Sherwood's Dive Blog

Ventura Tug Trip Report

2010-02-16T15:26:00Z

Yesterday I headed to the Poseidon to meet up with Steph, Ken, Dan, Jason, Dave and Kevin to do an “after the storm” dive. When I arrived Steph and Ken were already there with Steph shoveling the snow off the boat and Ken shoveling the dock and walkways. Once everyone else showed up and had their gear on board and stowed we decided that, due to the cold and possible heavy seas, we would stay in shore and head for the Ventura Tug, sunk as part of an artificial reef program. On the way out we had 2 to 4 foot seas, which was not all too bad.

Ken and I splashed first after the shot line was dropped so that we could tie in; when we reached the bottom the shot line had landed right on top of one of the armored personal carriers that was lying upside down. We were greeted with 15 to 20 foot viz and bottom temps ranging from 36 to 39 degrees depending on whose computer you looked at. After a bit of searching around, we found the Ventura only about 100 or so feet away. We then finished tying in and proceeded to have a look around. Once again there was next to no sea life to speak of; they all must be in deeper waters. After about 65 minutes on the bottom Ken and I proceeded back up the line where we bumped into two others making their way down.

Once again we all had a great time with plenty of laughs to go around!

300' Schooner Trip Report

2010-02-12T01:52:00Z

The calm before the storm

This past Tuesday I got up before my alarm went off at 4am and glanced at my outside thermometer, which showed 25 degrees. I was actually relieved as I thought it was going to be in the low to mid teens. With most of my gear packed up in my truck the night before all I had to do was throw some water on my face, wheel my rebreather out to the truck, and make a pit stop at 7-11 for some much needed coffee.

On this particular morning I was heading out to meet up with Ken, Dave and Steph for a trip out on the Poseidon. Once everyone arrived it was time to get some of the snow and ice off the boat and load up our gear. Surprisingly there wasn’t a whole lot of snow on the boat to deal with. After a quick stop to get some fuel we were on our way, although we were not too sure as to where yet. Once we cleared the inlet we were greeted with calm seas once again; NOAA had predicted 2 to 4 foot seas but it was more like 1 to 2 at most with the sun cresting the horizon. After some brief discussions we all decided to head for the 300’ schooner which rests in only about 60’. We figured we’d stay close and just make this a laid back dive for the day. Once we arrived it was time for me to gear up and tie into the wreck; surprisingly when I hit the water this time I didn’t go into shock so either I am getting use to it or my body is just going numb sooner When I reached the bottom I was greeted with a bottom temperature of 36 degrees and one lone skate. Next I detached the shot weight and sent that back up to the surface and finished tying into the wreck. I browsed around a bit and noted how big this wreck was but also how void it was of any sea life; there was absolutely nothing! After about an hour of roving around the wreck I decided to head back up and see what everyone was up to. Once back on board I noted Dave getting ready to hit the water and Steph assisting, but where did Ken go? Hmmm…I get my gear off and wander into the cabin and there he is sound asleep! What the heck! Okay, he wakes up and asks what I saw, as he was hoping to spear some dinner, but too his disappointment I let him know that it was pretty much barren down there. After a little coaxing Ken geared up to head down with Steph while I stayed topside; this is when the fun began. Now with Steph and Ken geared up, Steph hits the water first from the back of the boat with Ken rolling off the side. Steph starts to descend then all of a sudden makes a bee line back to the ladder and climbing back on board. Next I hear Ken hit the water and then make a howling sound as he makes a quick bee line back to the ladder as well. What the heck?!? Well Ken forgot to zip up his drysuit and as soon as he hit the water he got the shock of his life, and as for Steph, his was a little less dramatic as his neck seal was not seating correctly and was starting to let a trickle of water run down his neck. After Steph fixed his neck seal he was once again ready to hit the water, but as for Ken he was deciding whether the water that did enter his drysuit would ever warm up. After a few minutes Ken scrubbed the dive and I began to gear up so that I could go down with Steph. Once we reached the bottom Steph was on the hunt for some lobsters and in no time he found a couple, albeit on the small side. Towards the end of our 50 minute dive Steph found another lobster hanging out under some beams, so out comes his hammer in one hand and tickle stick in the other. Before I knew it he’s hitting the beam on one side with the hammer and with his other hand reaching in. After a few minutes of tugging out comes a decent size lobster and into Steph’s bag it went!

All in all we had a great day aboard the Poseidon with great friends and lots of laughs!

Cranford Trip Report

2010-01-22T16:57:00Z

I know it's the Cranford so how exciting can this trip report be, but its the great weather, great friends and fun times out on "lake" Atlantic that counts

Once again we were on "lake" Atlantic greeted by calm seas with only 1 to 2 foot waves. This past Thursday Ken with his Optima, Stephen with his Meg, Dave and Jason on OC and myself on the rEvo headed out on the Poseidon destined for the old Cranford ferry, now an artificial reef lying in about 70'. We only did one dive each with bottom temps hanging around 41 degrees, the viz anywhere between 10' to 20' and 70 minutes bottom time except for Ken who racked up 102! This dive also gave me the chance to try out my new side mount configuration on the rEvo, which worked out much better than I expected. Other than for a minor technical glitch we had on the boat we all had a great time with Ken bringing up one lone lobster and a BBQ and laughs afterwards on board.

The Cranford was a propeller-driven, steam-powered, double-decker, double-ended ferry belonging to the now-defunct Central Railroad of New Jersey. She was built by the Harlan & Hollingsworth Company in Delaware, and was the third of five all-steel Elizabeth II class sister ships. These ferries carried train commuters from the CRRNJ's combined rail/ferry terminal in Jersey City across the Hudson to points in Manhattan.

After her retirement in 1965, the Cranford was sold to a pair of brothers who brought her to a dock in Brielle on the Manasquan River. She apparently made the trip under her own power. There she was converted to a floating restaurant, which was apparently quite good and very successful for a time, operating until 1979. The brothers then tried to move the vessel to a new location, but were denied permits by the government, which did not want to see a repeat of the Cranford's eventful trip into the river in 1965. At that time, her superstructure collided with and damaged the railroad bridge, through which the big ship barely fit. The Cranford's incident closed the bridge to train traffic for several days until repairs could be made. That's thousands of commuters inconvenienced. Needless to say, the railroad was miffed over the whole affair.

So the sad old ferryboat moldered and became an eyesore until 1982, when she was finally sold for one dollar to a welding concern that hacked off her entire upper works ( which were mostly wood ) and sold it for scrap. The triple-expansion steam engine, three boilers and condenser were apparently removed as well. The remaining flat barge-like hulk was donated to the Artificial Reef Committee, carefully maneuvered through the railroad bridge and out to sea by a pair of tugboats, and sunk in the vicinity of the future Sea Girt Artificial Reef. The Cranford is today one of the most popular spots on the reef and has been visited by thousands of divers - a fitting end for the old ship. Several of the PATH cars that helped put the ferries out of business are sunk on the Sea Girt Reef as well.

The remains of the Cranford are well broken-down. In poor visibility the Cranford seems like a junkyard, but in good visibility it is possible to make out the layout of the ship. Curved sections of the hull jut up from the sand along either side of the wreck. Parts of the hull ribbing still stick up 10 ft or more. The main hull structure was iron, but most of the decking is wood. The propellers lie buried in the sand at each end, with just one blade protruding, inside tunnels formed by the collapsed hull.

The edges of this expansive wreck can be followed all the way around the sandy interior, giving this reef its nickname - "the sandbox". Much decking and debris also lies inside the walls, mostly metal, and some wood. In the center of the wreck, the engine and boiler room can be found by a thick layer of fire bricks and iron gratings. Depending on the shifting sands, you can also find the propeller shafts. The Cranford is an excellent spearfishing site; much less good for lobsters. The Cranford makes for a great night dive.

Pinta Trip Report

2010-01-18T19:41:00Z

This past Saturday I was invited on Captain Doug Card’s boat. As this was a new boat and captain for me, I had no idea what to expect other than I knew a couple of the divers who were going to be there. When I arrived I was greeted by Doug who quickly got me settled in with stowing my gear and gave me a quick tour of his boat. Eventually everyone showed up which included Ken with his Optima, Tony with his rEvo, Stephen with his Meg, Dan with his Hammerhead and assorted camera gear, and John who was diving OC.

At 7am we were headed off for the Pinta, which was a freighter that was sunk on May 7th, 1963 by a collision with the SS City of Perth; she now lies on her port side in 90 feet of water. On the way out the ocean was like a calm lake with the sun rising over the horizon; the way the weather has been this winter this was a welcoming sight! By 8:30 Tony had us tied in and we were hitting the water. That’s when the shock hit; it’s freaking cold! After getting adjusted to the cold (if that’s possible) and checking that everything was working correctly I continued my decent down the anchor line. Once I reached the wreck I was greeted by a bottom temperature of 41 degrees and approximately 30 to 40 foot viz. Here is where Curt’s new aluminum gas block that I installed last weekend on my rEvo and the benefit of installing cooper hoses on my rig really made my life easier. After 40 minutes my fingers became numb and pretty much useless; I had no problem reaching for the gas block that I attached to my right chest d-ring and was able to find and hit my O2 button with ease. If you are not familiar with the rEvo rebreather both the Dil and O2 buttons are located on the bottom of the unit and, while for the most part they are pretty easy to get to when conditions are good, as soon as you start adding bailout tanks and reels and numb fingers into the mix it becomes downright frustrating trying to get to the buttons. With the gas block installed I have access to my Dil, O2 and off-board gases on one block which is very easy to get to; the buttons on the bottom are still functional just in case. As for the cooper hoses, I did notice maybe a slight improvement in WOB but what was really noticeable was the lack of condensation build up in the hoses compared to the Ray hoses that I had on there.

After 55 minutes on the bottom I decided to head back up for a total RT of 1:10. Once back on board, I headed for the huge heated cabin for some coffee and munchies. I decided to nix my second dive and just help topside while a couple of the more diehards went in for a second swim around the wreck.

All in all we had a great time! I’m looking forward to next Saturday once again on Lake Atlantic (keeping my fingers crossed) with my camera this time and then off to Dutch on Sunday to de-salt my gear!

Welcome to my Dive Blog

2009-12-12T20:42:00Z