One of the largest vessels scuttled on the Long Reef Wreck Site is the bucket dredge Coolooli. Built in 1955 at the NSW Government State Dockyard at Newcastle (NSW), the Coolooli was unpowered. She displaced 150 tonnes and was 50 metres long and 10 or 11 metres wide. The dredge was owned by the NSW Maritime Services Board and used to keep NSW ports navigable. Sometime before 1975, it was laid up. On 19 August 1980 (one record says 29 August), the Coolooli was sunk as part of the reef and now lies on its starboard side on sand in 48 metres of water.
With only an 8 minute bottom time plan this was a very short visit to the Coolooli. We descended the anchor line and I must admit that at the time I didn't realise it but with hindsight I can see that I was very "Narked".
From the top of the wreck we were in 40M of water and dropped down to 44m as we circumnavigated the wreck. We saw a Wobbegong but all too soon it was time to ascend.
My computer showed 1 minute until no decompression limits were exceeded so I signaled to my buddies and started to ascend. From my very fuzzy memory of the dive we did spend a lot longer hanging on the anchor line at 5M than we did on the actual wreck. While performing our 8 minute safety stop I started to get a headache again similar to what I experienced on the Valiant. I concentrated on expelling air as I did not want a repeat of the CO2 retention issue I had back then.
After surfacing we boards the boat "Hoochi Mumma" and I was as sick as a dog. I have no living memory of ever vomiting so much! It was a very unpleasant experience and went as quickly as it came. I have a suspicion that I was suffering from CO2 retention or "Hypercapnia" again as I felt fine after about 5 minutes. I do not think it was sea sickness related. It could be "Alternobaric vertigo" but I am not sure and self diagnosis on websites will inevitably lead to the incorrect conclusion. I will monitor this as I do not want to find myself in this situation again.
5 minutes later I felt fine and waited for the TEC divers to surface. We watched them hanging on the deco line for about 40 minutes.
We headed off to the apartments after that and I took my camera on this dive and tried some new setting to see if I could address the colour and blur issue I have been experiencing over the last few weeks.
Back of the Hoochie Mumma
A friendly Blue Groper
The sport and fluorescent setting seem to improve the clarity and colour.
A full schedule has prevented me from giving a full update but I think this was a one-off trip for me. I won't be hurrying to visit the Coolooli again given my issue with CO2 retention.
My experience justifies the rationale about only going deep if you have a real need and it shouldn't be done for the sake of going deep
I went down for a weekend of diving in Jervis Bay to complete my PADI deep specialty course this weekend. I had completed all of my pre-requisite study and was ready to take on the practical aspect of the course. There were to be 2 dives on the Saturday to 30M and 20M and 2 dives on the Sunday to 40M and 25M, with various tasks to complete on each.
We set off on the Genesis on Saturday morning at 8:00am and headed out across a completely flat Jervis bay. We went out through the heads and turned North to our first dive location- Crocodile.
Brett and Nathalie help Jen to attach the pony bottle in the water. Emma and Nathan on the boat.
Brett was my buddy on all dives for the weekend. On our first DiveI took a pony bottle to get the feel of carrying one and in case Brett or I needed it. I wasn't really prepared for how much the pony bottle affected my buoyancy. We went down the anchor line to 30 M but I could not achieve neutral buoyancy. I may have been suffering slightly from Nitrogen Narcosis as I thought the bladder in my BCD had burst. I kept putting squirt after squirt of air in the BCD but still I was sinking like a stone.
I only carry 3 x 3lb weights, so even though the pony bottle was quite light it added a large % increase to my weight. There were lots of pictures being taken and I think Nathalie may have been feeling the effects of narcosis when she started disco dancing @ 30M.
Nathalie's Saturday Night Fever at 30m, Jen her buddy wonders what's going on?
We looked at the effect on colour at depth as Emma, the dive instructor had brought several pieces of different coloured materials, that all had changed colour at 30M. When we ascended the anchor line I found where all that air I had been pumping into my BCD went! I had to duck dive and dump the air to avoid an uncontrolled ascent.
We surfaced and had some lunch. Unfortunately Nathan was quite sick at about -3M and this continued on the boat. He decided not to dive again this weekend, this was his first dive this year and he may have had a stomach bug. He had not had much sleep the previous night and could have been breath skipping (see my post on CO2 retention) (headache information)
The Second dive was on Point Perpendicular. I took a picture of our boat the "Genesis", not sure if she is named after the bible chapter or the 80's UK rock band? By the look of the 2 Steve's I would say the latter.
We went down to about 20M and found a friendly blue groper looking for a feed. We looked at the effect of pressure on neoprene and how this affects buoyancy at depth and why we feel colder. This was a fairly uneventful dive but we did get to inflate our safety sausages at the end of the dive which was good practice and fun.
Day 2:
We set off even earlier and the advanced diver group with us went on the twin hull Avalon ahead of us but we soon caught them up. It was another perfect morning to be on Jervis Bay.
Advanced Course Group on the Avalon
As we had a picture of the Advanced group we decided to pose for a group photo of the Deep group. Steve obliged us as we headed out of the heads and to the north this time to the Arch.
Brett, Jen, me, Ben, Nathalie and Emma
The Arch is a huge swim through, big enough to drive a submarine through, whose bottom sits in about 38M. Our challenge would be to complete a simple child's maze puzzle whilst under the arch to demonstrate the effect of Nitrogen Narcosis when trying to complete simple tasks. We anchored right on the Arch and there was quite a strong current moving to the south. It took quite a bit of effort to get to the anchor line and a few of the divers needed to be towed by Steve on board to get to the front of the Genesis. The arch is an amazing rock formation and is well worth the effort to go and see, I would recommend this dive to anyone.
Brett completing the maze test under the Arch
I switched the video off to complete my puzzle. It took me 23 seconds and I must admit I was just following the pencil hoping to get through the maze, I wasn't able to look ahead in the maze and plan any sort of preemptive strategy as I would on the surface. My pencil did get to a few dead ends and had to back out which would never happen on the surface. After the puzzle I switched the video on but it was time to get out of there.
Underneath the arch, no time to wait around in 38M
With a bottom time of only 6 mins to ensure we stayed clear of our no decompression limits, there was hardly enough time for both of us to complete the puzzle. We planned to do a 22.5M safety stop for 1 minute as there is a strong school of thought that suggests this is beneficial in reducing nitrogen levels. We headed up to 5M and did an 8 minute safety stop to simulate a no-decompression dive limit breach. We took the opportunity to practice breathing on the pony bottle for 1 minute each to simulate an out of air situation, unfortunately Brett unscrewed the 1st stage instead of turning the Air on and we lost the first stage.
We had some lunch on board and headed back into the bay for what was to be the best dive of the weekend, The Wall.
On this dive our only task was to swap regulators to feel the difference between differing setups. We found a suitable spot and and completed the task and then used the rest of the dive to explore the area. The wall is a great dive and there is so much to see in this area, it would take many dives to appreciate all this site has to offer. We found a numbing Ray which Emma kindly offered up for me to stroke.
Emma handling the numb ray
Weswam along the wall and Brett and I found this Giant Cuttlefish sitting in a corner. I was trying to hold the camera and my torch as I wanted to avoid the green haze I usually get. The flashes are from Brett's camera.
We ascended the wall, whose top conveniently sits in 5M, where we did our 3 min safety stop before surfacing and being picked up by the Genesis.
Blue Groper and the Wall.
I think I need the underwater photography specialist course next!
Steve on-board, Crocodile cave in the background.
It was a great weekend and there were just too many things that happened to capture in this blog. The pancakes, the BBQ, the snoring, pods of dolphins, poker and a full deep diving knowledge review on Saturday night to name but a few of the highlights. I would highly recommend a trip to Jervis Bay with Abyss for any diver. In fact if your going let me know and I'll come along too :)
The twenty second day of February 1949 had been a typical late summer's day on the NSW South Coast. At about 3 o'clock a southerly buster had passed the Wollongong area and the sea conditions had dramatically changed for the worse. Since then the SS Bombo had battled the deteriorating seas, first in an attempt to reach Sydney and then in a battle to make the safety of Port Kembla. By 10.00 pm it was only four kilometers away from safety when suddenly the list on the ship worsened. Within minutes the ship had "turned turtle" and sank, taking four crew to their immediate death.
SS Bombo going up Sydney Harbour
HMAS Bombo just after it was commissioned - 26 October 1939
When the Bombo sank, a great deal of its cargo of blue metal dropped out of the holds and fell to the sea floor (remember the ship turned turtle). This pile of metal is now located about 50 metres to the east of the wreck. As the ship went down it ploughed into the sandy bottom bow first. This caused some damage to the bow area. Soon after, the bridge hit the bottom and then the great weight and momentum caused the ship's back to break and the Bombo buckled right across the hull almost in the middle of the ship. At the same time the weight squashed the bridge beyond identification. As she sank, some pieces fell and ended up on the sand next to the remains of the ship. This includes a hopper used to load coal/gravel and parts of the masts. Lying roughly north-south, the Bombo was now in water 32 metres deep and upside down almost in the middle of the shipping channel. Reference: Michael McFadyens Website
Getting ready for adventure
We set off on the Vengeance from Port Kembla Harbour at about 9:20 am in search of the wreck of the Bombo,. Our Dive master was Emma and my buddy was Ashley.
Ashley and Leigh on the Vengeance
We descended to the wreck and with only 20 mins max bottom time we started to investigate. There was a thermal current that we went through at about 20m and the temperature dropped to about 14 degrees. I took a few photos but the depth and my red filter has taken out most of the light leaving a slow exposure time on automatic, resulting in blurred images.
After a short investigation of the wreck, we returned to the anchor line and I was intrigued to see the anchor dancing off towards the south west across the sand. I decided to chase the anchor and caught it a few metres away from the bow of the wreck. I was definitely feeling the effect of nitrogen narcosis as I realised once I got hold of the anchor there was absolutely nothing I could do to secure it.
We found a moray eel in the wreck, here is a video of where the anchor was and the moray eel hiding.
We surfaced without incident and returned to shore, where another Abyss crew were waiting to go out for their first dive. We had a delicious lunch of Tomato soup (& Tabasco) with peanut butter roll, topped off with a pleasant desert of jelly snakes. We waited around for the boat to return for our second dive.
After lunch waiting for the boat to come in
Our Second trip out was a lot "bouncier" and a wetsuit was the best thing to be wearing. We made it out to the wreck and entered the water. Emma took pictures of everyone so i took one of Emma and The Vengeance.
Emma and The Vengeance above the wreck site
We descended the anchor line and this time we had even less bottom time. With a planned maximum bottom time of 18 mins we set off to investigate. The visibility had deteriorated somewhat and there were thousands of fish in the vicinity. Ashley and I investigated the wreck , looking inside all the holes in the upturned hull. It was amazing how many fish were inside the upturned hull.
Ash and I entered a huge gaping hole in the hull that made a sort of overhang, but all too soon it was time to turnaround and head back to the anchor line.
The red light is filtered out at this depth and my camera did not have its own light, so everything appears really green. It wasn't this colour in real life but just the effect of the sea filtering the light.We found the boiler of the ship which is now an encrusted reef on its own..
The dead ship now is a swarm of life
We returned to the surface and the shore without incident. All up 2 very good dives but maybe next time I will dive this wreck on Nitrox to get a bit longer bottom time. I had a great day in the ocean and would recommend this dive to all advanced and above certified divers..
The summer is starting to make its presence know and today was quite a warm one to be walking around with a 5mm wetsuit and 20kg of scuba gear strapped to your back.
The dive master was Joe and my dive buddy was David. On the first dive we found a very friendly blue groper and gave him a feed.
We carried on to the cave and spent a few minutes taking in the cave life. I tried to get some photos but there wasn't enough light in the cave. I guess I need the flash after all!
Inside the cave (no flash!)
We headed out further for a few meters and bumped into a particularly angry giant cuttlefish. He was letting David know in no uncertain terms that he wasn't welcome in these parts. He had his tentacles high up and was darting back and forth. Unfortunately I didn't get a photo as I was too busy taking in the show. We went on a little further before deciding to turn back as I was down to 1800psi. We headed back on a reciprocal heading of 210 degrees and surfaced next to the dive buoy.
After a nice lunch of tomato soup, peanut butter roll and Minties we headed off to do the same dive again. This time we wanted to spend longer in the cave.
David (my buddy)
The visibility was fairly average and there were some very warm and cold currents as we headed back out to the cave. We found a brightly coloured starfish that caught our attention for awhile, but my pictures didn't turn out so good so I won't waste the bandwidth here.
We sat in the cave for several minutes and took it all in. It is quite magical inside the cave and there were hundreds of fish. David found his adversary from the first dive, the giant cuttlefish, lurking in the shadows. The giant cuttlefish was equally displeased to see us as he was on the first dive. I shone my torch on him and he disappeared. We didn't find him again. We left the cave and found a queue of divers waiting to get in. I guess we were hogging all the cave!
Scuba Central
We headed back, passed the rocking horse, and ran into several other scuba divers. It was scuba central for awhile. David was easy to spot as he was the only one with blue fins. I was much more difficult to keep an eye on as I, like everyone else, was black from head to toe. David lost sight of me a few times but I was easily able to identify him and let him know where I was.
I found a nudibranc and tried the macro setting on my camera. I obviously need to keep very still while the macro setting is on as the images all came out blurred. Here is the best of the poor bunch, let's see if I can improve on this?
Blurred and out of focus- it can only get better!
I like this dive site and would recommend it to anyone. It does get fairly busy with lots of scuba divers around. I think this would be an excellent night dive.
View Oak Park - the cave in a larger map Estimated dive path (we went a little further south on the second dive).
