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The liveliest letters from the DIVER mailbag...
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I read Your Strangest Dives in the July issue and would like to mention another such strange tale!
Last October my partner Caroline and I stayed on Cooper Island in the British Virgin Islands, diving with Sail Caribbean Diver, operated by Mike Rowe, who is English, and his wife Mel, a wonderful couple and very professional.
One dive was on RMS Rhone of The Deep fame, a fabulous wreck with plenty of life on it, though showing its age.
One of the first steamships, in the late 1800s the Rhone got caught in a hurricane and sank at Black Rock off Salt Island, taking with her most if not all hands.
The second in command, if I have the story right, got those aboard roped into their bunks during the hurricane, so that when she went down, so did they. They are now buried on Salt Island.
We were doing a night dive on this wreck and I was with Caroline to my right and another English guy, Brendan, somewhere past her. I was at about 12m when I felt what I can only describe as a tug on the right shoulder of my wetsuit.
I ignored it and carried on. After about a minute the same thing happened, and this time I looked round to see who the hell was messing about. Guess what - nobody there.
Caroline was still some 6m to my right, and Brendan still 'over there'. Then I had this overwhelming feeling that something or someone wanted me to find something. I actually went down to the stern fully expecting to find bones or something - weird!
I located Caroline, who I could tell was not feeling at all happy about this dive.
'Spooky' was the word she used afterwards, although she hadn't felt anything specific, so we went up. Back on the boat, I asked Mike if the Rhone was supposed to be haunted. He said yes, and wanted to know why I asked.
I told him. Nothing was said after that because everyone else was coming back up, but I know what I felt.
We met Mike this year at LIDS and, after a few rums on the BVI stand, he said he had been on a recent day dive on the Rhone with a chap who, on surfacing, asked: 'Did you see the skull down there?' Mike says he has been back time and again trying in vain to find this skull. So maybe there is a lost soul there wanting release? We plan to revisit next year.
Has anyone else dived the Rhone with similar strange encounters?
Pete Botley, Warrington, Cheshire
Comment: For more on haunted wrecks, turn to this month's lead feature Fact of Fiction
I went to Portland last August for a couple of days' diving. We stayed at the Aqua Sport Hotel and did all but one dive through Breakwater Diving Centre.
It was most enjoyable and seemed to be quite a professional set-up, the only problem being that the boiler in the hotel was knackered, so it was hotter than the hobs of hell inside!
I rang the Aqua Sport recently and booked in with some colleagues for three nights. We had a lovely room, but the first thing we noticed was how hot it was in the hotel.
There was the equivalent of a thermocline halfway up the second flight of stairs and it nearly knocked you out. You've guessed it, they still hadn't sorted the heating out a year later!
When we tried to book onto one of the boats for the Thursday, we were told: 'Should be no problem, boat is not booked at all that day, but can't do anything now, come back later.'
We came back no fewer than three times and still couldn't get any sense, so we decided to do the morning dive off Lulworth Banks and try again when we got back.
On our return, we couldn't believe Breakwater's response: 'Sorry, no skippers available on Thursday, as they're all on their rest days.'
Surely if this is the region's 'top dive organiser', as it claims, it should work the skippers' rosters so that it has cover every day of the week? On top of the heating problem, we were a bit jarred off!
We decided to do a shore dive off Chesil Cove that afternoon, and afterwards bumped into a couple of guys who train military divers.
When we told them of our predicament, they put us in touch with a great guy (all I'll say is that he's semi-retired and makes a mean cup of cocoa). He took us out for two boat dives the next day and couldn't have been more helpful.
What a vast difference between an individual and an organisation! We won't be using Breakwater again. Has anyone had a similar experience? And how come the afternoon 'fills' are generally better than the morning ones?
Finally, if Breakwater and the Aqua Sport Hotel want to maintain their supposedly excellent record, we would suggest that they go on a customer care course and sort out that ruddy boiler!
Andy Sadler, Brightlingsea, Essex
Liisa Wallace, Director, Breakwater Diving Centre, replies: Thank you for drawing my attention to an occurrence that may have made your stay less enjoyable this time. Since the centre was set up in 1994, regular customers have seen a continuous improvement in our facilities and services, much of it thanks to their feedback - mostly positive and constructive. We provide feedback forms in our rooms and at reception, and I have added a form to our website (www.divedorset.com) for people who do not want to discuss issues during their stay. If you or any customer care to contact me with comments, I would be very pleased; no-one gets it right all the time and, like most businesses nowadays, we want to know what we're doing right and wrong.
In response to Marjolein Thrower's letter in June (Same Old Ball-Game With Airlines), I would like to tell you of our experience.
We have booked a two-week holiday to Thailand in October, flying with Thai Airways International, and I contacted the airline to see whether it allowed extra weight for diving equipment.
As Thailand is one of the big dive locations, I was shocked to find that TAI does not allow any extra weight, and that anything over 20kg would cost £31 per kg (nearly £600 for the two of us). It will be a lot cheaper to hire the gear. People be warned!
Even the cheaper European airlines will allow an extra 10kg per person for sports/dive equipment. You really need to confirm at time of booking what the rules are, so that if there is an alternative you can take it and, yes, Diver should start a campaign for airlines to be a little more sympathetic to our growing sport.
Sarah Wheeler, Oxford
It seems to crop up all the time, on the letters page and in the travel forum at Divernet - the airlines just never seem to allow enough baggage weight.
I also feared the worst after booking a last-minute liveaboard holiday in the Red Sea only to be told that I was flying with Air 2000 - just what should I leave behind?
I thought I would risk the automated telephone system at Air 2000. Would you believe that I was speaking to a real person in less than two minutes? A very pleasant lady by the name of Katie informed me that diving kit was no problem and, provided I was able to show a 'diving licence', I could take an extra 10kg free of charge.
So well done Air 2000 - not all airlines are the same.
Simon Twaits, Bedfordshire
Your editorial about consulting the Coastguard (Don't Get Bashful in an Emergency, July) struck a chord with us at Newbury SAC. We have nothing but praise for Portland Coastguard, which is one of our best resources. It is available with opinions and information (it isn't supposed to give advice) 24 hours daily, either by phone or radio, and has a dedicated diving liaison officer who is friendly, helpful and a diver himself.
Helping out with a rescue earlier in the year brought home to us the importance of the sometimes tiresome dive-marshalling paperwork.
A dive-boat had engine failure while some divers were in the water. We heard the distress call and offered assistance. The Coastguard took control and we went to the scene.
The boat in distress was towed away by another club and we waited for the divers to surface, but no one knew what time they had gone into the water or how long they were supposed to be. Happily they surfaced, were picked up and taken back to land in the normal way.
No big deal, but we all learned something from that day.
Sheilah Openshaw,
Newbury SAC, Kingsclere, Hants
A recent experience has indicated to me that divers are among the few decent and honest people left in the world!
During a week of diving in Scapa Flow, I was daft enough to lose my Sea & Sea MX10 underwater camera, worth £180.
Two days later, incredible as it may seem, a group of divers on another boat spotted it floating in Burra Sound and managed to retrieve it.
Then, instead of simply claiming 'finders keepers', they asked their skipper to call other boats and find out who had lost it. Later that day I was reunited with my camera, intact and watertight.
My sincere gratitude to the guys and girls of Bishop Auckland Sub-Aqua Club for their honesty and generosity. Thanks everyone.
Neil M Haggath, Derby
I read Mark Webster's excellent account of his visit to that tugboat which lies in Fury Shoal in the Egyptian Red Sea (Tug of Love, June) and about how he was unable to uncover any background information about the wreck.
Having now spent five years researching these wrecks, I happen to have some of the missing facts to hand. The vessel's true name was Tien Hsing, a British Admiralty tug requisitioned for service during WW2. She foundered on passage from Suez to Massawa on 26 October 1943.
The wreck is also known among local dive guides as 'the Tugboat at Abu Galawa' and the first recorded instance I have found of her being wrongly called Tientstin was by Richard Buxo in his excellent booklet Diving the South (A Mini-Guide to the Southern Egyptian Red Sea).
On this occasion, because he published a wrong name, I was able to find the real one.
Ned Middleton, Outwell, Norfolk
In his letter about the Hunley (Invitation to View a Unique Sub, May), Dr Robert Neyland states that the Channel 5 programme on this Confederate submarine was a National Geographic Society documentary reworked for a British audience.
I would ask: in what way does a British audience differ from an American one with regard to having facts presented to it?
As the doctor also pointed out, this is a war grave. As I understand it, under international maritime law a wreck so designated should not be interfered with under any circumstances. However, I am in no doubt that the Hunley's crew were treated with due reverence.
I also concur that the little sub is of historical and technological importance. The documentary's illustrations of how it was constructed, propelled and deployed were impressive and seemed to imply that historians and archaeologists alike already had a comprehensive record of such things. Again, with this in mind, I questioned why it should be raised.
With regard to who will benefit financially, it's a matter of record that designated war graves have been interfered with for the sake of financial exploitation with the blessing of the same establishment and archaeologists who seek to 'educate' the public. I have no objection to such education but I do object to blatant hypocrisy and double standards.
I thank you for your open invitation to visit the project and, while our opinions may differ, wish you and your colleagues every success.
It's poignant that it sometimes takes the savagery of war to emphasise the creative ingenuity of men such as Horace L Hunley, who had the courage of his convictions in the face of the unknown, and the bold conduct of his fellow-crewmen. I think Hunley would be proud that his little craft is still there in the front line of the 21st century, though this time as the target of debate.
Alan Thorn
During a recent trip to Sharm el Sheikh with Emperor Divers, the rigged-up cylinder that I was going to use fell from the boat rack to the deck, bending my regulator yoke out of shape. Despite the best efforts of the dive guides and crew to fix it, I had to dive using the guides' spare reg.
At the end of the day I was asked to fill out a customer satisfaction questionnaire, and I expressed my annoyance about the kit falling from the racks.
As I was feeling unwell, I did not return to the centre for the next two days. On the penultimate day I enjoyed diving on the Thistlegorm (no other boats' divers in the water at the same time!) and, back at the centre, asked to speak to the manager, Eric.
Expecting little if any joy, I asked if he had seen my comments on the questionnaire.
Eric said he had, and explained what he was willing to do, bearing in mind that the repair costs were unknown. His customer service was excellent and he made every effort to achieve an acceptable compromise without losing his easy-going attitude.
Back in England, a quick call to Apeks showed that its estimated repair costs were in line with what Eric had estimated. So thank you Eric and everyone at Emperor Divers in Sharm.
Gary Clark, Diss, Norfolk
"The shark is a much misunderstood creature that deserves our respect..." How many books, articles and TV programmes start off with this or a similar sentiment? And how many of these books, magazines etc will have on their cover, or as part of their advertising image, the gaping maw of a great white, teeth gnashing?
This image may be more marketable, but is it not perpetrating the very misunderstanding that we are trying to educate people away from?
How successful would the Shark Trust be as a charity if its logo were a tiger shark with a leg in its mouth? Eye-catching? Yes, but would it get much in the way of donations from people wanting to help ensure the shark's survival?
I'm not suggesting that we dress up the much-maligned creature in a Bo Peep outfit to make it more cuddly, and I'm not proposing that bleeding, dying, finless victims of man's greed should be our magazine covers (although it would be a more accurate representation).
However, if we are to be part of the public's education about this amazing species, it's important that we take a less sensational attitude towards its portrayal.
As divers, we should be the first to move away from the macho, Jaws image. Otherwise, we are just another player in the negative shark trade, allowing ourselves ignorance and denial of our small part in the creature's decline.
Jack Fry, London
Having read countless Diver articles about poor safety standards, I was pleasantly surprised by a recent family holiday in Tenerife. I had not dived for more than a year because of back problems but noticed a PADI dive centre at our resort. Fate?
Eager to get diving again, I chatted to Baz and Andy, the owners of Sol Divers, about both the back problems I had suffered and my subsequent lack of diving. They insisted that they wouldn't consider letting me dive until I had been certified by a local, trusted doctor.
Even then, they strongly suggested that it would be wise to do a Scuba Review to refresh my skills and help me regain my confidence. Only then did they allow me to embark on my first dive, to a shallow depth, feeling relaxed and certain that not only was I fit to dive but that I was in good hands. Warm waters, 25m-plus viz and lots to see - what a cracking dive!
This should be standard advice and practice but it seems that not all dive centres adhere to it. Thanks, Sol Divers, and keep up the good work!
Andrew Drever, London
Having read your informative and well set-out magazine, which I have bought since starting in scuba diving, written in language easily understandable by apparently all levels of diving capability, I felt that maybe someone else could see what I'm trying to say.
Since passing my PADI Open Water course here in Cornwall in November I found it not too bad getting dives in various places to build up my experience, though when the weather was cold in February and March pickings were thin.
However, after Easter the response from dive schools changed. My last two dives were add-ons to other people's courses, though you're not told this until you get to the dive location, where you're expected to tag along for the ride.
Twice a booking has been lost in a school's diary and so cancelled when I've rung the day before to confirm it. Phone calls get diverted to answer-phones and don't get replied to and so on.
Looking through the websites of local dive schools, it seems that once they've taken your money and churned you through the course process you're on your own, except when they e-mail you the latest catalogue from their dive shops.
Thankfully I've now found an excellent local organisation that treats you as a real buddy in and out of the water.
It has helped me to upgrade my qualification with patient pool sessions, an excellent first couple of boat dives, including being on a RIB among a pod of 20-30 dolphins in Newquay Harbour bay, and for once I feel welcome and am able to enjoy my new-found sport.
Thank you Jackie and buddies at Haven Scuba School. This is what I thought diving was supposed to be about - helping and encouraging newly qualified people.
AJ Bolt, Truro
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