The forecast looked good for a RIB dive on Sunday and the majority of divers preferred to dive the high water slack tide which meant we had to meet at the RNSYC at 6am. We used the new cylinder lifting platform for the first time and it worked really well. We left the port on high water and headed 6 miles South East of Lowestoft just off Kessingland. After several failed attempts to grapple into the wreck we finally hooked into something. Jane had problems with her regs and had to stay up top with Mark Crame.

Divers: Simon Boor, Nigel Powley, Jon Critoph
Max depth: 34.5 metres
Dive Time: 34 minutes
Water Temp: Max 19 degrees Min 16.4 degrees
Visibility: 5+ metres
Dive Details: We descended the shot line and found the grapple buried into the sand at 34 metres. Jon attached his line and he reeled off in the direction the grapple had dragged along the bottom. We saw 2 lobsters, 1 crab, a couple of hermit crabs and a piece of wood but no wreck. Here’s what the wrecksite says about the Ambient “On 12/03/1917, while en route from Sunderland to Dunkirk (Dunkerque), France, with a cargo of coal, the vessel hit a mine laid by German submarine UC-4 off Aldeburgh, Suffolk, & sank. At 52.08.30N/1.46E, 7 miles NW of the Shipwash lightvessel. No loss of life. The crew was landed at Lowestoft, also Suffolk.”

It wasn’t a total waste though, see the next post about the wreck of the Alto