DUE do the Curvia (SP)

[Mark Chase]

Sooooooooooo my phone goes off with a text message at 4am and I role over and go back sleep in the certain knowledge my dive buddy has canned it. I don't sleep for long as the phone starts to bleep at me to say its got a message YES I KNOW and I know what its going to say without reading it, so SHUT UP. Logic didn't prevail and the bloody phone kept bleeping all the way till the 7am alarm.

I arrive at Dover to find it bloody freezing and a tad foggy. A somewhat flu ridden Paul is there to great me and I begin to wonder how many more flu ridden people can meet before I too succumb

Then follows the confession that Andyp wasn't coming and much wailing and gnashing of Paul and Dave's teeth followed.

A quick kit loading up and go is followed by the pleasant surprise that my old "Pilot Divers" mucker Mork is on the boat. (I believe its Mick but he was called "Mork" and despite the fact Mindy is no longer around I cant shake it off, sorry M8) I always liked Mork because errrr he went diving a lot which seemed a bit of an issue with some other members of the club

Turns out he's on his Meg and as we are the only CCR divers on the boat I suggest we teem up. Despite both being ex members of Pilot Divers we have never dived together before.

Ride out is lumpy as hell and a bit nasty, so I try and liven things up with a double tuck back somersault and twist whilst holding a cup of coffee. This stunning maneuver received no applause and I was disappointed to note that some felt I had just fallen arse over tit because we hit a big wave.

Captain Deco decided my entertainment was lame. So he went topside and did his best Kate Winslet impression on the bow with the freezing cold sea lashing against his face. This met with mummers of admiration form the others and personally, I could have been persuaded to shag it after a few pints.


Pre lim entertainment over we arrived and kitted up for the dive. The sea looks an encouraging blue-green which was light years ahead of the brown sludge we had left behind. Only UK cave divers would have been happy in that

Mork and I dropped down the line and we were very pleased to find 3-4m of good viz. Water temp was around 9c and I was a happy bunny. I attached the strobe well above the anchor chain and tied on to the anchor to lay the line.

Mork and I set off left as the first in group set off right. We were heading for the bow and were soon over the rotting decks above the cargo holds. Hundreds of bottles and china bowls were below us and I ventured inside for a closer look. Mork seemed happy and I was having no trouble keeping in contact with him so things were looking good.

Having exited the holds we rummaged around top side and i was embarrassed to find our own line again indicating we had gone round in a circle. I decided to signal Mork to lead and I would follow laying line and avoiding embarrassment.
Mork led us on another circuit and we now had three lines traveling parallel to each other about 2m apart. We were making a great cats cradle

About now I found a pair of mauve spotted eel like things. Ever so pretty and about 250mm long. They looked like ribbon eels or baby Morey. I signaled Mork to see as well but one went into hiding.

The cats cradle was getting out of hand, so I decided to reel back to the shot to avoid further embarrassment. Once there we again set off, but this time toward the stern section. I hit a blind OHE to the left of the bridge and we had to retrace our steps out, but soon I recognized where we were at and dropped down to show Mork the beautiful pulminose anemones filling the over heads in this area.

40mins on the clock, time to go. I signaled to mork we should make for the shot and he led folowing the line as I reeled in. Despite not having dived together before, Mork seemed right on the ball with my home made hand signals. Especially the, "were fu##ed" one I used next. The line had broken and my tie off had failed so I had a load of loose line and no sense of direction.

I figured we were on the starboard side and the shot was on the port side with my strobe twinkling away on it. I maneuvered us across the wreck to the port side and we followed that along in search of the shot.

I was extremely pleased that I was diving with a CCR bod and not a gas limited OC diver. I was also pleased that Mork was handling it without any sign of stress or panic.

We made it to the Bow.

This was bad, we had obviously missed the shot completely. I couldn't figure out how I had missed my strobe but despite covering my torch and the ideal dark conditions I hadn't seen it twinkle once. Turns out Nigel had released the shot from the wreck and moved the strobe down to the botom of the anchor chain. Neither the shot or the strobe was where we were expecting it to be.

I began to doubt my self and started to lead Mork down the starboard side but I soon noted our 65mins on the bottom and realized it MUST have been on the port side so we had a long fin back.

I made my decision and pulled out my SMB and showed it to Mork who accepted our fate with a shrug.

Off we went and I think I had 30mis or 35mins of deco. Then the loud grinding noise started. I have to say when you know your in the shipping lanes and the ships above you sound that masive, its a sobering experience. I at first looked around franticly for shadows but I soon realized by the time I saw it it would be too late anyway, so i just accepted Karma and got on with deco.

Needles to say we weren't chewed up and spat out by a container ship and we surfaced to find Neptune 100yards away. FAN BLOODY TASTIC

I took the loop out long enough to apologies to Mork for having got him lost and then we set off for a coffee.

Coffee was delayed by the report that half the ship wreck was attached to the anchor and seeing as I was the twat who had got lost would I mind awfully going down to cut it off.

I was unceremoniously dragged to the front of the boat where I found the anchor line under a bit of strain. I followed it down to 15mish where my strobe was twinkling away happily and ther was some blue poly prop apparently supporting half the shipwreck. A quick slash with my Remora and we were free and I headed back to the surface.

Back on the boat I was surprised to see that even Captain Deco was out of the water. So apparently leaving his computers in the car solved the "diving on the wrong gas setting" issue Paul dished out my final punishment for breaking the rules of DUE and handed me a stone cold cup of coffee. Mmmmmmm nice NOT

Mork was all very relaxed about us getting lost which was nice of him. So I invited him on our Malian Head trip so I could reeeeelllly get him lost

It was a great dive despite the poor ending and Mork was an absolute pleasure to dive with so thanks for that M8 if your reading.

Many thanks to Paul for sorting it all out and deepest commiserations on you missing a great dive. Thanks also to Dave the skipper for doing a cracking job, yet again.

Thats it then. The final tally for 2007 dives is in. Role on Dive 2008
ATB




Mark


Edit: Sorry I ment Mick not Mark. Mork is Mick if that makes sense

[jorawley]

superb report

any of the bottles or china bowls salvaged?? i mean rescued?

[Captain Deco]

I love the Cuvier. It's the wreck I have dived the most out of Dover, and the wreck that has great viz most dives. Nearly every bit of treasure has come from her, and I think I could dive her all day, every day.

Anyway........Like Mark I turned up for my last 2007 sea dive, and I wasn't to be disappointed!! I entered the water with another YD'er named Simon and off we went for a pleasant excursion over the wreck - just pootling about and having a little explore around. I reeled off, and as I don't like doing it I was a little nervous, but I seemed to do OK.

My buddy set off to the surface just before me, so I had a mini explore and scored a nice chamber pot albiet with a broken handle. Mark Chase seemed consumed with jealousy ad I had to beat him off from my spidge whilst I got sorted following a little tangly incident which was soon sorted by just chilling and back finning which released the offending rope. Nevertheless I made it back to the Neptune without all the usual guffawing about my Deco schedules!!!

A great day was had, and I am now knackered!!!

[colinicky]

Glad you all had a good one . Hope to see you next month

[Paul Oliver]

Jay you were diving with Simon from Canterbury Divers with his Russian twinset of death

[Diving Dude]

Glad you had a good time in the channel Mark and the way that you didn't let the fact that l was undergoing a life threatening operation spoil your day.


By the way my hernia operation went ok, thanks for asking.

[Madfish]

........what he said......... -- aaaaaaaaaaaaaaarh not about the hernia, I meant glad you had a good one



Di

[Paul Oliver]

Originally Posted by Diving Dude

Glad you had a good time in the channel Mark and the way that you didn't let the fact that l was undergoing a life threatening operation spoil your day.

By the way my hernia operation went ok, thanks for asking.

Blimey, did anyone notice the Dude was not on the boat?

[Diving Dude]

Originally Posted by Paul Oliver

Blimey, did anyone notice the Dude was not on the boat?

Obviously not .
This proves that l usually take up a very small corner somewhere and keep very quiet.

[trebor]

Yes a great Dive day. Almost fell over again lifting my twin15s off the bench. Still got enough gas (120bar) to dive on saturday as well, great...!