The Ocean Giveth . . . .

The John Jack arrived in Montauk on July 11th where it will spend a month diving off-shore shipwrecks like the Andrea Doria and other maritime casualties in the waters off Block Island, Rhode Island. We began our Montauk season, a 3 day expedition to the Andrea Doria, a day late due to rough seas at the dive site. But the wait was worth it. The Mount Everest of Scuba Diving greeted us with 2 ft seas and no current. Thanks to Hank Garvin of Garloo fame who left his mooring line on the wreck, we had divers in the water within an hour of our arrival. Hank's tie-in at the break in the hull enabled our divers to penetrate the wreck quickly and safely. A few bottles were recovered during two dives and plans were laid for the next day's dives. Unfortunately, we were chased off the wreck at 7AM by a roaring surface current and an approaching weather front. We left the Doria with 3 ft seas, but as the front overtook us, the seas grew to 5 ft., then 7 ft., then 9 ft. and finally for about 3 hrs, Capt. Rich was skillfully guiding the John Jack through 10-12 ft. seas. By the time we reached safe refuge, we were closer to Martha's Vineyard than Montauk and our 6 hr. return trip had become 13 hr. rodeo on the high seas. Like so many expeditions to the Andrea Doria, you take what you can get because as quickly as the ocean giveth, the ocean taketh away.

Captain Rich