Then Came The Nudibranchs - 29/04/2016

Diving is a funny thing, you can expect to see one thing and then something else comes along that you entirely didn't expect. That was certainly the case when Jester and I headed along to Loch Long for a dive. Our plan had been to dive a site called Craggen, but a chance encounter with two divers at the A-Frames meant we switched lochs and headed over to Loch Fyne in the hope of finding better visibility.

It would seem a wise decision as our move to St Catherine's (despite taking us through blizzard conditions on the Rest & Be Thankful) reaped a plentiful bounty and a first for both myself and Jester. We kitted up in sleet and headed in.

Out first interesting encounter was with a particularly large langoustine who seemed quite happy to have us floating around, but he was pale into insignificance when we encountered one of the larger members of the spider crab family. 

Now, here in Scotland we are used to seeing what we call sea toads and their little cousins macropodia rostrata. However, when we saw the crab in question, my instinct was to think it a King Crab of sorts - I've eaten them once in the US (never again by the way!). Our best guess is Lithodes Maja* - the northern or deep sea king crab. It was big an definitely the stuff of spider crab related nightmares.

The return journey saw us encounter a rock covered in flabellina lineata nudibranchs. It was quite special. However, with Jester having mask troubles it was time to call it quits and enjoy dekitting in the final moments of twilight and a brief period of dry weather.

* If you know better and want to enlighten me then please feel free!

Langoustine

Lithodes Maja

End of the Night - 21/04/2016

With the Announcer requiring an early start and Jester working late (as always), the Zookeeper and I decided to dive twice with each of them at Conger Alley, Loch Long.

We kitted up and headed in, enjoying a dogfish and a few sea lemons as we pottered about. I'dforgotton half of my undersuit, but I really wasn't feeling the cold too much. We surfaced, switched tanks and, like a true wrestling tag team, the Announcer switched out for Jester who was waiting for us when we surfaced.

The second dive, was much the same, if a little deeper. With the exception of the reluctant appearance of a curled octopus. There were no Beryl related surprises to give Jester a scare.

However, the cold was starting to gnaw away at me. I was really feeling it. When I surfaced it was mostly dark, but there was enough ambient light to see the entry/exit. It was the end of the night diving season.

Catshark

Sea cucumber

Butterfish

Yarrell's Blenny

Banana Island - 16/04/2016

Dive pool

So, with a lay over in Qatar, I was staying in Anantara's Banana Island Resort. I was wondering how to while away the hours when I noticed they had a little diver training pool.

Curious, I popped into there dive shop and had a chat. After 5 minutes I was signed up to do a shallow dive along with a youngster who was doing a PADI Junior Scuba Dive.

The promise I was sold was poor visibility and very little life and not very deep - quite the package. However I was looking to while away the hours so I explained I don't mind poor vis and limited life - I'm from Scotland. :)

I dived it in a 3mm wetsuit, but with a water temperature of around 25c, I could of skin dived it!

Now the visibility was rubbish 2-3m depending on how much silt the wee guy kicked up, but there was a selection of life that was quite interesting. Sadly, my memory card, still full from two weeks in Viet Nam, clogged up before we found the good stuff.

Lot's of large grouper, a few different nudi's and flat worms. A great way to spend 50 minutes!

Swan Battle Boat

Grouper

Jade Green Seas - 09/04/2016

Leaving Port

So with another holiday, this time to Viet Nam, I was presented with the opportunity to go SCUBA diving at the Cham Islands just off the coast Hoi An.

The vast majority of Viet Nam's diving can be done south of Saigon / Ho Chi Minh City near Viet Nam's border with Thailand and away from the endless series of river deltas that punctuate much of the Vietnamese coast. As the area wasn't on my itinerary I made do with Cham.

Cham is a developing destination with just two dive operators, but it has recently been designated a UNESCO protected biosphere for the number corals that exist around the islands.

The guys at Cham Island diving were pretty relaxed, taking everything I said at face value and didn't bother to check my log book or certs. According to the owner, "people don't lie in diving". I certainly didn't.

All the gear was on the boat waiting and seemed in average condition. A-clamp, basic Cressi regs, Mares basic BCDs and decent mares 3mm steamers and 2.5mm shorties. With the water temp being a little above 20c I doubled up and took both.

It was still cool, but tolerable enough for a 30-40minite dive.

For the dives I was teamed with Myrthee from Montreal and Ian (our guide) an instructor from Ontario. Myrthee was pretty inexperienced but once properly weighted coped admirably.

Dive one was down to 20m to a garden of what the guide described as Cauliflower Coral - although it looked suspiciously like a variety of plumose anemone to me. In addition the dive was punctuated by the odd parrotfish, anemonefish and a selections of nudibranchs. It was fun, but the vis was like an average day back home and without a torch photography was always going to be challenging.

The second dive threw up much of the same, but with a nice scorpionfish, but by that time I was getting cold so I cut my dive short (30 minutes) while the other two pottered about at the bottom of the line.

Afterwards, we headed to a very decent beach for lunch before the boat trip home.

Now, I wouldn't discourage anyone from diving anywhere, but I wouldn't come here to dive. Instead, if you have a day to kill in Hoi An and fancy getting wet then give it a go.

Relaxing beach for lunch & dive boat

Nudi 1

Nudi 2

Lionfish

Sea Cucumber

Anemone fish

Starfish

Coral

Scorpion fish

Ray of Hope - 30/03/2016

Tonight Jester, legendary vintage clothing blogger Frocktasia, Mad Marx and I had raced the spring showers to St Catherines, Loch Fyne for an evening plunge. Our plan as always was to go down find stuff and come back, but Mad Marx was desiring to break his depth record of 31.2m and get a little more experience of being south of 30. Or, to put it in Mad Marx speak, go beyond the Thunderdome. Meanwhile coughing fits had meant that Frocktasia was just planning on providing some shore cover.

Now, I had been here at St Catherines just a couple of days before and the site had been entirely unimpressive, but tonight as we kitted up I had the feeling that it was going to be good. The others will testify to this fact. I had a little ray of hope that I'd see some good, if not unusual. My assumption was that I'd perhaps see some dogfish, cuttlefish or some other more fun regular. What I saw even surprised me even more than Jester's line in witty bants*.

We kitted up, buddy checked and headed in. It was at 10m and about two minutes into the dive when something unusual appeared. I almost passed over the top of it at first - its camouflage was very nearly perfect, but I've seen its cousin, the cuckoo ray, before. So tonight, a glimmer of recognition occurred in me before I realised I was looking at a Thornback Ray.

I've met divers who've seen them here before, but not recently or often. I grabbed my camera and couldn't get it to work. As it swam away I switched to video mode, hoping to grab a few frames. I got it - it happened.

Then we went on to the meat of the dive - a little bounce down to 35m and slow journey back. Success for Mad Marx who broke his own personal depth record.

On the way back up, Jester felt like he was at the Playboy Mansion as we spotted nudi after nudi and...... easter eggs!

My hope was rewarded.

The Sun Sets

Sea cucumber

Whelk

Lounging starfish

Scuba Easter egg

Jester & Egg

Flabellina Lineata

Cadlina Laevis

* Bants  noun

1. 1.

   the playful and friendly exchange of teasing remarks, an abbreviation of banter.

Testing Times - 27/03/2015

Not every dive is amazing. It's just a fact. Sometimes being a decent buddy is just about helping your pals get back in the water or being there when they test out new gear. Today was that kind of day. I was diving the Announcer who was making a return to SCUBA after a few hectic months and Cardio Jim who was looking to test a new dive computer. 

We went in, the dive was at best below average and uneventful we came out mission accomplished - everything worked.  I never took any photographs. 

I needn't say more.

Milestones - 21/03/2015

When I first met Jester he'd done just 15 dives. Tonight, he was doing his 200th. Quite an achievement. It would be tough to top the fun of his 199th. We joked about poor vis and seeing nothing - perhaps we should have resisted. 

Entering Seal Reef in daylight at low flood, the viz was about 1m, hoping for better we kept going down expecting to pass through into clearer water. 10m, 15m, 20m, 25m - nothing. Then at 27m it opened up to 2-3m.

We passed lots of sea cucumbers, langostine, but nothing great. On the way back up, the viz was improving. The tidal flood sweeping the particles back up to the head of the loch.

We had fun without seeing muchand celebrated with a sugary overdose at the Malt & Myre. 

Scorpionfish

Sea Cucumber