[the seal]

The Caulerpa cup
Dive 30/1/05
Organized a lift from Ryan to the boat ramp and a spot in his boat. Got to his place at 8:50 and we left pretty quickly, his mate Jacob had crashed somewhere else with someone else, at least that better be the excuse. So we got to the boat ramp at 9:20 and got ready to go. Put our stuff in and set the boat off from the ramp, then raced across to Jibbon beach. From what I knew we were to collect weed from port hacking called Caulerpa. Frogo was gonna lend me a weight belt and after all the weed pruned, we would go catch a feed. I forgot my lawn mower. With constant abuse from Ryan we found Jibbon beach and connected the boat to joolbag's boat and had a chat with him and his mate Chi? They supposedly had a small hole in their boat and were thinking how to clog it up but didn’t take up my idea of sticking a garfish into it. After talking we swam to the shore and then got back in the boat for a look at the conditions. Jibbon bomy had a lovely 2m swell breaking and the ocean looked green and upset about something. We could still spear around the bomy as that area was somewhat protected. Anyway we got back found Frogo in his boat so we clipped on and had a chat with them.
Frogo and his mate’s headed to the beach while Ryan schemed his evil schemes. He plotted to take joolbags boat while he was unaware and relocate it behind Frog man’s boat so he would think it sunk, slowly doggy paddling over to Joolbags boat he grabbed onto it as I swam towards shore. Then as if he were sigh kick joolbag turned to look at Ryan and went in the water towards his boat to rescue it from Ryan’s evil doing. Ryan would not get his way till later.
Funny thing us spearo’s, what we do for a free drink and hot dog, about 50 or even 60 of us were there, more than in the Sydney cup. All the guys young and old frolicking around talking about latest adventure’s the young guns and fishing for hash and finding compressed weed the old guy’s. Yes, old people or let’s say the more experienced divers can tell a good story once in a while.
After a lot of doing nothing, the collection bags arrived and we were given a lecture from the fisheries officer and so forth then set out. Ryan and myself swam back to the boat to snack on a Tim Tam before putting the fins on and jumping in. I have to say that one thing I will remember is using sock’s instead of booties, I bought a pair of Ryan and will never look back. I thanked Ryan once more for the $32 investment while looking at the scars on my feet that have almost heeled.
When I dived down like most divers I found the Caulerpa and thought “what bullsh!t,” how could I ever fill a bag with this? I pulled a few pieces off of a rock and stashed them in. So I thought were would this stuff be more prevalent and swam off to the right side of the beach were it was calmer and more of this stuff should grow there. I dived and found sea grass with a few small ones trying to grow but when I found a more open leafy sea grass bed I disagreeumption was right. I’d dive down and pull it up from the soil getting big clumps up by the roots with no leaves breaking of at all to start new colonies.
Rather frustrated as I was to light and would rise to the surface instead of sink. A few times I was underwater and heard a propeller prop going over me and pondered on staying down a few seconds longer. 30min into it a boat came near and I asked if they could turn their motor off but just so happens they lost their anchor somehow, so I swim off in search of fresh air to breath. Wasn’t happy with my breath hold, the wet suit top was to restricting and only got around 40sec. Then I see it, “so who lost their anchor” I yell out. Swimming down, I grab it and hoist it up with some sea weed attached, a very happy spearo swims up to me and tells me I earned a beer, so hey I won something.
Get back with an ok catch of sea weed, don’t think I went over the bag limit. It was 12:30 when we got our well earned hot dogs and drink. Had our mug shot’s taken and then and then and then.. we went home yep, no spearin condition’s still cr@p. Got a free bag I will use for catching crays I mean Caulerpa and raced a boat and won of course around the harbor. The sky’s did open up as a sign from the god’s that they were pleased, we got 30kg total of fresh yummy Weed, Smoken! Owe yeah Ryan got up to some trouble with my help and sabotaged joolbags car with a flat head’s carcass we found at the ramp. crappy cam couldn't get pics developed!