Dive Tales

 Hearing that this wreck wasn’t dived much sounded interesting, with this in mind I was tempted for a days diving off Anglesey. Now I’ve always had a bit of a love hate relationship with Anglesey, some report of mint vis, others of pea soup, myself I’ve had good and bad vis days, so the jury was out.

The six of us assembled on the quayside on the Sunday morning ready to board our chartered hard boat for the day. Four divers with a look but not touch policy two others well liked their bits of non ferrous metals. The early warning signs that this was going to be an eventful trip were there Andy turned up with a new toy an “air chisel” to release booty which was run off a first stage from a  pony bottle quite how and for how long this would function wasn’t elaborated on.

It was a perfect summer’s day we boarded our boat and arrived over the wreck site, a cargo ship upright at 40m. The first two pairs went in shortly followed by my buddy and I. Picking our way down the shot line there were no signs of the other four, the tide was running strong the vis wasn’t good; more like diving in coffee. At 40m a few metres away we could just see the very faint glow of what were high powered torches. Moving closer I could make out the outline of something it was the wreck having spotted something solid and the possibility of securing ourselves against the current we grasped the guardrail on the deck.

As early on as this my buddy and I had taken stock this hadn’t the making of a pleasure dive it wasn’t a comfortable place to be. The silence was shattered with the hammering of an air chisel and in what little visibility outlined in the beam of a torch the shape of a lump hammer wielding diver Andy could just be made out trying to liberate some piece of metal.  We had had only 3 mins bottom time trying to keep station in the tide had left my buddy and I exhausted we’d had enough and we signalled our ascent.

Back on the boat, the skipper was a bit surprised by our early arrival, and asked if there was a problem? Clearly it was luck of the draw not his fault the tide was running a bit more than anticipated and the vis was much worse than he’d expected, that’s diving!
The second pair ascended after completing some short stops and joined the banter on the boat.   It was now getting about the time the last hammer wielding pair should be surfacing.
Somewhat later than our anticipated time of their arrival they appeared. Breathing air by anyone’s standards there was an opinion murmured and concern they were pushing their luck and bottom times aboard both were pretty evasive about just what deco “if any” they had done.  The “chisel kid” Andy’s dive computer was bleeping in protest in error mode.  With a wry smile his answer to this was to take it off fasten it to a weightbelt and rope and lower it over the side to a suitable depth, Yeah that would clear it.

We motored back and the group left the boat, dekitting on the quayside in the general after dive banter Andy was protesting his shoulder was aching, and to be honest he was feeling a bit rough. He qualified his condition by his admission that he had had more than a few beers till the early hours of the morning. 

He was adamant it must have been all that hammering he was doing that led to his shoulder ache, and thought he had pulled a muscle.  Consensus from the group was it would be wise just to get it checked out to be on the safe side, no he was adamant he’d be O.K.
Following a pub lunch, and a few drinks Andy appeared, the pain in his shoulder still there if anything had got worse. In the back of my mind probably in common with the others I was subconsciously ticking the boxes for predisposition to DCS and I suggested he go on the O2 Kit.
A belligerent Andy accepted the 02. Within a few minutes his pain started to ease, a consensus was forming he needed some medical treatment. The coastguard was called and within a few minutes an ambulance arrived on the quayside.

On arrival the paramedics having heard from Andy it was a muscle strain the paramedics wanted to put him on entinox this particular crew weren’t too clued up on DCS Andy didn’t want to make a fuss and wasn’t too keen at the thought of having to sit in the ambulance.  Whilst being assessed the true circumstances and probable cause of the shoulder ache were explained to the paramedics.  Denial is a funny thing isn’t it? now for some perverse reason (maybe because the pain was going and he was feeling better). Andy wouldn’t get in the ambulance or entertain any further treatment. At this point managed to talk his way out of any further medical treatment and was adamant in assuring the crew “it was only a muscle strain” reluctantly the ambulance crew departed minus Andy. 
From the nervous look on the group member’s faces I clearly wasn’t on my own I wasn’t happy with the outcome but however misguided Andy’s decision we couldn’t force him to seek treatment it was up to him.
Faced with a long drive home and with his promise if his condition deteriorated he would seek treatment we decided to call it a day. Our parting vision, Andy sat in the front of the van with 02 cylinder under his arm pocket mask clamped to his face; unsurprisingly he was getting some strange looks from holidaymakers meandering on the quayside. Perhaps thinking does oxygen come as a standard fitment to a Ford Transit?
The following Monday morning I heard from another member of the party, who related Andy had driven home and gone to bed having awoken in pain in the early hours. Now added to his ache in his shoulder a feeling of “something not right” with one side of his body and he had difficulty moving and getting out of bed.  A phone call with diving medical personnel confirmed the likelihood he was bent and was immediately transported to the nearest local chamber.
Several long hours of treatment, followed. It subsequently came out that an embarrassing conversation with the medical attendant at the chamber came about when they downloaded his dive profile from his computer to confirm his dive profile and assist in treatment. The medical attendant perplexed at the apparent dive profile, embarrassingly Andy spilt the beans as to just how it had clocked up that profile.

17 hours of treatment later, Andy had made a full recovery and after a few weeks layoff from diving he was back on his quest for salvage.

We had had a good days diving launching earlier that morning at the village of Little Haven in Pembrokeshire. So it was that 4 divers and rib returned and crept into the now very sandy bay.
Things were different on our return we anticipated the tide would be out, what we didn’t expect was just how far it would be out. The slip way that we’d used earlier that morning was high and dry now there was a mile of beach between the slip and the waters edge.

This recovery was going to a challenge, we grounded the rib in the shallow waters on the sand and someone was assigned to go and bring the Transit flat back truck and boat trailer from the nearby car park. None of us relished the idea of carting carrying heavy diving equipment back to what seemed a distant shoreline; we opted to leave it on the boat. The truck and trailer arrived, the beach was nice and flat and the sand looked well compacted. Unhitching the trailer we pushed it into the water, guided the rib onto it and secured it with the winch. Two at the back pushing and two lifting the tow hitch we hitched it to the truck. Hell was the boats really that heavy? Apparently it was. In the interim minutes the sea was by now lapping around the trailer axles and the surf was breaking over the rear of the trailer ,the tyres looked odd were they sinking?

The truck was fired up & plenty of revs applied as it strained to move the loaded boat on trailer, it’s wheels started to slip it wasn’t going anywhere it was now stuck and to our alarm the trailer axles was now sinking further into the sand. The exclamation was made “We need a four wheel drive”! So one of our party was sent to bring his Frontera that should do the job. A rope was procured and tied to the rear towing hitch of the 4 wheel drive the other end tied to the front of the truck. The Frontera would help pull out the truck and then try the trailer. Slowly revs applied, it too was struggling, wheels slipping, and it couldn’t do it and was also getting bogged down, by now its owner getting distinctly alarmed at the prospect of his beloved off motor abandoned to a sandy fate. It was released and unhitched without the truck’s burden relived he drove his 4 wheel drive out to safety.

By now the unfolding circus was being witnessed by onlookers one of who we discovered was the proud owner of a Range Rover, “Yeah that would do it, we would he give it a try? Quite keen to offer his services and show his 4 wheel driving prowess he would pull our truck out. The rope was now attached to rear of his 4 wheel drive a suitable gear ratio and drive selected slowly the revs were applied, four red faced divers now strained pushing at the back of the truck , it’s moving its moving , no it isn’t .
Range rover wheel spinning not only was it not moving but the heavy Range Rover was also now stuck, Oh Shit!!!!!!

By now the whole event was drawing a crowd it looked like it was rapidly becoming the unscheduled centre of attention for the visitors to this small village. Not only was this getting embarrassing it was nightmare, boat and trailer, truck and Range Rover all now stuck, in the sand we needed to do something. At this point a chap wandered onto the beach in what was clearly a laid back manner in a local accent told us he had a tractor nearby and was willing to attempt a recovery with boat and trailer, truck and Range Rover now all firmly entrenched in the sand, Hmmm wasn’t much likelihood of an old tractor making a difference was there? We’d be thankful for any attempt.

In a cloud of diesel heralded the tractors arrival onto the beach, Tow Ropes tied with suitable applause from the bystanders spectating in the front of the nearby pub the Ranger Rover it was pulled out. Next having unhitched the truck from the boat the truck pulled free was liberated. Finally the start of it all the boat and trailer was retrieved up the beach to the slip way. All homage to saviour tractor and driver having succeeded with what seemed apparent ease were others failed. Indebted to the driver a worthy financial contribution was offered and accepted

As with all diving type “epics” lessons were learnt, despite the fact we were all tired it would have saved heartache if we had unloaded the heavy gear off the boat, seems pretty obvious now. The fact the beach looked ok and the tide was out hadn’t allowed the sand to dry out sufficiently. Don’t put your faith in one thing  i.e. 4 wheel drives aren’t the answer to everything.

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