Dive Report for 25 October 2008

[Shrek]

Location:  Ocean Springs Harbor
Reef Site: 1993 Jeep Wrangler with boat trailer still attached.
Visibilty: Uh, none.

Reef presented a few challenges.  It had been driven backwards down the boat launch and someone attempted to retrieve it with a wrecker, but snapped the cable.  I was notified in the Dallas Fort Worth airport of the new reef in Ocean Springs Harbor.  The Mississippi Bureau of Wildlife and Fisheries wasn't pleased with the reefs new location and asked if we could relocate it.  I called a dive buddy and we agreed to do a civic duty.  I landed in Gulfport and drove straight home to get my gear.  We arrived on scene at the Ocean Springs boat launch at about 10:30pm with an air temp of 58 degrees.  The water a warm 72.  As my dive buddy and I walked off the end of the boat launch, we hit something.  It wasn't just something, it was the hood of the new reef, a 1993 Jeep Wrangler with a boat trailer still attached.  The reef had come to rest in a hole at the end of the boat launch created by power boats when they drive their boats onto their trailers.  With about 3 inches of the new reefs hood above the concrete, pulling the reef straight out was not an option.  I made a few calls looking for some large lift bags, but none were to be found.  I came up with a new plan for the reef relocation.  I ran the tractor trailer sized wreckers cable over the roof of the reef and connected it to the hitch bumper on the rear of it after I dug a whole in the mud to pass the cable under the reef.  My dive buddy fetched the keys for the trailer lock out of the new reef so that I could disconnect the trailer from the reef.  Ever try to put the key in a lock that you aren't sure how it works and then remove the lock without seeing any of it?  Let me remind you the visibility was NONE.  We tied a rope and float to the trailer so that we could find it again easily once it was seperated from the other half of the reef.  We made sure the lines were secure and stood back while the wrecker repositioned the reef.  The reef stood up nicely on its nose and then layed down upside down on its roof for a nice slide up the concrete access to its previous location.  Once the reef was removed from Mother Ocean, we hooked to the other half of the reef and retrieved it as well.  From the time we got there till the time it was done was about an hour.  They had been there since 3:30pm that afternoon.  I guess they should have called sooner, LOL!  Morale of the story is: Well there is no morale, but make sure your car is secured in a fashion that it isn't going to submarine itself off the boat ramp.  Duh-huh!!!

[KristiP]

That's funny...My husband and I are doing our Search and Recovery Dive this weekend and I was pretty excited to relate to a lot of what you just wrote...thanks for letting me understand my chapter I just read

[Blotto]

That's funny...My husband and I are doing our Search and Recovery Dive this weekend and I was pretty excited to relate to a lot of what you just wrote...thanks for letting me understand my chapter I just read

Going to Martin Lake resort??

[KristiP]

Yes, sure are...we will be officially certified then

[Blotto]

I'll see ya there... coz that's when I'll be doing my real-life scenarios for Rescue. I'll then be "officially" Rescue certified.

[Blotto]

sorry Shrek, didn't mean to hijack your thread...

At first I thought you were posting a mock dive report, but it turns out it was real! LoL.

So, where did y'all end up relocating the "reef" to?

[Shrek]

No idea, last I saw it was headed down Front Beach on a flat bed wrecker.  You have got to be careful when you dive on something like a car.  You never penetrate a car.  There is nothing in there that is worth your life.  You also have to be observant of fuel and oil that might be in the water.  I can testify that I could taste the gas in the water around my regulator.  Probably should have been diving a full face, but I wasn't, LOL!  I wouldn't recommend a zero visibiltity dive to a new diver anyways.  We usually train our guys blacked out in the swimming pool before they ever get out in the WILD!!!

If you have never dove Martin's lake before, it's kind of cool.  It's much cooler at night.  There is a lot of grass on the bottom and the grass is like 1 to 2 feet thick and if drop something, you're going to have a hard time finding it.  Anyways, during the day, the fish primarily hide out in the grass and at night they come out to play.  You'll see some bass, some bream, some catfish and some large silver fish that look like overgrown sardines.  I haven't gotten close enough to get a good look at them.  I think they are some type of bottom feeder, maybe a carp.  I have also seen two seperate small gar in there, about 1 1/2 to 2 feet long.  Anyways, have a good time.  I might slide by there while you all are out there.  I live right around the corner. 

[MCoop]

i dont miss black water diving

[Shrek]

What did you do in black water Matt?

[Bob]

What did you do in black water Matt?

He "Kept on rollin'...." 
 
(Doobie Brothers. Sorry, couldn't resist.)

[MCoop]

I use to be a public safety diver when I too was a hose dragger and emt, first went to rescue diver international through waveland fire dept.  then after i left the fire dept. I was on a county dive team for a bit before i went into law enforcement, I might try out for the state dive team next year.  What dept do you work for

[Shrek]

The Big "G" Gautier, LOL!!  We've got a pretty decent dive team.  What state dive team are you talking about?

[MCoop]

dept of public safety

[KristiP]

My husband and I live in Gautier, but most of the guys I know work in Pasc. (Chad Crawford, Hyler Krebs and that gang). I think Randy Rutherford works Gautier though doesn't he?

[Shrek]

I know a couple of guys in Goula, Randy doesn't work here anymore.

[KristiP]

I guess I'm a a little behind the times. I knew he had the gym, but I thought he was still at the Fire Dept...I'm trying to remember who else I know in Pasc. My kids go to school in Pasc., so I keep up with a lot of the people around there. I think Kirk Harbin is there. I know he and Chad used to ride together. Chad married my best friend, so that's why I keep bringing him up.
Anyway, small world. Maybe I'll see you around on some dives sometime.
TTYL,
Kristi