The activities started early on Friday for the two Steves with a pub meal at the Cobargo Hotel enroute to a shore dive at Merimbula. We then tried to get a dive in at the famed Merimbula wharf, however the conditions looked a bit dicey for the exit so we opted for a different shore dive at Short Point. A good warmup dive for the tugs. Friday night was spent at the Australasian Hotel, where all divers caught up with Brian from SCUDA, our Ulladulla-based operator for the weekend who made the trip down for us.
Compared with other parts of the coast just north we certainly dodged a bullet regarding the conditions on Saturday, with seas under two metres allowing us to dive both tugs. However the boat ride was a bit bumpy and proved a bit much for some, who wasted no time getting in the water after anchoring… Dive 1 for the day was the deeper and more-intact Tasman Hauler. We journeyed back to the wharf for a surface interval of donuts and hot drinks, followed by another bumpy ride out for the 2nd dive, this time on the more broken-up Henry Bolte. All in all, a great day’s diving.
Saturday night was spent at the Great Southern Inn Hotel. Great food, great views, and a great matchup at the pool-table between club newcomers Jonathan and Nick. The irresistible desserts menu saw some members forgoing recent dietary changes…
Sunday’s diving saw us venture out for another bumpy ride to the Tasman Hauler. The surface interval again saw us enjoying donuts, where some expressed reservations about another trip outside the bay. Due to the increasing swell it was decided to have the afternoon dive inside the bay. By this stage only Sam and Steve T remained. The initial plan was to dive the chip loader but there was a significant swell there too so we went to the navy wharf instead. The viz was awful and it was impossible to see one pylon from the next. However, there was still plentiful marine life including crabs, shrimps and a small octopus.
After a cruise around Twofold Bay we took a look at the old cannery wharf in Cattle Bay. This would make a potential future shore dive and night dive. The viz was only a couple of metres and the site had very little life. The highlight was a small moray eel. There was a lot of rubbish including supermarket trolleys, camping chairs, a bicycle and car tyres. An unusual find was a lost house key.
Sam stayed on in Eden for a couple more days to explore some of the many non-diving activities available in the area. This included the Whaling Museum, Davidson Whaling Station, Boydtown and Boyd’s Tower. The distinctive tower overlooks the tug wrecks at the southern entrance to Twofold Bay. A day was spent hiking the southern section of the Light to Light Walk from Green Cape Lighthouse as far as Bittangabee Bay. The Ly-ee Moon was wrecked at Green Cape in 1886 with the loss of 71 lives. Many are buried in a nearby bush cemetery.
A big thank you to SCUDA and Brian Harrison, who towed his boat from Ulladulla to Eden for the trip, brought along extra Nitrox cylinders, and provided a highly efficient, safe and enjoyable two days of boat diving for us.
