Sometimes things just don't work out as planned. On Monday, July 2, we had one of those days.

Seven Wreckploration members headed out to Montauk with their hopes set on exploring a few promising targets not far from the wreck of the Grecian. At the direction of Captain Chuck Wade, we had done some research on a fishing vessel that was lost in the area in the 1980s, in the hopes that one of the targets might prove to be this as yet never located wreck. Participating in the days trip were Wrecksploration members Elliot Bertoni, Bryan Frank, David Gallo, Russ Lusterman, Bill Pfeiffer, Steve Scigliano, and Adam Altman, also acting as crew for the day. Our hopes were high as the day loomed fair, with mixed sun and some light clouds, though there was a chill to the air, with a significant Northwest wind which worried us from the start. Our worries were well justified. For most of the south shore of Long Island, dive sites within a few miles of shore are in the lee of the land from a Northerly wind, but destinations South of Montauk have little land to shelter them. Indeed, our intended dive site, being between Montauk and Block Island, was subject to unfettered winds from the Northwest, making for a rough dive site. As we headed out of Montauk on the Sea Turtle dive boat, Captain Chuck Wade advised us of the situation, and left the option to us; go exploring in divable but rough weather, or head for a site less affected by the wind, in the lee of the land. All the divers on this trip were seasoned veterans with many years of local diving, and significant experience with diving in rough surface conditions, but the group concensus was to opt on the side of caution, and dive sites that were more appropriate for the weather. While exploration was our goal, having a good time was equally as important.

The decision made, Chuck headed the Sea Turtle to the wreck of the Heroine, a 110 foot long fishing trawler that sunk in 1920 in 80 feet of water. The wind died down a bit, and conditions topside were calm, in stark contrast to what we would have had at our initially intended site. A mooring on the wreck made short work of tying in, and one by one we splashed in for our first dive. Though there was a moderate current, visibility was beautiful at about 25 feet, and the wreck was absolutely covered with marine life. Steve captured most of the dive on video, along with an elusive 4 foot long Striped Bass that amazed us all. The relatively shallow depth allowed us plenty of time to explore at our leisure, and everyone came up from their dive happy. Though the wreck is well known, for most of us it was new, and everyone had a great dive.

Ever the explorer, Captain Chuck headed the Sea Turtle back West towards some other numbers he had. Time was working against us though, as the area we were in required that we dive with the slack tide, so we couldn't spend too much time mowing the lawn to find the targets, because if we did find a wreck, diving it could be extrememly difficult due to the current. After checking out two sites for as much time as we had with no luck, Chuck headed us over to the wreck of the Onondaga. Just North of Watch Hill Reef off Rhode Island, this large steel hulled freighter struck the reef in heavy fog in 1918, and rests today in 60 feet of water. Once again, a mooring made for a quick tie in and off we went for another dive. Captain Chuck's timing of the tides was perfect, and we hit the wreck just before slack. The visibility was once again spectacular, and this huge wreck made for a great dive. The marine life was abundant, including a well secured ten pound lobster below a hull plate in the stern, not ten feet from the mooring tie in. They don't get that big by being stupid though, and it remained well out of our reach. The shallow depth of the wreck gave us plenty of time to take in her beauty, and everyone made nice long dives. As the tide turned, the visibility dropped and the current began to pick up, finally forcing us all back to the line to head for the surface. Once again, everyone was had a great dive.

Although the explorations of the day were unsuccessful, we all had a great day of diving, and we fully intend to reschedule the trip to hopefully explore the intended targets.

Our special thanks goes to Captain Chuck Wade. He has provided encouragement and support for Wrecksploration since its inception. A true explorer at heart, he has done many explorations in the last few years, found several great new wrecks, including a huge dry dock and its two barge cargo just a few days before our trip. His passion for the sport is evident, and he runs the Sea Turtle dive boat with expertise and confidence, while providing a relaxed and enjoyable trip and a casual attitude. We hope to do many more exploration trips on board the Sea Turtle.

Back row L to R: David Gallo, Bill Pfeiffer, Elliot Bertoni
Front row L to R: Adam Altman, Russ Lusterman, Steve Scigliano
Missing from the photo is Bryan Frank, who left before we could take the picture. Sorry, Bryan.