Random Jottings
More side scan around Oban and Sound of Mull
I spotted this on a website and thought, hmmmmmmmn there's a couple of intersting sites!
There must be 'many' wrecks lost in the Sound of Mull where skippers decided for the easy route between Mull and the Mainland and got caught up by prevailing conditions. The commonly dived wrecks are Thesis, Rondo, Hispania and Shuna although I suspect that there are many more either too deep or known only by Scallop divers who really can't be bothered with the hassle of hoards of 'pleasure divers' descending on a good site.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-47568213
There is a site here that is well within range for most divers and I can say it is not a name I recognise, so fingers crossed for a summer dip!
Dive safe
RichW
Latest Photographs


That 'light-bulb' moment, this is the slightly bent bit that made me think 'keel' it doesn't move and has that 'look' about it. I will need to clout and see if it is solid or a 'U' section with wood inside.
A view of the sections of masts if you are heading towards the Hopper, they are in a section of sand filled gully at the base of the rock face
All of the time keep an eye open for Lions Mane Jellyfish (Cyanea capillata) they sting and the tentacles are a few meters long, always approach from up-tide!
A Long Legged Spider Crab (Macropodia rostrata) there are loads on all or most sites, this is the most common 'camouflage'.
By late summer the once bare stems of the kelp are little microcosms of weeds and small animals, the winter storms smashes everything up but twelve months later it's all back.
The same tower slightly further out, the slits are located around the entire diameter of the tower to allow the crew to see any assailent and take appropriate actions.
Don't try this at home kids!!!
Arty-farty shot of a Velvet Swimming Crab (Necora puber)
The front end of the helicopter, there are loads of 'things' to see, most of which have been stripped by divers!
This is what remains of the bows, when the plates fell apart the bow fell forward as the supporting structure had been removed
These fry were hiding close to the surface, I think that they were baby cod (Gadus mordua) but at that size all I can say is that they were of that genus!
Toby Douglas, not skippering today but in the wet having fun!
A good old RAF roundal...used everywhere apart from the pacific in WW2 (apparently they looked too much like the Japanese 'meatball')
I just dropped outside of the hull at this point as I was 'bored', hopefully some sense of scale for both vis and wreck size
Another arty shot of the stringy like Bootlace Weed (Chorda filum) that is found in lower inter-tidal water. Apparently quite tasty too!
The back end of a lobster (Homarus gammarus).
On one particular stone there were loads of Candy striped flatworms (Prostheceraeus vittatus), not sure why as adjacent areas were devoid.
A pair of Wolf-fish (Anarhichas lupus) in a hole, these were a couple of large fish with 'fist' size heads, when looking for these fish look for secure holes, I tend to concentrate in cracks and fissures in the bed-rock, rather than loose rocks and boulders.
Go out, south, and the bottom turns to big rocks surrounded by grit. Unfortunately it's all very mobile as you will see from the wave form of the sand, this means no scallops!
There is still some ordanance at the stern end so don't go banging things!!!
You can see the sweep of the bow on this shot and a few of the ribs sticking out of the sand