Simon Campbell
A personal perspective of life, the universe and everything…
Expeditions
St Kilda: Chapter six
The final push, making it to Kilda with some of the best diving of the expedition to date and then home for a well earned rest from O-Rings feet!
Day 11 (Wednesday)
The weather was improving by the minute and there was a sense of urgency amongst the team to ensure we achieved as much diving as possible; the latest we could leave was Thursday evening.
Dive #1: The gap: East side of Hirta
Buddy: Mike Holroyd
Boulders as big as lorries and kelp dominated this dive. If this was anywhere else but St Kilda, it would be dived every day. Unfortunately, compared with the rest of the stuff out here it was about average. Depth was a maximum of 30 meters.
Dive #2: The Sawcut
Buddy: Mike Holroyd
This is the second time I had done this dive in the two week expedition. The first was quite stunning. This time I penetrated further in and almost reached the surface as I followed the cut into the island. I also had a good look at the walls and even inside, without the benefit of natural light, they were encrusted with variety of life. Visibility was improving with 20/25m horizontal and 30/35m vertical; not for the agoraphobic diver!!
As we exited the cut we met up with Justin and his buddy Paul. Justin had been struggling with his brand new ‘HD’ camera and sophisticated housing. The electronics powering the screen at the back of the housing just wasn’t working. This was one of the few dived where he managed to get it all together and he was a happy man.
We steamed the few hundred metres from the ‘Sawcut’ to Village bay, dropped the hook, launched floppy and went ashore. Skipper Rob operated the HIAB which was fortunate as there was no schematic diagram showing what the levers actually do. I would have taken out the life-rafts if I had been in control!
The try-dive!
There are not many people in the world that can say they have had a try dive in Village Bay, but ace crew member Helen Rickets is one of them. The substantial westerly swells restricted the diving possibilities but we managed to sort the try dive. Anne Buchan kindly lent her kit to Helen and following a brief at the stern of the ship, it was with great trepidation she descended down the ladder of the boat into the 15m+ visibility of the bay.
We had arranged a shot line straight down from the ladder and we hung there for a couple of minutes until she decided to surface. Not perfect conditions and not very progressive but good fun. Karen, who is a trained diver, then decided she wasn’t going to be left out quickly kitting up and entering the water with Skipper Rob.
Rob is a commercial / scallop diver and therefore used to diving on dry-suit only without Buoyancy Compensator. Being so streamlined he was darting around like a Barracuda as the three of us swam down the anchor chain to the anchor that was well and truly embedded in the course sand. I saw, first hand why a good anchor with plenty of chain is the only way forward when overnighting in bays with unpredictable weather.
I walked down the stairs and entered our cabin. I have never had such an olfactory assault. It smelt as though a pile of Camembert had been festering over a radiator for days. Looking around I quickly detected the source of the odour. O-ring had put his neoprene socks to dry over the sink. Now you have to remember that we at this stage been away for around 11 days and he had been wearing them under his dry-suit, without rinsing, for this time. I charged out and presented him with the offending items colourfully describing what would happen to them next if I found them in our room again. He muttered in latin something about not letting the bastards grind you down.
Dinner tonight was melon with fig, salami, proscuito and a then robust shepherds pie. Can’t remember desert and of course more cheese which of course brought back earlier memories…
Day 12 (Thursday)
We were up early (0700) to squeeze in the two planned dives before we had to head back to Tobermorey. The winds overnight were still quite fierce (W WSW 5/6) and even in the bay there was a little swell. I think this helped O-ring sleep as when I asked him whether he was alive or not he didn’t answer.
“O-ring, are you alive?” – no answer
“O-ring, speak to me…” – no answer
“Shit O, you’re not dead are you?” – no answer.
I think to myself, Jess (O’s long suffering wife) will kill me; she told me to bring him back alive – why, I am not sure but that was the instruction.
I looked over the side of the bunk expecting to see a waxy cadaver. Quite the reverse, he wasn’t there at all… He had either died and ascended, Christ like, to the great O-ring factory in the sky or he had gone to brew up… Fortunately it was the latter.
Dive #1: Rubha An Uisge South East tip of Hirta
We descended down a sheer wall to 30m depth where we found the sea bed strewn wth large boulders. The wall was festooned with sponges and encrusted with every thipe of encrusting thing that could encrust. Teeming with life, nudibranchs, lobsters, crabs, crayfish, wrass. A really great dive.
Mike was taking his BSAC First Class Diver exam in Cumbrae on the Friday we returned (it’s a full weekend: Friday evening to Sunday evening). So, as we were performing the safety stop at the end of the dive I slipped in an out of gas drill which he wasn’t expecting. Lovely work with it all happening in total control within 0.3m of the planned safety depth of 6 metres. Well done mate!
Dive #2: Udracleit East side of Borrary
Buddy: Mike Holroyd
This is it, the final dive of the expedition – and what a dive!
We made our way out to Borrary and due to the westerlies, dived the East side of the Island.
The entrance to this dive was through crack in rock at 12m which developed into a long tunnel 30/40m. It was totally enclosed and of course dark. After about 20m on right hand side looking up and turning off your lamp, you can see light and crack which is the way out. Even though the tunnel was quite wide, Mike and I proceeded single file with me leading.
The end of the tunnel opened out into a lovely garden like scene and we just floated there observing – in the 25/30 meter visibility – the other divers who had just gone through. Truly awesome. I was just about to set off when a seal came round the corner hurtling straight past me. It was a large one and I felt the pressure of water push me against the side of the tunnel. I have to say it was a shocking experience and a good reason to switch back from a ‘p’ valve to nappies ;-)
We swam out and descended down to 20m in the garden playing with the seals and just soaking up the ambience of a very, very special place…
I didn’t want to leave but we eventually ascended. As I hung onto the line waiting for Mike to climb the ladder, Rob applied a little astern propulsion so I was buffeted against the side with the prop wash… Real joker.
The journey back was also quite spectacular. With the wind at our backs and fair weather we came across a dozen dolphins and Helen spotted a sunfish.
The final dinner was consumed whilst going through the Sound of Harris. A feast: Pork roast with parsnips, carrots (drenched in with maple syrup), hot chille sweet potatoes, cauliflower bodhe, roast red onion and balsamic, Yorkshire pudding, boiled potato and cranberry sauce. This was followed by chocolate pudding with cream an yoghurt. Willie produced a bottle of Port which we shared with the cheese. I also had a couple of glasses of Cote du Rhone. A very fine meal indeed!
It was a long journey and Rob had elected me to take the 2100 watch. After dinner I put by head down for a couple of hours and came up to the bridge. Rob took a catnap on the bridge and I was in command. It was pitch black and in the distance I spotted a group of lights. The radar showed a clump of ‘stuff’ and after fixing them (nice, clever radar) they appeared to be drifting. Binoculars out and I could see a mass of lights looking more like a Christmas tree than anything I has seen before.
Lights at sea are funny things. When you train to do your night skippering you are shown loads of diagrams as to what you are likely to see, but when you are out there however, its a totally different story.
In any event, I decided they were fishing vessels of some type and adjusted course to avoid them. Rob was pleased I didn’t hit anything…
We passed Niest Point and having successfully negotiated the pot buoys – Enemy of the Mariner – at the entrance to Sound of Mull (also Harris and Barra) we arrived in Tobermorey at around 0200 on Friday morning.
Day 13 (Friday)
After the fright yesterday, I didn’t ask O-ring weather he was alive or not but he was conditioned now and before I could utter a word. “I am alive”. Loving his work.
When he turned up at breakfast we was wearing his expedition ‘hoodie’, with hood firmly in place: O-ring Kenobi… It gives the term ‘hoodie’ a whole new meaning!
At breakfast (porridge and sausage sandwiches) I looked over at the sliding door to see a newspaper cut-out of Gary Glitter which did look suspiciously like me time to trim the beard I think… It was then that Justin led the group in song embarrassing poor Helen with ‘You’ve got that lovin’ feeling’.
Dive #1: The Rhondo
On the way up the Sound of Mull the tide was right for the Rondo. I was pretty dived out and I turned down the opportunity to do it for the 30th time! I was told it was good, but deteriorating rapidly…
When we reached Oban, Mike unloaded quickly and shot off off to his First Class Diver exam in Cumbrae and the rest of the team unloaded the boat. ‘O’ and I were the last to leave following an extensive idiots check. After a brief search, we found we were the only idiots left and we bade our emotional fairwells to the ship and crew with a vow to return soon. Rob and I have a hankering to write an ‘Essential Guide to St Kilda’ – watch this space…
Here is the video taken by Justin Owen of the event. Even though he cursed his camera housing the result is rather pleasing!
Well, if you like the sound of what we do, why don’t you subscribe to my RSS feed to be notified of any expeditions that we are running. Thanks for reading and see you all next time…
Postscript: Both Crazy Ed (Dive Manager week one) and Mike Holroyd (Dive Manager week 2) passed their First Class Diver exam with flying colours. Very hearty congratulations.
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“St Kilda”
Chapters
I first visited the archipelago in May of 2005; an experience I will never forget. This expedition shared my passion, immersing 24 Divers in 13 days of adventurous, challenging and world class diving.
3 comments
Jimbo ( honarary man of steel ) on 16/01/09 at 2136 hours
Thanks Simonski just lived it all again and lovin it.
Anne on 16/01/09 at 2217 hours
Excellent journal. Thanks for the memories…................ :-)
Hope you’ll let me join you on another adventure some time.
Judith Moore on 29/04/10 at 1237 hours
Looks amazing i really want to visit the island again catch a glimpse of some dolphins.