Went to the wrecks of the Schurz and Spar - Lionfish and shark abound
Quarry Diving
Saturdays following the regular club meeting. Location to be announced. These dives are open to all club memebrs and guests. Unless otherwise noted, prior sign up is not necessary
Future Exotic Dive Trips
Unless othrewise noted,These trips are open to all club members abd guests.
The Rangers had three picture perfect days of off shore diving. Water was in the low 70's. vis 40-60 ft and only a slight chop and rollers each day. Clear blue skies and comfortable temps with cool breezes sealed the deal.
Robin's booty from the wreck of the Hebe
Day 1: Vermillion is a artificial wreck that was sunk in the 80's.It is huge in length and relief.Tons of active aquatic life from locals to tropicals, great swim throughs and places to poke around. you have to be careful about depth because of the sheer size and how it is sitting in the sand. You can reach upto 150 ft inside the wreck. Vis was 60 ft and even the junkers liked it!
Day 2-Civil War wreck/Govenor- vis was perfect in the 40's. Great wreck to dig and look for stuff. Cases of guns have been brought up. I found a buckle.
Day 3- We saved the best for last- The Hebe. We were looking for bottles and bottles we found. Beer bottles, insecticide bottles, ink and liquor can be found. We all came up with bottles and I even found a small oil lamp with reflector lid, fully intact. The Captain and I are going to do some research on it. We were going to go to the St.Cathan but all had bottle fever and stayed.
Owners of Express Water Sports Jennifer and John and their crew Joe, Tony, Captain Ralph and the rest are just great. They are nice accomodating and very experienced. The new boat is fast, stable and NEW! brand new...they had it built just for diving.
We renting the same house as last year which was cheaper than a hotel, a block to the beach, had a pool,plenty of sleeping space and space to clean and dry the gear. The drive is about 8.5 hours but well worth it!
Trip Leader and Dive Master Deb Wiker (with help from her husband Rob Anderson) did an awesome job coordinating our annual July 4th trip to Cape Hatteras. This trip was so popular we had to rent two houses to accommodate all the Rangers who wanted to join the party. Some stayed for the entire week; others were there for only the first or second half; most were there for a big crab feast and fireworks on the 4th. Many thanks to Deb and Robin Sparer for the facts and commentary.
After a great day of diving
July 1, Dixie Arrow and F.W. Abrams 95’ 77F, vix 60-70 feet, seas light chop. These two nearly identical tankers were built by the same ship building company in Camden NJ in 1920 and 1921, and they met their end in 1942 only a few miles apart.. The Dixie Arrow was steaming from Texas City with crude oil on March 26th when she was torpedoed by the U-71 just south of Diamond Shoals. Four months later the tanker F. W. Abrams was being guided through the fog off Cape Hatteras by the Coast Guard Cutter 484 when she lost sight of her escort, strayed into an allied minefield and was rocked by explosion. The captain, erroneously interpreting the mines as torpedoes, tried to take evasive maneuvers, turning instead directly into the thick of the minefield. The ship struck two more mines before she finally sunk. Today both ships lie in about 90 feet of water less than six miles apart. The Dixie Arrow is better preserved.
Risk and Lisa in first
Deb Wiker comments:
“The choppy ride out to the Arrow was the first dive and rewarded all the divers with a tropically warm bottom temperature of 77 degrees and 60-70' of visibility. Jim Graham or ‘Aguaman’ as many frequently referred to him as he made his 90 minute dive using his rebreather capturing dramatic shots of this shark infested wreck. You can see some of his images at www.atlantisrangers.org website! Dive team Steve Elliott and Bill Chicca spent their time looking for shells and artifacts. Once everyone emerged from the depth, our boat captain, Johnny Pieno and his able crew motored us over to the Abrams where Lisa and Rich Wagner excitedly made it to the bottom first to again find the usual compliment of sand tigers and large barracuda monopolizing the wreck. It seems all were content to share the Abraham while the team of Lee Wahler and Rob Tarkington maneuvered around the wreck expertly photographing the ‘residents’."
July 2: Proteus 120’. 78F, viz 80’, light chop. The passenger-freighter Proteus rounded Cape Hatteras on August 19, 1918, without running lights to avoid being spotted by marauding German U-boats. The Standard Oil tanker Cushing was making a similar maneuver and unfortunately, the captain of the Proteus saw the tanker too late. The resulting collision tore a gaping hole amidships in the starboard side of Proteus. She lies still intact on the sandy bottom with her two engine's boilers and her donkey boiler lying amidships.
Sharks abound
Deb Wiker comments:
“Our group was split between the Flying Fish and the Akayla piloted by Dave Sommers. Unfortunately for Rob Anderson, Lisa and Rich Wagner who were scheduled on the Flying Fish, it remained at the dock as a result of a mechical boat problem. However, the dive gods happened to be smiling upon the rest of the Atlantis Ranger divers as we all headed for the Proteus .All the divers commented after the first dive of 80'+ of visibility and barely a whisper of current that a second dive was in order! Jim Graham, Lee Wahler, and Rob Tarkington happily enjoyed another marthon dive taking awesome photos of sharks, sting rays, angle and other fish hanging about. The visibility and abundant marine life kept the rest of us enchanted for the entire dive. While this is one of my very favorite wrecks and while I have visited it many times, I must admit the conditioned were unequaled and left us all breathless chatting about all that we saw on the trip home! “
July 3: Catherine M. Monahan and Keshena: 90’ (no report of temp or viz), current and seas building The Monahan was a working schooner that foundered in a storm off Hatteras in 1910. At the time of sinking, she was laden with a cargo of cement. Although some of her machinery lies just off her bow, what remains of this wooden schooner is the image of her hull created by still neatly stacked bags of cement. The Keshena was a tug boat that was in the process of salvaging the torpedoed J.A.Mawinckel, when she was attacked by the U-576 and then drifted into an allied minefield. The Keshena swung far out from the stern of the Mawinckel, and struck a mine that sent her to the bottom.
Bill Chicca hunts for artifacts
Deb Wiker comments:
“The day was a bit choppier as we remained aboard the Akayla. Both wrecks still attract the sand tigers, jacks, and angel fish just to mention a few that Steve Elliott found most evident. Billl Chicca covered this wreck in an explorer like fashion that even Christopher Columbus would admire collecting interesting shells. We found the upper structure of the tug gone, leaving only the steel hull and the the decks that collapsed into it. The bow sits upright in the sand, and the steering quadrant on the stern sits tilting to starboard. Jim Graham had the eagle eyes to spot and recover a brass door knob and spikes! He made everyone believe that artifacts can still be found on any wreck any day of the week! John Tabor, another experienced Ranger diver made the most of his dive collecting unusual shells that even Jacques Cousteau would envy!”
July 5th: F.W. Abrams, 95', 78F, viz 50' or better, seas 4-5' and very steep. The captains called for an early 6AM load hoping to run a second trip in the afternoon, but seas started out rough and got worse. We were happy to return to the dock and stay there. Many of the 24 divers aboard were called to the rail to get rid of their breakfasts, but most everyone made the first dive. After a rough surface interval, only 10 - mostly Rangers - rallied for the second. Robin comments:
"At one point I was looking at my buddy Ray and he had his BC completely off with reg in mouth. Was this a training exercise that I wasn't made aware of? No, his tank was slipping and he tried to fix it himself.We got that taken care of as well as three others times before we got back on the boat. Another plug for buddy teams! The next challenge was getting back on the boat. Go high and ride the ladder for your life was the best strategy." We were glad to get moving for the nice return back to the dock."
July 6th: British Spendor, 105', 76F, viz 60' or better, seas 2-3'. Much calmer than yesterday, but a 1/2 knot current top to bottom. Robin comments:
"I hadn't been on this wreck for awhile but remembered that this was a good place for sharks teeth. I didn't find the teeth on the first dive but we did find the sharks; I almost ran into them! Buddy Ray also had an incident where his safety sausage (which is attached to his BC) deployed under water. It was very funny to watch him swim around with a 6 ft red tube sticking straight up. It is a unique safety feature but once deployed you can not deflated and put it down until you are on the surface. I know I tried! Second dive I made a point of looking for teeth and I did find them ... The current on the hang line was stronger; now I know why my hands always ache after I dive."
July 7th; Dixie Arrow, 95' 76F, vis 30-40', seas 2'. Calmest day of the three, but currents were the strongest. We hoped to go to the Proteus but went to the Arrow instead. Robin comments:
"Pulling yourself down the line was like a commando raid on the wreck. You had to really hold onto your mask and hood and my octo was free flowing b/c of the strong current against it. I eventually just took my hood off b/c I couldn't get it right." [Another Ranger had his snorkel pulled off by the current.]
"I remember this wreck with the bow still intact and miss that awesome sight. [It collapsed a few years ago after a storm]. It is still a very nice wreck and some parts of the bow are still intact. Currents were very strong. In some areas you just couldn't gain any ground and we had to pull ourselves along the wreck. For the second dive we tried to head to the stern to look for a Lion Fish that we were told was there. We couldn't find it, but both dives were still great."
As usual, the Rangers found the crews of the Flying Fish and Akyla and the staff of Outer Bank Diving to be most competent and helpful. We appreciated their help and look forward to seeing them again next year.
Belmar NJ: June 3, 2007 (Tim Manualides reporting)
On June 3rd three Rangers coalesced in Belmar New Jersey and joined nine other divers aboard the Ol’ Salty II for a trip to the wreckage of the R.P. Resor. Weather conditions forced a change in plans and we ended up visiting the Arundo instead. Seas were in the two foot range or slightly more, with winds picking up as the day progressed. Thankfully, the Ol’ Salty is a large, heavy boat so seas were not an issue. The anticipated storm did not hit until after the diving ended.
This Arundo sits in relatively deep water (110-140 fsw), and bottom temperatures on this day ranged from 42 to 45 degrees near the bottom. The wreck has been blown up and wire dragged so it is broken apart and forms an expansive debris field that is littered with remnants of its cargo including truck tires and other truck parts, food cans, beer bottles, etc. There are also faint remnants of two locomotives. Several empty vintage beer bottles were recoved by the other divers, along with about half a dozen lobsters. Otherwise, the wreck is in an advanced state of deterioration, but large sections remain intact enough to serve as useful sign posts for navigating the wreck. The wreck is covered with anemones, blue mussels, but also a lot of silt. Visibility was in the 25 foot range. There were few fish this day on the wreck.
The size of the debris field and the remnants of the cargo strewn everywhere make this a very interesting dive. Because of depth, bottom temperature, and the distinct possibility of getting lost on this wreck I would consider this an advanced dive that requires a drysuit (one extraordinary Ranger used a wetsuit), doubles or at a minimum a pony bottle (I believe one or the other is mandatory on most NJ boats for any dive), good sense of direction or wreck reel, and some courage. Both of my dives required decompression stops. I would try this dive again.
Utila, Honduras 
