Labor Day Weekend Dives

It's the morning after Lee and I have completed four more dives and I can truly say I'm extremely hooked on diving. The underwater experiences we had keep running through my head like a video on continuous loop 24/7. It's like my mind, body and spirit cannot get enough of exploring the underwater world so few get to see in person.

On Saturday morning, we went down two times on Barracuda Alley; appropriately named due to the large volume of huge barracuda that occupy this artificial reef. Just a short hour-long boat ride off the North Myrtle Beach coast lies this sunken barge surrounded by sunken APVs (Armored Patrol Vehicles). At a depth of 63 feet, the visibility was around 20 feet. While Lee spent time digging for treasures buried under the sand, I took a tour of the site with Chris; a diver we'd crossed paths with on previous dives.

My first dive was not that much fun as my weight belt came off while at the bottom. But all divers know there are good dives and bad ones (on occasion). Thanks to Chris and another diver, I was able to put it back on and continue my dive for a bit longer.

The next three dives I completed were amazing and fun. The fish were gorgeous and I was able to explore the structures with ease. Lee and I hooked up with Dave Bush on both Barracuda Alley and the Sherman. Dave and his buddy Ted had cameras, so I'm able to share with you some of the things I saw. Here are Ted's photos; notice the octopus shots. Here are Dave's photos on the Sherman. And here is a photo of me while diving with Dave. Yes, that's me at 53 feet on the Sherman in this photo ------------>>>

Before I end this blog, I must say thank you to another new dive acquaintance, Don Cox. He was one of the dive master candidates on our Sherman trip on Sunday. Not only is he an interesting guy (I love to hear his Irish brogue), but he dove in and rescued my fin when it came off during my jump off the back of the boat during dive four.