Rockingham Wreck Trail

Wednesday 11 March 2020

Reports of jellyfish were featuring strongly in the weekend dive reports, but after canoeing in the river they were clearly everywhere, so the choice was simply which sea site with a strong southerly. Now, the North Mole is without doubt a great dive site in such instances, but I chose the Rockingham Wreck Trail without an intrepid rock clamber for a change and tempted participants with vinegar, and bugger me, 15 people turned up!

Conditions at first sight were calm, and on entering the water warms of kamikaze Hardyheads attracted by our torches bombarded our heads and wriggled between our fingers, and also lured in numerous seagulls swooping to catch them. In all a very exciting start to the night and the first night dive for four intrepid OW divers.

First dropping down the fixed line to the 12m wreck and 5ish metres of viz, we moved off quickly up the line to the 18m boat and encountered an Octopus in the tyre, a couple of Seahorses and a huge Shrimp along the way. Viz improved and despite the usual silt churning up we found a threesome of Red Scorpionfish on the boat deck and a couple of Mosaic Leatherjackets inside the cabin. The four first time night divers were keeping up so off we went to the cage.

Moving onto the stack of tyres we were greeted by three Spotted Boarfish which along with getting the regulator kicked out of my mouth by my buddy with new fins (you know who you are!!!) was a fantastic surprise. Nosing into the tyres also produced a big Baldschin Grouper large male Red Humpback Cowfish, numerous Stripeys and a Western Smooth Boxfish fluorescing a strange blue hue.

With time pressing, and it is easy to chew up the NDL at this site if you are not careful, we left 15m and made a quick trip around both airplanes and the far stack of tyres in 12m before swimming back along the 5m contour doing our ‘safety stop’. Everyone had maxed out to the 60 minute mark and like me, was reluctant to get out when its so entertaining. The 5 divers still chatting in the car park as i left at 20mins to 10pm were testament to the buzz in the air enjoyed by all who came.

Thank you to all who made it possible, for the banter and laughs and making it a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

Martin Crossley – PADI Instructor / Digital Underwater Photography Instructor