SuPrBuGmAn
Contributor
A bit late on this, I know...
Met up with a high school buddy of mine, who also lurks the SB forums as IntotheAbyss, and hit up Gulf Shores for some pre-Gustav beach diving shinanigans. The water was calm and clear. Looked like a big blue lake out on the gulf. Visibility was around 10-15' for the majority of the dive, slackening a bit later on, but not to the point of ruining our fun. The wreck is no more or less covered than the last time I was out there several months previous, so hopefully the trend of it covering has stopped(and maybe the storms have since uncovered it more?). Basically there's still over 100' of the starboard side hull visible with a couple of ribs still exposed enough to swim under. The stern section is also visible, but you'll have to cross about 20-30' of sand before you come across it as the hull connecting it to the remaining relief has been covered. The sealife was abundant with a couple of sightings on southern rays and flounders. I found the biggest stargazer I've ever seen buried in the sand. Hoards of spadefish followed us around as pigfish and mangroves jetted in and around the wreckage. There were a few pinfish, blennies, scorpianfish, puffers, damsels, and sheephead around as well. All in all, a fun dive lasting 88 min with a max depth of 13'. Took me ~30 min to find the damned thing - guess I need to start bringing the compass again.
Met up with a high school buddy of mine, who also lurks the SB forums as IntotheAbyss, and hit up Gulf Shores for some pre-Gustav beach diving shinanigans. The water was calm and clear. Looked like a big blue lake out on the gulf. Visibility was around 10-15' for the majority of the dive, slackening a bit later on, but not to the point of ruining our fun. The wreck is no more or less covered than the last time I was out there several months previous, so hopefully the trend of it covering has stopped(and maybe the storms have since uncovered it more?). Basically there's still over 100' of the starboard side hull visible with a couple of ribs still exposed enough to swim under. The stern section is also visible, but you'll have to cross about 20-30' of sand before you come across it as the hull connecting it to the remaining relief has been covered. The sealife was abundant with a couple of sightings on southern rays and flounders. I found the biggest stargazer I've ever seen buried in the sand. Hoards of spadefish followed us around as pigfish and mangroves jetted in and around the wreckage. There were a few pinfish, blennies, scorpianfish, puffers, damsels, and sheephead around as well. All in all, a fun dive lasting 88 min with a max depth of 13'. Took me ~30 min to find the damned thing - guess I need to start bringing the compass again.
Tim
