2022 saturday 14th May to Saturday 21st May leaving and returning from Dunstaffnage Marina north of Oban, Scotland on board the ‘Clastina’ liveaboard.
After some omissions and admissions the participating divers were
Paul Fiander (organizer)
Mark Carter
Yohan Char
Sean Clarke
Scott Clarke
Charlie Crapper
Jim Godsell
Ian Hicks
Sue michelle
Les Ruse
Weather over the week was windy, mild with regular rain showers
Water temp 9-10o
Drive time from Reading 10 hours with stops
Liveaboard MV ‘Clastina’ 1968 converted trawler
Skipper/Owner Bob Anderson
Vessel Engineer Ian
Vessel housekeeping and cook Tash
Deckhand Craige
Mooring and departure point Dunstaffnage Marina north of Oban
‘Clastina’ has a well-equipped spacious dive deck, diver’s lift, onboard compressor and covered drysuit donning area.
The main accommodation above deck consists of the wheelhouse and a combined galley/saloon with seating for all the group around two fixed tables.
One of the more useful items of equipment on the boat was a heavily used tumble dryer.
Below decks are the cabins – six in total, two bunks each, these are cramped with little storage other than under the lower bund. The bunks are long enough for tall divers although somewhat narrow.There is a charging station with plenty of power and usb sockets in the corridor leading to the cabins and some extra storage space in the form of shelves.
The boat is still to be fully fitted out as the toilet/shower room in the cabin area was not installed, necessitating a less than convenient hike up to the open deck to access unheated toilets/showers.
The boat is stable inshore with little roll making kitting up easy and relaxed, the dive deck is spacious with wide robust seating. The drop from the deck to the sea is lower than you would expect from a boat of this size and the side mounted lift is easy to use with dekitting seating nearby if required.
Air and nitrox fills were done with expediance after the first dive and air fills were generous and included in the cost of the trip, nitrox was extra, costing £140 for the whole week’s diving.
There was copious amounts of food that was varied diver sustenance, although this would not be classed as a foodie trip.
The initial plan was to sail from Dunstaffa north of Oban to the outer hebrides and, weather permitting, onto St Kilda. For us the weather was not permitting anything of the sort with the wind blowing strongly from the wrong direction a new plan was required.
Paul Fiander writes below of the new plan.
“When you plan and run a trip, weather is arguably the most important factor in determining what you do and how you proceed. By the time we got on board the Clasina forecasts for the coming week were awful and the trip to St Kilda looked almost impossible. Dive folklore seems to say that about one out of five planned trips actually get there. Having completed two successful attempts a few years back it was inevitable that I would get stymied at some point and this was it. I sat with the skipper Bob Anderson to see if we could stitch together a week sheltered from the storms and still get some great diving done. The first decision was not to describe it as a “not St Kilda trip” but as a “west coast exploration” of sites that few people have dived. That is a game changer as an organiser and the mood of the team just lightened.I think it is fair to say that the majority of the group are happy with fish and weeds as much as they are with bits of metal. So we worked our way up to the tip of Skye and then back down again. Having done what we did I would happily do it again in a heartbeat.”
We started by travelling through the sound of Mull, affording a wonderful check out dive on the glorious Hispania then onto the northern mainland sea lochs. We dived both known and exploratory sites. On two occasions when the vessel was at anchor overnight the skipper asked us to organise a two hour anchor watch rotata between midnight and 6am, all carried out in good spirit and with no calamities..
Hispania (shipwreck)
She sank at the north end of the Sound just before Calve Island and is now subjected to strong tidal currents making this a slack water dive. The wreck is characterised by the wealth of life growing on the steel but look closely because there is a classic steamship underneath.
Type of Vessel: Swedish Steamer
Depth: 25-30m seabed
Sinking: Hit Rock 1954
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Les Ruse video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVTwc4tT2ww)
Maxwell bank, Eigg (scenic)
Les Ruse video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EByoehaTl_o)
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Smyth rock loch Nevis (scenic) – lots of brittle stars
Les Ruse video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnb9KyzjMQw)
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Sgeir leathan, loch Hourn (scenic) – copious amounts of squat lobsters and jellyfish
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Rubha camas loch Hourn (scenic) – plenty of scallops
Les Ruse video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaiVisaFz24)
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Loch Duich (scenic)
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Nostie bank (scenic)
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Eilean Giubhais (scenic)
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Loch Sunart (scenic)
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Auliston point (scenic)
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
Rondo (shipwreck)
The Rondo hit a small island in the elbow of the Sound of Mull and stuck fast. The ship was slowly salvaged until finally she slipped off the rocks and under the waves. Now the wreck lies on a steep slope where the bows are at the sea bed at 50m but the rudder at the stern is at 6m.
Type of Vessel: Steamship
Depth: 6-50m
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
The Breda (shipwreck)
This wreck lies just outside Oban in the sheltered waters of Armuchnish Bay. A large ship carrying mixed cargo that was sunk by enemy aircraft in WW2. The wreck now lies upright on a muddy bottom at 32m with a minimum depth of around 12m.
Type of Vessel: Dutch Steamship
Depth: 24-30m
Sinking: Bombed 1942
Ian Hicks video (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS)
We stopped off at a rainy Tobermory for supplies and gift buying.
Built as a fishing port in the late 18th century and is now the main town on Mull. It is a picture-postcard of a place with the brightly painted buildings along the main street to the pier and the high woodland-fringed hills surrounding the bay. The town has a variety of shops, hotels, and other accommodation as well as being the administrative centre for the island. The harbour is always busy with fishing boats, yachts and the ferry to and from Kilchoan.
“Bob Anderson, Skipper of ‘Clasina’, provides expedition diving. Bob listens to what the team is looking to dive and seeks that out, that might be a well known wreck, a known scenic dive or something totally new. Divers are made to feel part of a team, be it part of the dive planning, anchor watch or washing up. 😊 “
So far this year on ‘Clasina’ I have seen highland dancers, firework anemones, red butterfish, dived on a Catalina flying boat, and even done some side scan sonar work. All new things to me.
I have dived with Bob around Norway, Shetland, Orkney, and Western Isles. Later this year I will be diving on Clasina around north and west Scotland. By far the best dive expedition boat in the UK
Onedrive link to Ian’s Videos: https://1drv.ms/u/s!AigC3aGpLHxbswtRWU-mx8FAMZji?e=cE3OyS
