was nice to try a new (for me) place.

St Paul' s Bay (Lindos)

Kalithea

Kalithea spa

Anthony Quinn Bay

Faraklos

Pefkos to Lardos

St Paul's Bay (Lindos)

Rhodes

Rhodes Aquarium. 5€ ea. What can I say!? Interesting 1930's (Italian) grotto-like aquarium in the basement of the marine biology station but fish and invertebrates very off-colour. The most pitiful sight however, was the turtle and its futile and self-harming efforts to escape its tiny tank.

A recently re-furbished marine life display on ground floor inlcuded dried small animals (interesting - but you have to know what you're looking at, and what a living one looks like to appreciate), and some pretty grisly and mishappen shark and rays that look 150 years old but are actually only a few tens.

Pefkos to Lardos

I was starting to wake up (about 6:20am) when suddenly the entire room began to shake (fairly violently). It was an earthquake. The tremors of the main shock seemed to last 5-10 seconds, accompanied by a loud rumbling noise; then there were lighter trembles dying away. Was going to go back to sleep and the fire alarm went off and the building was evacuated onto the beach - where we waited until it was ok for us to go back in (wondered what it would have felt like under water).

In the day we went to Petaloudes ('Butterfly Valley' - they're moth's actually, but Valley of the Moth's would sound a bit creepy I suppose), then to Ancient Kameiros. Later found out the earthquake magnitude was 6.3.

Got ready for a night snorkel around the reefs in front of the hotel. Nice warm night, water fine. Lots of wildlife, but fish less noticable (and no wrasse). Sand eels and small silver fish close in over the sand, and over the reef soon found a frilly orange nudibranch, then an octopus. Wedged in rocks, an orange nudibranch and squat lobster(?) Also found a very big fireworm, far bigger than they're supposed to get, a few scorpion fish, blennys, sand gobies, stripy fish (but not a comber), also a very small cuttlefish.

Pefkos to Lardos

First day on Rhodes I woke up early and nipped out to the beach. It was sunny and the water nice and very warm even first thing. I'd seen from the Google Earth pictures that there was some shallow rocks to explore at the edges of several sandy bays and I looked round these. All the familiar fish were here in abundance: salp, red mullet, cardinal fish, damselfish (I shortly discovered that the tiny blue fish are in fact juvenile damselfish - Chromis chromis), parrot fish, bream, decorated wrasse, painted comber, and sand smelt. Other stuff included some red sponge and a few rounded black ones, lots of burrows in sand, fireworms, and yellow anemones. Didn't take camera, used basic kit and wore a rash vest.

Babbacombe

Weather wasn't looking great for the weekend with strong SW winds and gusts gusts, not to mention springy tides, but I reckoned Babbacombe would be OK - and so it was. We'd agreed an early start and when I arrived Geoff was already there and kitting up. Vis looked very good. A few other divers were already in and a few more started to turn up. We went out to the reefy bit and around the rocks, north then west. We had a very nice easy-going dive, pootling along at about 7-8m for 70min.

There was a fantastic lot of wildlife. A cuttlefish, goldsinny wrasse, ballan wrasse, sand gobies, pipefish, spider, edible, velvet fiddler, and long-legged spider crabs, gravel sea-slugs (2-3x) one of these biggest I'd seen and unusually much of the body was visible. Common starfish in the shallow sub-lit, and few tiny brittlestars seen on the silty sand beyond the rocks. A flatfish on the inside of a wheel rim, various sponges (stalked sponges etc), a tiny candy-stripped flatworm, and various molluscs - netted dog-whelks etc,..

Louis Shied

Partly because of the expectation of similar conditions to Budleigh Thursday, no sea dives were planned as far as I could tell. However Kevin on Friday had contacted the management of a certain reservoir to carry out a risk assessment and preliminary dive (he had applied formally and had permission) but they refused at the last minute saying they were busy. I had arrived there already - wasting fuel in the middle of the shortage - and the place was almost deserted.

We had a quick rethink and Kevin, Rob C, and myself met at Thurlestone. The vis was 5m, and conditions perfect. We swam around the rocks there in about 5-10m. We saw lots of life including cuttlefish (4x), dogfish, a shoal of bass, a monster spider crab, and off the rocks found a spot where a large number of netted dog whelks were grazing on worms, and close by, in a layer of organic matter, we found handfuls of marine isopods (underwater woodlice). Lots of other fish, crabs and the usual sea-squirts, sponges and so on. All was wonderful and even the algae fantastic and colourful; deep reds and yellows, and irridescent green, with lots of blue and red tinged snakelocks anemone amongst it all.

Budleigh Salterton

Derek, Geoff H, Phil and myself dived Budleigh on Thursday evening after work. It was a lovely sunny evening. Unfortunately the vis was less than a metre and like swimming through a glass of congealing fat. Derek and Geoff covered a prodigous distance in seach of clear water but to no avail. It wasn't the nicest dive ever (and I didn't see a living thing - not even a snail) but was all very good practise. I took a few pictures and some video just to show how terrible it was.

James Eagan Layne

Penlee Point