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On June 10, I made the third dive down to the Titanic. After a routine pre-dive and launch, by 7:30 a.m. my two observers, Bob Ballard and Martin Bowen, and I were on our way to the bottom.  Heading to the bottom in Alvin is actually pretty relaxing. Well, as relaxing as you can get in a 6-foot sphere. It is still warm inside, not yet cooled off by the cold temperatures of the deep ocean. Once you flood the ballast tanks and sink, you leave behind the motion of the waves and begin the two-and-one-half-hour free fall to the bottom. The Titanic lies at a depth of 3,996 meters, about 2.5 miles down.

See link below for more:

http://www.whoi.edu/oceanus/viewArticle.do?id=80686&sectionid=1000

Photo: P-38 Lightning Courtesy: Wikipedia Creative Commons License

Yesterday, Jim Ridgway and several local divers from Power Scuba visited a WWII relic: a P-38 Lightning that was ditched off the coast of San Diego during a routine  training exercise in 1943–the pilot survived and the pink anemone-covered plane has served as an artificial reef for fish and marine life every since.

See below for the video and more on the crash itself:

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-38501-San-Diego-Scuba-Diving-Examiner~y2010m7d5-Divers-visit-local-WWII-relic-the-P38-Lightning

Date: 7-3-10

Location: Yukon, Wreck Alley

Time: 10:11

Max Depth: 101 ft.

Surface Conditions: rather nasty, with 4 ft. swells and 12 knot winds

Viz: given the above conditions, surprisingly good: 15-20 ft.

Mix: 32%

Dive Buddy: Julie L.

Marine Life Observed: schools of Blackmith and Senioritas, Strawberry Anemones, Tube-Dwelling Anemones, White Metridia, Masking Crabs and  Fried Egg Jellyfish….

Highlights:

–I must say that given the above mentioned surface conditions, I was expecting a pretty crappy dive, but was pleasantly surprised that the visibility was a good as it was–but, this has happened before on the Yukon: crappy surface conditions, good conditions down below.

–the dive didn’t exactly get off to a great start, when Jim ripped his neck seal suiting up and couldn’t dive and Peter got all the way into the water, before realizing he was too seasick to dive safely, since he continued feeding the fish from the surface–so, right there, we had a 50% attrition rate, just sitting over the Yukon!

–that left me and Julie, who was doing her second dive on the Yukon, and all things considered, comported herself very well and we had a relaxed, enjoyable dive, enjoying the nice visibility and with me giving her the ‘ten cent tour,’  pointing out Milt’s likeness to her on the Tilt and Donathan’s memorial plaque.

Another day in paradise, folks–even when conditions seem bad on top!

PS: there was only one mooring buoy over the Yukon.

Dive safe, everyone…….

Mikey Unfurls the Colors Over the Yukon

-BE SURE AND TURN ON ‘FULL SCREEN OPTION’ IN LOWER  RIGHT  OF SCREEN AND TURN ON YOUR SPEAKERS