Mullion Cove, Cornwall - 17/09

[Lou]

Well, us southern softies were down in Cornwall for a week of R&R (and a celebration of my 21+9 birthday - yikes!) so we took the opportunity of joining up again with the Dive Action gang and most especially their illustrious boss, Gary.

Unfortunately a rather strong easterly had been blowing for a while and was still hanging around, making a nuisance of itself, so the glory of the Manacles was out of our grasp.  Instead, Gary suggested that we join him on a boat with his rebreather course and do a couple of splashes off the other side.  

So it came to be that on my birthday we were sat in glorious sunshine at Mullion Cove, being gawked at by the odd tourist, awaiting the rib "Sly Fox".

When it arrived it was a quick load up (although with 4 rebreathers to be loaded in addition to us two single cylinder nancies quick is a relative term!).

We then took a steady ride out the narrow entrance of the harbour, nervously keeping an eye on the sea anglers who looked mean and ready to decapitate us with a single tug.  The rib turned left around a small headland and over sea that was bright blue and smooth as silk.

A short way along we stopped, and were amused during the quick briefing and kitting up process by a juvenile seal that kept popping up just far enough away to tantalise us and keep him feeling safe.

A backward roll in and mask down for the first view - BLOODY ####!! - I could see the bottom, and it wasn't a couple of metres away, it was about 15!!  Gobsmacked was I.

A descent down the shotline lead us to a bottom consisting of large lumps of rock, covered in kelp, interspersed with sandy patches that were so clean and white, you really could have been abroad.

We slowly finned down to about 20m and even then, if you looked up, you could see the sun shining down and the outline of the rib above.

The gentle mince around lasted about 40 minutes and nothing exciting was seen, some wrasse, pollack, a squat lobbie (and some rebreather divers bobbing up and down and doing drills!) but it was a really pleasant dive.

Back to Mullion for an expensive, but delicious, hot chocolate and a change of tank for us Luddites, and then out again to a similar location, this time to dive the wreck of the Denise.

This time the descent dropped us onto a boiler sat upright between two pinnacles.  The diameter of the boiler was over two meteres and four divers sat on it awaiting the others!

The rest of the wreck is well broken and dispersed, lying in gullies and on open patches of sand.  Once we had had a good overview we turned our attentions to these gullies and explored them.  Some of them narrowed overhead into funnel shapes, but with their clean sides and stoney bottoms, out of the effects of any surge the water clarity was excellent.

Once again there wasn't any jawdroppers to be seen, but the overall enjoyment of the dive was high.  When we had to leave the rebreather boys due to looming deco on the computers it was with a smile hidden behind the regs and a feeling of a #### good day's diving.

If you ever go down to Cornwall check it out, especially if you can't get on the Manacles.  You might be lucky like we were.

[Davey Willo]

Excellent report Lou

I've heard good things about Cornwall and the like, pity it's at the other end of the bloody Earth from me.

Anyway... glad you had a couple of great dives, although I imagine you might have got a little bored waiting for the CCR boys to surface.