The Eastleigh BSAC Red Sea Dive Trip 2003 by Dawn Theaker

Early morning, 26th September 2003. Why do most dive trips start with early morning? - well in this case, to get to the airport on time! Most of us understood this essential point, and were ready waiting at our nominated collection point. However we were left waiting for one person, who apparently was still eating his cooked breakfast at home while we were all sat on the coach waiting to depart.

Hoping that we were not overweight when checking in at the airport, most of the rest of the day was spent in transit to Hurguarda. We arrived as the sun was setting, and once we had cleared the airport it was dark when we boarded the boat. I was very impressed, having never been on a liveaboard for fear of spending a whole week throwing up. We were fed, assigned bunks, had a kit check and got briefed about the itinerary for the week. Many of us then visited Hurgarda town, some to pick up appropriate dress for the galibia party that Terry had planned for Wednesday evening, most to relax in Jollies Bar re-hydrating on beer or very nice cocktails.

The boat left the dock promptly in the morning, all necessary permissions to depart having been obtained whilst the passengers slept. By 11.30 we were at the first dive site and all divers were in the water, getting used to red sea conditions and doing kit checks. Back on the boat, all were talking ten-to-the-dozen about all the things that they had seen, the marine life and the dolphins.

We then settled into the daily ritual of eat, sleep and laze around, with the opportunity to do 4 dives a day. The food, buffet style, was excellent simple food, ideal for the climate and diving.

The itinerary was slightly effected by the weather, as the sea was a bit rough out in the channel. We were all hoping to get out into the Strait of Gubal to allow us to dive the wrecks in the area, including the Thisslegorm. The crew tried hard to time the passage across the Strait of Gubal , and in the end we battened down everything and went for it. I was surprised to find that my seasickness stayed away, I am happy to believe it was down to my pressure point bands.

Whilst we were waiting for the wind to drop and allow us to make our crossing, we dived the coral reefs around Gobal Island. I took this opportunity to do a rebrether try-dive. It was an amazing experience, my natural reactions to buoyancy control went out the window, and once I got the hang of it was very enjoyable. The fish came much closer than normal, and I felt part of the sea rather than a visitor. It was certainly a memorable moment of the trip for me.

Over the Straits of Gobal, we made a series of dives on the Thisslegorm starting with a lunchtime dive, a tea-time dive and a night dive. Sunk in 1940, with a diverse load of cargo, the wreck is very popular, and i understood why divers have described it as diving in a champagne glass. Certainly, there was bubbles coming out of everywhere, and divers all over the place, but I would not wanted to miss out on the experience. We moored up overnight over the Thisslegorm and made a day-break dive at 4.30. It was absolutely stunning, hitting the water as the sun came up, descending through a as sea of glass fish and looking out into the blue to see batfish and jacks.

We then moved on to dive the Sara H, the Ghianas D, the Carnatic and the Christola K to satisfy the wreck divers on board. Brass was spotted, and I pleased to say left intact due to the preservation rules of the red sea.

The evening of the Gallibia party approached quickly, signalling that the trip was nearly over. All crew and divers gathered round to watch the DVD of the trip made by the dive guides, Cheryl and Andy. Then the crew put on their tapes and enthusiastically got us all dancing along. A member of the crew arrived wearing a saints football shirt, confiscated by one of our divers from another, for being late on the first day.

After two dives on the last day, we headed back to port, and home, happy divers.