Adventures of Alexander the Seal

[the seal]

The adventures of Alexander The Seal

G'day from down under, to request of miles:friday i'm sharing my stories here next to his bluewater exploits:vangry and hope you'll enjoy my blababer somewhat.
As a note to this post, not all the stories will be in order, when the time comes I will post some stories of my past exploits for all to read and mishaps.
I’ll be posting stories of my exploits from before 2005 and adventures that may come 2005.

This adventure took place on the 9th or January 2005.

I was at one of our many great dolphin spearo’s house. We here know him as Ryno, there I had just bought a pair Sterna fins of him and we where talking about the chick next door while channel ten had rove kiss Bert Newton I believe when I got the call from Simon. Not only a dolphin but the DOLPHIN “Tomorrow, 6:45 am be at usual meeting place, were going to Gunamata bay.” To cut it short.
So here we go, Sunday, time 4 a new adventure.
Stats
Rather cloudy.
The moon was new
High tide 1pm my guess
Sea was 1.5-2m swell
Visibility 8-12m
The wind I believe was NW
This was my 4th time in a boat and my 4th time in Simon’s boat, instructions were, not to take my boogie board float or the gun I had hand crafted and have yet to test. What was left was myself, wettie anyway.
I wen’t to bed late, 2am and got up 5am. I had packed and had my 6 Bret bix by 5;30, grab some last stuff, try and think of what that nagging feeling in my mind was telling not to forget but who cares. I grabbed my bags and went to the bus stop. There the sun slowly rose, while I remembered some of the things I had left, no big deal. The bus came 5;50 after 15min wait, I got off at Cleveland st and went on an early morning walk to south Dowling St. yeah it’s a fun life.
So I’m there at 6;15 am and have 30min to bore myself out of my mind with and find things to occupy my myself with, some that should not be mentioned.
Simon came, with his mate Fred, aka fredo the frog akaa fredy got fingered. (movie dmb a*s). We got to the boat ramp at 7;30am and headed out.
Very quickly the swell rose and Simon took over the controls. We went very slowly compared to the last time we went to this part of the coast. After 10min of crawling we stopped and geared up. I got in after Simon and followed him before losing track of him and Fredo the frog. I had explicit instruction from Simon to leave the cr$p fish alone so I obeyed. There were lots of bait around and I thought a kingy may come say hi some time but was wrong. After a few dives and managing to tangle the float line, I looked at the boat to find someone aboard, time 4 another spot. I reached the boat b4 Simon got in, to my surprise Fred had swallowed some sea water Simon had p*ssed in and his stomach couldn’t take it. Well as much as I wished I could be sick rather than him, we had a new volunteer for boatie. If there is a piece of advice I’d give to stop you puking, it would be greasy food like the large cookie that Simon laughed at while I gobbled it up before a dive. Also a sports drink, it works for myself but of course my stomach is also solid as a rock so go figure. And avoid McDonalds.
The flasher came out and it was time to drift, the first one resulted in a lone rat coming up to have a look which I promptly scared away and a lecture from Simon ensued.
Some more drifts followed, one of which I split up from Simon and dived on a crack I saw a fish hiding under. It was a groper and 2 leatherjackets that reckoned I was no match for them. I gave them a prod b4 surfacing then diving again. I swam 3m down the crack when I saw one of the dmb b@stards hanging out in the middle. I prodded it again with the pranger and this thing swam down to the bottom, 1m down the 50cm wide crack (2m deep crack at 8m water) of course I was not going to waist a shot at this thing, instead I poked it with the pranger and pined it down, nervous I swam down and grabbed its tail. I was now in a compromising position, upside-down, in a very tight crack, holding onto an agitated leatherjacket. But I knew I failure was not an option. I managed a summersault scraping against the sea urchin which I so dearly hate b4 getting out without letting go of the goods. I went to the boat and gave it to Fred, who later told me he through it at my head when I wasn’t looking. He won’t get the tail end next time.
Later I took the flashers out for a spin and had a school of rat king about 3kg gather round, but they were lucky that day, I was feeling environmental lets say. So in the end I didn’t fire the gun once that day. Nor did anyone else.
We headed back, Simon showed me how to drive the boat, piece of cake and I was home by 3pm even before some of my family realized I had left.
Till the next adventure, from Alexander Adios!


The sydney cup
15th/1/05

Went out with Simon for spear fishing comp, was only comp of year to sell fish at auction. I volunteered to be his boat dude, stupid me. Anyway. Great comp, food, drinks overall well organized, no time wasted. Dan waved the flag and the boats were off, Simon stayed back to let the boats go ahead of us and we went south while most of the fleet went north. “fools” said Simon. We went down the coast for 15min in big sea’s and windy weather. It was an okay call to have the comp, in the morning the weather and vis seemed terrible and I thought there would be no comp as well did Simon. We dived at various places Simon collected around 10 species of fish, Dan maybe 5. I occupied myself with various things until the day ended, from singing to exercise to driving the boat in circles and sun backing by sprawling out at the back of the boat or sitting down in the middle inhaling those lovely petrol fumes (not). Haha still my stomach stays strong throughout that day.
Dan vomited out his last few meals and was looking like Casper the unfriendly ghost. I only became slightly unwell from sun exposure. The water was very cold, around 18 to 19 degrees. I didn’t get any complaints from Simon but still it was a great sorrow to have to tell people I didn’t catch any fish because of obvious reasons. Still some high lights were seeing dolphins and an eagle flying overhead. I wish I was spearing instead! One dude caught a 11kg king fish, there were some big Salmon etc


16th/01/05

I met Simon at Alison rd, anzac rd intersection in the morning very sleepy from last nights party and excess alcohol. Yet sober.
The next day we arrived a short time later, around 7am or smth, I helped another spearo launch a boat and found by the time we got to the beach Simon and Dan were already waiting for me in the boat. I was wondering what method was necessary in this situation, do I jump in the water and climb in? na..
Do we get really close and I hop in? well we were 2 arms lengths apart. Simon reached out his hand while I had pirate flash backs go through my mind, then as we came by at speed I jumped. Trippie yelled out no!! as I boarded his boat, flying through the air about 1.5meters and landing on the side of his boat on my stomach. Dan was rather bemused while old captain Trippie lectured me on the correct procedure of boarding a boat. I was unhurt.
For the record, your’ meant to pull the boats together by grabbing the other guys hand, in this case Simon’s. still it was fun.
We got to the start I volunteered to wave the flag, but when angry old captain Trippie said wave it which I did he put the throttle down and sent me crashing down into the back of the boat. Nice.
Again we headed south to various spots, at a reasonable speed so that we overtook all the other boats. Conditions were good but somewhat boring. The southerly came in and I gave the boat a thrashing, na… Ahab I took care of her. But the southerly went by all to quick and Ahab and Dan went for a quick swim close to the biome before the cove.
There I let them get in and then loaded their boxes up with ice, by the time I was done the wind which was still strong pushed the boat out off sight from them. No worries, I went back but couldn’t find them, hmmm. Strange. I went round another time before heading to the bomie where I could see some flags but it was someone else. Maybe Moby thingy finally got him and Dan. I went back, this time finally seeing Ahab’s gun raised from the water. Trippie was rather agitated for some time but he forgot about it after getting in the water again. So we went back after another dive to get the fish weighted in, Trippie had around 13 species this time but was not enough. The divers that went north had won the comp, catching 19 or so species. Still Simon was the only Dolphin to get in the top 5 at 5th place. Only slightly sunburned over the two long days I was tired enough to not go to a party and instead sat down and thought of the day’s events.

More importantly what have I learned?
After getting your gear sorted out if you want to do well in comps achieve a good breath hold and get the fish sense going.
Try not to loose track of your friends when boat man.
Sun screen does work; I have the patches I missed to prove it.
Cover a lot of ground.
Get a boat, even better one with a boat boy.
And going south isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be.

 

[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!

 

[the seal]

clovelly free dive-some time around dec 2003

I got up this Sunday morning to get ready for work at the Clovelly cafe. It was around 9am when I arrived there with by back pack and put on an apron like a machine and went to the till. I started working there for five minutes before my supervisor pulled me to the side and told me I had been taken off the roster for the day. Feeling somewhat embarrassed I took the apron off and went down to the cement platforms to go for a swim. Clovelly was utterly packed that day, the water was clearer than ever before, no wind or waves. Just sunshine warm water and lots of fish; I jumped into the water after getting changed with my snorkel and board shorts, I chose not to take my flippers with me that day. I went straight to the deep end of Clovelly where I practiced diving to the bottom, which was 4 meters down and staying there as long as I could.
I did this for 30 min before feeling very confident with my diving, I set out past the shallow rocky sea weed laden inlet into the open ocean. There I swam out looking for deep areas to dive and slowly drifted in front of the car park. The water was amazingly warm there until I swam out where it was deep. I found a few hole type structures that I felt where somewhat deep enough to challenge me. I relaxed, took a breath and dived, feeling confident and comfortable in the warm water. The bottom was about 2 meters away when I got an amazing shock. I hit freezing cold water; it reminded me of how I had swum during winter when the water was 15 degrees. It was so cold; I just stopped righting myself with my legs in the cold layer and my body from my waist up in warm water. It just dropped from 22 degrees to 15 within a foot distance, a freezing layer of water simply gripping the ocean floor from 10 meters down or so.
I continued swimming out while the life guards where racing by me in their inflatable boats asking me three times if I was in trouble. I swam back in not finding any depth I couldn’t reach, getting out from the rocks instead of going inside the bay and using the steps. I went back to my towel to lye down and find some life guards listening in on their walky talkies. I frolicked around and found out that some guy they called the fly was about to do a stunt. The fly was a guy who wanted to be a stunt man and did many crazy stunts, with some ending in disaster. This time he was going to set himself on fire and jump of some 50 meter high cliffs into the water somewhere down the coast. I listened in on the radio traffic, they were saying he had just jumped of after setting himself alight. They then began discussing if he was alive, then some said “he’s moving,” and then someone said “he’s on the rocks and running away!” the chase went for 15min before the police got him and the show was over. All the while his 12 year old son was filming the stunt, with explicit instructions to continue no matter what.
I went for another swim jumping into the ocean from the rock I had used to get out of before, this time I swam to the other side of Clovelly called Shark point. I ran into the usual cold layer and got out on the opposite side. There I walked back on the rocks to meet a girl with her friend sun backing on the rocks, they invited me to go over and stay with them. So I went got my stuff and just slept for a while. I woke to find an armada of yachts racing along the coast. The temptation was too great and I swam out to one them wanting to climb on as it sailed, James Bond style. Though I didn’t, since I didn’t know how the people would react. I found out they where having a race all whilst trying to avoid the yacht as it was heading straight for me. I went back to sun bake, telling the two girls what I had just done. It was now around 3pm and the two girls left, I stayed I while longer before deciding that I’ve been cooked crisp enough.
Then as I was leaving two scuba divers were climbing down the stairs with all their gear on. A strong interest came over me as to where and how deep they were planning on going. They said it was deep and that their heading straight off of shark point so I decided to tag along. They jumped in straight off the rocks at the tip as promised and I went in with them. Just following them by sight when they started their dive, eventually they went too deep for me to see them so I followed their bubble trail sometimes getting a glimpse of their brightly colored scuba tanks. I dived down only to the beginning of the cold layer called the thermo cline that they later told me about. There I could see them a fair distance down shining their torches in caves and under ledges, sometimes giving me a flash. After some time I decided that I should test myself and also let the divers know I haven’t been eaten by a shark. So I prepared myself for 2 or 3 min just breathing and going ahead of their bubble trail getting ready to dive.
I felt it was now or never and went for it. Breath stroking it down, into the cold layer where I could see them, steadily descending down and equalizing my ears. My ears were killing me at the bottom since I wasn’t use to equalizing at that depth. I got to a few meters from them before stopping to try and equalize properly. The two divers were swimming along oblivious to me with their torches on hugging the sea floor while I was just above them! I wasn’t sure what to do since my ears weren’t equalizing so I swam over to the one at the front and just said “whatever,” and gave his flipper a nudge. He turned around scared to death! I almost started laughing so I gave him the “A OK,” he waved back and I slowly swam up, his friend was also very surprised. That was the deepest part of the dive, after that they slowly became more visible till we eventually got out.
The first thing they told me was that I have a very impressive pair of lungs and discussed how deep I dove. He told me he was totally scared out of his wet suit when I grabbed his flipper. Since he knew where his friend was and that I’m on the surface “probably.” So he though it was a shark, but later he and his friend started checking their depth gauges to see how deep it was. They tolled me it was around 18 meters deep and couldn’t get over that I made it down without any gear. Since when we entered the water one of their tanks had a leak which they had noticed. The two of them had to leave the water early meaning air was left in the tank that didn’t have a leak. With that air they taught me how to scuba dive in Clovelly for 20min before it ran out. They then left with my last words being “I’ll catch you at the bottom!”
I went home pinching myself to see if it wasn’t a dream telling my father the incredible story. I watched Television for the rest of the evening while my ears where still adjusting back to normal pressure.


some notes, do not recal seeing any fish and when i dived down the last few meters i couldn't equalise but really i didn't get all the way down there for nothing.


Near death experience 2004 14/07/05

My saga started after reading on the internet how to hold one’s breath for a long time, I had managed to hold my breath for more than 4min. After doing so I felt I should go and see what I could do underwater with this new training. I called my friend who lives in a large complex with a pool and arranged to go the next day. On that rainy day I arrived at his place to find out that he was at work. Figuring they had called him up on the last minute, I decided to head back home but then decided I still had time to stop off at the university pool for a quick swim. There I checked in, paid the 4 dollar charge and went to get changed, leaving my gear in my locker and putting the electronic plastic card in my board short pocket. I jumped into the shallow end in the second lane and began swimming.

An urge to urinate came over me so I left to and when on returning I find and find my lane had been taken. The pool was very quiet that day so I just jumped into the same lane, in the deeper section where no one was swimming. I started doing one lap underwater, which is 25m followed by one recovery lap back above the water. I did this for 20min till 12:50 then I had a break and decided to go for 50m or two lengths of the pool. Breathing deeply I took in as much air in as my lungs could hold and a bit more before pushing off and heading for the bottom. I made it to the end of the first lap easily, passed the 1.5 laps I had done before. Opening my eyes to see how much more was left I used pure will power for the last few meters. I touched the wall and happily started to take deep breaths, then feeling exhilarated once recovered; I wanted to have some fun. I stayed around the bridge in the middle messing about underwater blowing donuts and staying down for two minuets or more at a time. I looked at my watch, which said 1:10pm and thought I would go in 15min I decided to go for 60m or even 75m underwater.
I did a training lap underwater and one recovery back, relaxed and decided to warm up once more, going underwater then back normal breath stroke. As I was going back, a sudden but calming sensation came over my body. A dark warmth fell over me and I felt relaxed and happy, with a few lazy thoughts going by me on why everything was so dark. I lapsed out of the darkness as suddenly as I went into it by something pricking me and started gurgling, I feel cold again, lying down on something.
“My heart is racing, everything is blurred. Am I in the pool?
Someone’s hand is holding something over my mouth and I can’t breathe. It feels like I’m drowning and swallowing cold water. I hold my breath, thinking for a few seconds is this it? Will I die like this? I can’t see anything so I must be in the pool.”

 

[the seal]

The persons hand is still holding something over my mouth and I feel cold and naked. I make an effort to get up. Someone yells “Hold him down, hold him down!” I use as much strength as I can trying to swim to the surface, I won’t die this way! I get up half way from where I’m lying down before they push me back down. Everything is still a blur but I can make out I’m no longer in the pool. My vision comes back a bit more; I start to breathe this cold air coming from something. Looking round at lights and a ceiling with blurred faces over me I make out a doctor. Then it hits me, I blurt out, “What have I done now!?”
Then I loose consciousness before getting any reply. I wake to find I’m in hospital, still really tired and cold. I sit up on my elbows to try and focus my vision on something and ask what happened. As I do my head starts to weigh too much for me to support and my vision fades to a blur. I lie back down trying to focus on something. I get enough energy to ask a nurse what happened and I am shocked to learn the truth. “You just had a near drowning experience.” she replies
I lie back down, thinking “How could this be?”
She continues, “your father and mother are on their way, they’ll be here soon.”I go back to sleep. I hear something and I see my dad in front of me. I try sitting up again, while he comes closer. I can only focus fully for a few seconds before everything becomes a blur, my energy goes away and I must lie down. He sits down and tells me I’m a bastard in Russian. Then Galina comes, a family friend, posing as my mother sitting down with my dad and just staring at me. Eventually I get enough energy to talk and since it was Galina’s birthday the day before I tell her happy birth day. My dad and Galina both start laughing saying thanks for the wonderful present. My energy comes back slowly; while the doctors slowly turn down the oxygen supply that I had thought was water. I eat, sleep and get shown x-rays of my lungs filled with water. Slowly the water is absorbed by my body from my lungs as I rest. I wake the next day to a huge appetite, no longer connected to all the monitors or oxygen supply. My grandparents come and my grandmother later brings me a foot long subway and the newspaper. A type of hazy feeling remained in the bottom of my lungs when taking deep breaths, like something was blocking the bottom air sacks of the lungs, which was obviously the remaining water. My mind was overwhelmed by the experience but one question I kept asking myself was. “If you fall of a horse you get back up again, but do you still get back on if you were almost killed?” I had recovered well enough to leave at 2pm with about 60% of my lungs total capacity back from what I felt. I caught the bus home and walked home quietly to rest.

bit more info on this
to mention once more, i was trying to go so far since i had the experience at clovely and was fine then.



When I did black out, there was no warning to it, just went dark and warm. when i did wake up it was probably from the guys rushing me from the ambulance sticking a needle into my vein, "the prick"
So when i regained consciousness i still thought i was in the pool, but since i couldn't see, (because my blood o2 was so low it looked like i was in the pool underwater), and i suddenly felt really cold. so yeah i thought someone maybe knocked me out and i was drowning. The oxygen i was being fed was cold and kinda felt like water. so my conclusion was, some basard/s is trying to kill me...
naturally you fight and i don't know how but i basically got up from the bed while the guys were pushing me down after i had been underwater and turned blue, still didn't stop me. But then yeah it sucks.
As 4 being in intensive care, had heart rate etc on me and when I was there they gave me a MRI and found a gold fish inside my head. Told me not to go diving again and stuff, spent the night there, woke up at 12am till 4am and just looked around like at other patients and talked to the nurses.
What still I find hard to get over is that, it’s not like I was totally ignorant about it. I rested for 20 sec after taking a training lap and recovery lap and asked myself if I was feeling like I should rest more and stuff.
Just remember how I looked at my watch and confidently thought “I will leave in 10min”

the thing with the black out that i had was that from memory i was swimming back normal breath stroke, not underwater... so i was taking a breath, then stroke etc. the doctor later gave me a in depth type of explanation of what happened, hey maybe i'll get him 2 post somethin up 4 us. he said my co2 receptors had stopped working, so from what i understand, when i went for the recovery lap there was alot of co2 in my body already and that pushed it over the limit. he said i must have been hyperventilating....
when i blacked out, that was when the warm feeling came over me, "feeling of the womb" kinda expresses it well. i didn't see a light or anything, funny if i saw a fish...

The doc also told me a story how some army trainees after going for a long run or sprint jumped into the pool and started doing the same thing, laps underwater. They all blacked out but were pulled out very soon. Also he showed me a picture of a kid, 3 years old fell into a bucket and stayed there for an hour….
Amazingly they revived him but he may have brain damage, his heart stopped beating for maybe 15min.
As for this character, my breathing stopped, after I copped enough chlorine pool water and was underwater for maybe 5min or so before being rescued. Brain damage wouldn’t make any difference to me…


Overall the moral of the story is, have a dive buddy with you and use the system. When ur at the bottom he is looking out for you on the surface, when he’s diving you’re looking out for him. It would have saved me typing this post. At least try to.

 

[the seal]

11-13th February 2005
Terrigal lagoon Canada cup and Alliman

Moon: new
Tide: High-12pm
Water: 20-21 degrees
Swell: 50cm
Vis: 10m

It was 8th Feb. Tuesday night when as I was drinking with Ryan his girl, Catfish and Dutchy. I was asked over the phone by Captain Ahab through Dutchy if I would like to be his boat very *friendly* person like last comp. My initial reply was “poor bastard,” but then considered the possibility of black mail so took the phone and told him, “I’ll talk to you later.”
After guzzling down a few beers I walk home and considered the possibilities. I was later informed that we would be spending the weekend there and negotiated when I could go spearing before and after the comp, (not like there is a point in me competing).
So it was set, I would meet Ahab at King’s cross station on Friday afternoon at 3pm. I have my suspicion’s why he choose that location, especially when he came 20min late. Anyway he came; I compressed my bags into what space was left in his trusty car and performed some acrobatics getting in through the maze of spear guns.
There was myself, Ahab, Don the bomb and Wooly the New Zealand sheep.
Don a very unfortunate beached dolphin, permanently unable to get in the water with a weapon due to a shoulder injury. He really surprised me with his dedication to help out all the other spearo’s in the water by looking after all the beer and other vital stuff at the tent. Wooly, as described by Simon “twice as good as me,” is as some referred to him as “a bloody new Zealander.” In general, he is a blond curly/wooly haired quiet and friendly guy who has traveled the world killing fish of all species and competed in the world spear fishing championships at Chile.
So we arrive at the apartment and unpacked, it was a great choice of location, laziness wise as it was a 5min walk from where the comp was held. It also had room for 6-8 people and a fridge that had room for many more beers. I realized what I had to do, this was the best time for it, I got ready to sneak off and kill some fish. Simon lent me his new gun and a wet suit top. There was no one to go spearing with me, grudgingly I went off by myself to the boat break wall. I left my bag by the fence and went into the water, I swam towards the break wall and looked up at a sign in the water, which I expected to say that boats must go under 4 knots, but instead it said, “no swimming within 25 meters of this sign,” at the same time I hear about coming next to me and am wondering how much will the fine be. I pick up the pace and slither past the sign towards the break wall, then swim towards the end. I made it there and didn’t see any of the oversized flat heads Simon had mentioned were there, but did notice an overcrowding of evil sea urchins. So I took to them and found a rock and started bashing them. I saw what I think may be an electric sting ray and tried to get it to zap trippies gun. I got bored, well really one of the evil spines of the sea urchins made a hole in my finger and I decided I should swim out and see if sharks can really sniff blood in the water…
As soon as I got on the other side I see luderic feeding, but they saw me first. I swam straight out to deeper water looking into caves. There was just about nothing, then as if they where in attack mode 3-4kg fish started swimming past me, they were salmon and I got excited. I fired away, hit nothing, Dam!
I start reloading, the school is huge, surrounding me from both side, thousands of these fish swim past me as I reload, it takes me 3min to reload and as soon as I do they are gone. I swim on towards the cliffs and find an amazing ledge which I follow to the rocks. I dive down to a cave a few meters from the shore and stay there looking into it. Surprisingly there were no fish there so I look around behind me, I realize I’m being watched by some silver drummer and rise up, then look round and also see a tailor 1kg. Still all the fish stayed away from me, I decide to swim back as it was getting dark. On the way a 3kg King fish swims by me at speed, in a rush to get to bed?
I go back to the apartment and brief Simon and friends. Most of the other guys, Divin Dave, John and Pat are already drinking, then I realize one of my mistakes, I forgot to take my drivers license. I went to bed around 12 and woke up at 6:30 am. I got ready and went out to look for food.
Met Trippie around tent where sign on was held, I quickly hopped in for a swim and found the head of a…flathead, as wide as Mine. Swam a bit and got out. The comp started with a wave of a flag and the boats raced off up the coast. The guys on the boat were beside my self, Ahab, big Al, Wooly and Steve? An interesting note would be the fact that Steve and his father built the boat we were in, I’m still here so it yeah it’s good. We first went to 2 mile reef and the guys hoped in and went to kill fish. I stayed in the boat and vegetated.
After some time Simon got out with 4 fish or so and said he wanted to go, I though he had a lot of fish but when we picked up the other guys each had around 6 fish. We then went to 3mile reef and the guys hopped in. I drove off up current to wait for them; we were there for maybe an hour or more. I didn’t get to floor the boat too much but it was fun, I had to look after Big Al who swam ahead, maybe 500m. Wasn’t to much notice able action, just many species, Big Al lost an 18kg kingy. I entertained myself my looking into the water from the boat, I also ate some junk food they had and ingested soft drinks.
We then went to a bomby and surprisingly Steve told me to go for a swim, he had ear problems. Well ok I think, yet he wants me to take his gun and float with him? How the hell will I load his gun?
I get in, taking his fins, socks, gun and float. Now I’m in the water and spend 5min trying to load it, no pad or anything. First the hip, then the chest then I try the stomach. One problem is that sunscreen in slippery and I was afraid of what many others have suffered so I swam over to big al and he loaded the gun for me. Looking back I could have taken off my swimmers and taken the sunscreen of with them when the fish weren’t looking.
Lots of trevaly and mowies but nothing interesting, after 5min I got out empty handed and we went to another spot. Steve stayed out of the water and the other guys got in, then suddenly there was lots of commotion, Steve said “must be a shark or a Jew.” Few min later Big Al put his Jew in the boat and then Wooly gave us his first Jew. We raced back, got the gear and fish out etc. I helped in with some of the weigh in then got some fish for myself and went to fillet them.
Some nice stories were made that day, tuna got his second Jew, well haha he got his first too. What you call 2 Jews with one stone… I mean spear, around 8kg, 8 Jew taken all together. Wooly broke his spear trying to bend it back after shooting a 3kg kingy, not happy(sea tech). Wooly was very angry that Ahab’s mowie got more points than his Jew, he declared they would all Die the next day (the mowies.) there where a lot of people there from all around, dutchie, scuba Pete showing off his action man physic, or so he says…

The night was full of drinking and chasing women, but I was not around to help in the bar because of you know what.
When they came back, from an unsuccessful misadventure Wooly showed us his DVD’s of his diving and surfing films from his underwater video camera. One of the dives was 41m wow, he also told us how he couldn’t walk for 2 weeks after a wave ripped him off the reef and grated him over the coral before getting washed into a lagoon. There was video of commercial abalone gathering, so many in some spots like pebbles in a riverbed. The surfing flick had a quick glimmer of a babe’s nipple. Some nice camera work, we then went to bed, reportedly, Ahab had good dreams, to wake up around 7am.
I got ready and met Simon at the tent, weather was bad but I thought the comp would go ahead since the previous comp; condition’s seemed twice as bad. But it was not so, the news spread quickly and awards were handed out. First Ian the machine who got a 90L eski… then I don’t know but Wooly came 5th and gave me the wet suit pants he won; I love New Zealanders come to think of it. Simon gave me a Rostan float he won (he came 8th) and told me “I don’t want to see that boogie board again!”
Anyway, put all my stuff in Divin Dave’s car and went home too early.

Simon's Favourite fins

Wooly (shane fitzmorice) swearing revenge on red mowies, background-Don susing me out.

 

[the seal]

"why you should look up"

About 3 years ago i was diving at clovely and could only hold my breath for a short time then. It was extremly crowded and i swam into a few people by accident.
Anyway the main point is, i was at the end of a shallow dive and dyin 4 air, forgive the pun. i went up and remembered to look so i wouldn't hit anyone, the moment I looked up i got an extreme close up of this old fat b!tches bikini, with hair and all was sticking out anyway too much detail already. I was maybe 10cm away and quickly retreated back down.
------I still get flash backs--------- :waterwork

 

[the seal]

first winter dive
first dive with gear
first dive with a_dolphin

Sunday, the 3rh of July 2004 was preparing for my first winter hunt. Desperately trying to make everything perfect, double checking I haven’t forgotten anything for the next day. Improvised a float and flag from a body board and had some socks coated in rubber latex to keep my feet warm. Kept on working till midnight, before going to be and not getting much sleep from the anticipation of the next day. It was five fifty, I decided to look at my alarm clock which was about to go off in five minutes. So I waited till the last second to turn it off before getting out of bed. I then made good the time I had preparing my things, placing them into my huge Nike bag. Packing lunch and putting some things from downstairs outside that I had made last night in the front yard next to the row of garbage bins. Simon came for me at seven thirty and we arrived at long bay at 8pm.
He parked the car on the north side after having a drive past the south to see the conditions. At the car park there were about 15 other divers getting ready to go spear fishing from my club, the dolphins. At 8: 30 we were ready and there was a roll call and we agreed to meet back at 12 noon. We went in groups to different parts of Long Bay, Simon decided that me, him and Peter should go for the longest swim. We trekked for 20min through some very thick bush before we could see the ocean from cliffs and a steep decent where the water had cut a path down. There we put on our oversized flippers, mask snorkel and all on before jumping in the water. I was the first one in since after walking for 20min with a wet suit on carrying equipment, not as much as the other two though, I was cooked. I just swam round at first getting used to the flippers and suit while waiting for Simon and Peter to get in. They got in and swam to the north side of the little cove we were in where there were lots of crevasses, ledges and caves. There they dropped their guns on a little plateau covered in sea weed and swam off looking into different cracks and crevasses. I guessed correctly that they were looking for lobsters, stupidly I just swam through the little tunnels and caves for fun not looking for anything. Rather just testing myself and occasionally almost drowning when the current went the other direction and pinned me against a rock.
Sadly no lobsters, ): . we kept on swimming and I was getting uncomfortable in the gear I was wearing. It felt like I was out of my element so to speak since previous experiences had taken me through swimming with no flippers and just board shorts for warmth, and never a weight belt. My mask needed to be readjusted since it was too tight when the wet suit hood was under it, the flippers where somewhat strange for their size but I decided I should just get it over with. I went back for my hand spear and looked around the rocks to find something to end my frustration. It was a Morewong, or dumb mowie as most call them. I hit it once next to the gills and pulled it closer to me to grab it, at that moment it escaped but was to dump to swim away so I just shot it again at the bottom and pulled it up. Simon was close by so I gave it to him and he put it through his chord going to his float. We swam to the other side of the cove stopping just in the middle to do a dive. There I decided to readjust the weight belt Simon lent me, on doing so I remembered to check for the knife on the weight belt, which to my horror wasn’t there. I reasoned that I may have put it in the holster incorrectly after killing the mowie and it could have fallen out. To my luck I could see something at the bottom just about shining through to the surface. I took a few breaths and dived down grabbing it and heading to the surface very relieved. We continued to the point where Simon scored a 3 kilo black fish where it was really silty and my mask was hurting may face and making it hard to equalize ear pressure. Simon and peter took turns vanishing into the depths but I was not in the right state. We kept on swimming and the visibility increased, but no fish. After a while I got a leg cramps and another and another and another. Eventually I could control them and swam ahead doing some diving at a shipwreck and talking to a guy on a boat supervising some scuba divers, where I started to enjoy the long swim. We swam for another 45min to the boat ramp and car park before getting out. All in all, I felt like I had jinxed the group since we were some of the few to catch any fish. A very quiet day and a tough trial by fire from Simon, who was very happy I had made the swim. I was happy I was alive, but those are my issues. We had swam for 3 and a half hours over about 2 or more kilometers of ocean arriving an hour late to the car park. Everyone had left except someone who got his car stolen; we left after helping him out, changing clothes and filleting our fish. I ate my lunch like a concentration camp victim while sharing it with the others before we left. We parked on a large traffic Island to get some drinks and then talked for an hour. Then I and Simon headed to get some food to eat on a jetty while watching the sun set and talking about various things. He finally dropped me off at home and just threw half of the gear I had used on me and told me to do what ever I want with it basically before driving off. I learned a lot and burned all my energy doing it making it a very good day and my first winter dive. The 4th July.

Australia day dive 26/1/05
Took new DIY gun out for a test
Moon= near full
Tide=low
Swell=1m
visibility=6m
Got in from walies bath’s, at cooge, swam round until I found the fish I wanted but couldn’t get close enough and missed. Then it happened, I felt something slide and quickly grabbed it, my weight belt had undone. I wondered why and looked at it as a piece of it fell of to my frustration, I knew it was broken. So I did the only reasonable thing to do, I undid my wetti and shoved it down!
Though somewhat uncomfortable and that it would slowly progress down my right leg over the rest of the dive it still did the job. Saw rock black fish and silver drummer around the wave breaking area and right in the white wash. Around 5kg mark some of the silver’s. saw a small surgeon but that was it. Only shot a mowie at the end that was 5cm over legal-30cm, when I got out I saw some guy looking at me and said “what did that fish ever do to you!” And I was thinking, another jack ass, but it turned out to be john from dolphins. The gun’s darn line release broke, the fiber glass broke and I shot the fish with tangled line. Longest hold around 45sec. got cold after a while.

 

[the seal]

“Why I hate sea urchins”
And they must all DIE!
Happened around 30th January 2004
10m vis
water 21 degrees
fishyness: low
It was my first time spearfishing in maybe a year, I was newbie to the max. A friend of mine that I had introduced to snorkeling in clovely had bought a hand spear and started spearing alone. He had started going to a local out of the way spot called Murrivery Pass which is around the Golf course at north bondi. The reason I had not been going Spearfishing was due to the previous times being an anticlimax. Some of the blame goes to the 75cm sea hornet aka Sh!t hornet I paid $115 for. Basically he convinced me to go and I ran over to his place in Bondi from Randwick on that fine sunny day. We caught the bus to the golf course, avoided the golf balls hurtling past us and started climbing down the cliffs. It was my first time there and was rather hesitant since I had no idea how we would get down with all the gear. Yet my motto was, “if my friend can do it, so can I!” so we both skidded down the cliff like mountain goats, climbed down the rusty ladder there that pre dates aboriginals, one by one and looked around where to get in from. I choose a platform that was closer but one had to get in before a set came, my friend chose a platform further away but had no white water during the sets. They where both flat rocks covered by sea weed. We originally wanted to buy a rope to get in and out from the cliff but it cost too much. So I went off to hide my bag and then get in, my gear consisted of the Sh!t hornet, board shorts, mask, snorkel and me, myself and I. Yep I was a newbie. I got in and swam for my life to the deeper water so I wouldn’t get sucked into a channel next to the platform. I started looking for my friend, “where is he?”
So I looked and looked, then I got back out from where I came in and found he had jumped of the 4m cliff over there instead of the platform and though amused and delighted, rather angry. He swam to the middle where I joined him.
For those that have never been to Murrivery pass, it’s a rock hop down a steep cliff and a trusty, owe sorry I mean rusty ladder. There are three rock islands which you can clamber onto from the ocean and have caves under them; they make a triangle facing land and each about the size of a medium pool. And have lots of bird crap on them.
So back to the spearing, I was in the middle, above a sand bottom, I dived down and found a small sting ray.
“Have yet to catch something so why not?”
I dive down aim for its head and boom! The spear runs out of line right before its head. Bugger I think, so I dive after 3min reloading, the thing just stayed there…
I got closer and this time, boom! In between the eyes..
“Hang on it’s still moving, B@stard!?” the spear just pushed him down and made a dent in his head. I called my friend over to come and see it, I reloaded and found him again and dived closer, placing a shot a few cm from the last. Cr@p!
It didn’t go through him, again? It really swam off this time; I looked and then see my friend with his hand spear dive down and shoot it in the side, then pull it up?
“I thought guns were better than hand spears, stupid sh!t hornet!” I go after my friend who has flippers on, we climb onto the island closest to land and I ask where the sting ray was. He explains it was “yucky,” so he let it go, it may have survived and be prowling that area looking for revenge, aka revenge of Scare face. Kept on swimming, saw a 7kg cuttle fish but began to think of finding something more of a challenge to shoot, I gave It a poke with the gun and continued. I went back to my friend and saw him dive down and shoot a rock cale. Though I was very new, I still didn’t think highly of his catch and asked if he was really gonna eat it, which he said “yes, they taste good!”
Though doubtful, I went down and found a rock cale which I decide to shoot, aimed and slam! The shaft hit it side on, avoiding the rock, hitting it at the gills which made it fly back 20cm, with a white dent in it and didn’t penetrate its 10cm thick body from 1.3m away.
“What a nuts gun!” all I could think. Swam away and died somewhere (the rock cale).
“This gun is only good for denting fish” is all I could think.
Anyway after some time warming up on the island etc we decided to get out, as a note I saw a grouper but left it alone, I wasn’t a hard core newbie!
I thought, “nuts!” I’ll get out with my friend, I swam over with him to the rock platform and decided to get out first, being more daring and help him out. Quickly clambered on, wanted to put my gun aside and come back to give him a hand. So kind of leaped forward while there was white wash to put my gun on a drier rock and put my weight on my right foot to feel it go on firm ground…
No, wait, it plunges down and down, scraping against the rough rock and a shiver goes over me, I feel being pricked with a deep adrenaline shock going through me as I sense something going into my heel.
I sit on my @ss but it’s too late, I take my leg out of the knee deep hole and see blood rushing out of a hole, spines stick out of other parts. My friend climbs on and I’m like
“nuts, nuts I stood on a bloody urchin!” I rip out some spines sticking out and limp to a safe rock. He’s a bit bedazzled by the blood and is quiet, I wanted him to try cutting it out but he was afraid to my frustration, I now have an extra long trek back to my stuff and getting back up. I try walking and it hurts like hell plus I feel one of the spines break in half..
I rush/ limp back, my toes are also cut. I get back and try cutting a spine out but it’s too deep. I put my shoes on and manage to climb up, can’t say safely and get home. With my grandma who’s a former doc (Ukraine) I take out all the spines at home by cutting the skin off with a shaver and using needles (sowing needles) for the deeper spines. I still feel something is wrong and argue with her that there is one still in my foot but it can’t be seen, I just feel the bloody thing there. She kinda tells me not to b!tch about it, but I tell her I will “I’ll see the doc,” in a week “if pain persists,”…as they say. Naturally a week went by where I limped to school and back, feeling smth in my heel. Sometimes I’d stand in exactly the right spot to cause excruciating pain in my heel. I called the doctor and said I think this calls for ultrasound being a physics student.
5th February. So it was organized and a week later I went to randwick X-ray to get it done, they turned up/in an object 10mm or so from the skin, 3mm wide in my heel. I went to my local GP the next day, 20th February, showed him the images of my pregnant heel and he anaesthetized me/ the heel, I lay on the bed and he began his dissection. I could still feel pain but told him it was fine and to just get it out. He injected more anesthetic and journeyed deeper.
He said he was done, so I looked at my heel and the bloody bed while he explained he wasn’t sure he got it all, report in a week. Gave me 3 stitches and I limped of, with a sore and numb heel. I used a cream he prescribed and limped on, a week later it still hurt so my grandmother and I looked at it. Two of my toes were swollen, so I put my foot in cold water and then took out the sowing needles and shaver. My second biggest toe had a small spec in it, while the other had lots (middle toe) of pus in it. I saw a small splinter and tried levering it out with the needle but couldn’t find the bottom; I finally scraped a 7mm spine from the side of my toe to my grandmothers surprise. “Ahh better”

Another week limping and I was told to go to emergency and get it taken out, so I did. My dad wanted me to go in school clothes so I would go directly to school afterwards, “no bludging!” I knew better.
Still I went, 9am, 12 noon dad calls,
Dad “all done?”
Me “you have no idea”
Yet even I didn’t know the way things would go, at around 5pm I asked when my turn would come and was told to go home.
27th February, another week had passed, about a month total, I went with my grandmother on Friday morning, to have the same thing happen to me. Even worse this b!tch doctor who came to examine my heel at 7pm told me
“You have no right to be treated here on Friday night, why did you waste our time?”
Basically “get lost,” I could add a paragraph of what I would’ve liked to tell… her I mean the b!tch/very *friendly* person Kunt but decided to remain a nice guy and go home with steam coming out from my ears. A week later after my dad talked with the hospital about it, I went again with a family friend.

 

[the seal]

2nd March This time 6am-6pm really… well I got a lot of physics homework done. They did eventually take an x-ray of my heel that showed a 1.5cm spine, 3mm thick sticking right up my foot. When they said “sorry go home,” that was it, we stayed there until my dad came, the family friend who is a Russian doctor also stayed and we refused to leave until I was treated. By the way, did I mention I was not allowed to drink or eat 12hrs before the operation or while I was waiting each time, well now u know.
After 3-5 more hours I got a bed to stay for the night and eventually I could eat because they would operate on me the next day. All I can say is,
A lot of jelly, bread, bread with peanut butter, with milo, strawberry spread, apricot spread and toasted bread. I was woken up in the morning and told I would be operated on at 3pm, here were go again. I wake up at 12pm and watched tv and starved…
Finally at 2pm to my surprise I get taken down to the surgery room and lye down on the stainless steel.. spring steel? Operating table, they give me gas and though I try stay conscious, I’m out in like 5 seconds. Bit like the black out, except no thoughts.
I wake up in a blink of an eye literally, it felt that way, only this time my foot was very sore and bandaged. I’m out of the operating room, it’s 6pm and I ask for more morphine, but it makes me feel miserable rather than high, it does dull the pain though.
I get taken back to where I was before and feel very, very sick. Head spin 101 but I have to get up and “pass urine,” if I want to leave. Yeah I did and had crap while I was at it.
Go home very hungry but drugs make me feel to sick to eat as much as I try. You can feel my pain scuba Pete.
Foot sore for a few days and all bandaged, 6 stitches, a friend told me he had “illegal pain killers,” but aspirin was good enough.
Overall

Don’t help your friends out off the water, if anything drag em back in.
Don’t follow dumb friends around join a club and go with the pro’s Dolphins!!
Don’t vote for the government that says “the system is working well.”
Don’t walk around bare foot.
Don’t go to hospital looking all healthy, try crying, falling on the floor and shaking/convolutions from “the poisonous spines.” Smear fake blood across your face and stain your clothes. Cover the wound up in a giant bandage that squirts blood. Hide part of your leg and say like miles “first GW encounter of the year..” remember the dripping blood. Anything to get attention!!!
And
Don’t let the sea urchins live, they must die, die I say.
Death to all SEA Urchins, Revenge! Revenge!

By
Abused animal aka
ThE SeaL

24/2/05
hand catching leather jackets
dived at clovely
vis=8m
water=20-22
swell=0.5-1m
fishyness=medium
tide: going to high at 7pm
Put gear on and swam to inlet, killed a sea urchin while I was at it. Had my caulipra bag, fins and gloves, no wettie or anything. Looked around for crayfish but didn’t find any, after some time saw a small leatherjacket and dived down to follow it. Managed to grab its tale but then it got away and swam under a rock. Thought I lost it but dived down under the rock anyway. I had a look and the ledge was jam packed with sea urchins and thought it got out, but there were no exits. I was thinking off going up but took a closer look and saw it hiding right at the top so I stuck my hand in there and dragged it out very pissed. Looked at it and put it in my bag to show my grandfather. Saw another one and though I chased it round, it hid away somewhere. Saw 2kg silver, 1kg luderic and the usual grouper. Snuck up really close to luderic after following them round and gave them a fright. Went to feed grouper later and it said high by biting my fin I think?
Also saw a diving bird thing that I chased but it was too weary. Dived by myself.


Spangled Emperor in Sydney
2nd proper spearfish
dived at (ocean)
visibility=15m
water=21
swell=0.5
tide high= 11am
moon near full
fishyness= rather Fishy

Simon aka capain Ahab invited me to go spear fishing to a club comp at rose bay so naturally I said, “maybe,” well ok, I said “yes!” I checked weather and high tide and was a little hesitant since the weather seamed like a bad omen, but I’m just a bad fortune teller. Still I wanted to go diving after going on Friday where I tested out my first real gun and found that it was rather calm despite the cloudy skies. It was also “fishy,” or maybe it was just the spot but I wanted to go to see “Wooly” dive since he is a great spearo and go diving with Dave, Simon and a walrus. All great creatures of the sea and A grade diver, or just about. Anyway I spoke to Dave or Diving Dave as I call him and arranged to be picked up at 7:30 am and head to Rose bay. After 4 hours of sleep I got up at 7am and read a bit on the net then rushed the last 10min to eat and get ready, then I called Dave around 7:30 to ask about what he dreamed of last night, but wait, he doesn’t pick up. Well he’s probably on his way, so I wait, 10 min later I call and call only to get no reply. “Has he slept in, has the social been canceled, I’m in the dark here, help!” so I’m getting p*ssed and frustrated here, standing outside, I call Ahab to find out what’s up, he picks up thankfully, but not so thankfully tells me, “comps canceled maybe call Roy for rock hop, wooly isn’t coming either.” ARRHH MTHFCUKER I freaking got lubricated and got in my wet suit pants for nothing, (which that the lovely New Zealander gave me) and freakin had 4hrs sleep and am standing outside in a slippery gay looking peace of clothing like a total weirdo! ARRRHHHHHH.
I call Dave one more time, “arhh, sweet dreams u bastard!” I think,
“hello?” Dave answers, I interrogate him while I steam away at my ears, but then it stops,
“I’ll be at your place in 10min,” ahhhh, that’s better, I didn’t get wet and slippery for nothing (lubrication). He comes at 8:10 and we go to meet a depleted group of spearo’s called dolphins, John a new member, Dan thE man! Can’t remember another guys name but last and least was anorexic Pete or scuba Pete as we call him. We met at cooge and discussed where to go spearing, the conclusion was the ocean and so we went and got ready to enter. We agreed to meet at 1pm for weigh in and go home etc so we went in, I ran and then hopped into the water like skippy dippy. I wanted to get in slightly deeper water before loading and was about to when I saw some big looking whiting close to 450g. As I loaded the current dragged me over them and they swam off before I had set my gear, only thing I still need is a dive knife and flashers. Whatever I think, I couldn’t find them and swam up ahead looking for Pete, I found that new guy and watched him dive to 12m and surface. I looked around and could not find Pete but saw the new guy dive to 12m again and let a big mowie go by that he didn’t shoot. Not sure if he noticed it but asked if he wanted the mowie, which he said “no, you can have it,” by that time it had gone off somewhere. Still I go into Paul Roso mode to try showing him what I know, I make a straight dive down and start swimming in a line scanning, with my gun extended. After 8m distance or 15 sec the mowie pops up again so I give some time, aim and stone the Paul way. It keels over and I make a hasty retreat to the surface, I’m not Paul Roso and can’t hold my breath like a firkin under water gorilla. I string it up and continue, I find anorexic Pete and see the luderic and large goatee on his line and jealously swim next to him. I wanted to watch him do some dives but he wanted space so I looked around for Dave and couldn’t find him, the phantom. Bugger it, I think, I’ll go hard like Pete says and lone it out, like I’m use to in a good and bad way.
I swim around looking for luderic and find them ogling at me from caves but just don’t want to damage my gun, the lucky things; I missed some shots in the open, very angry.

 

[the seal]

I decide to undo one rubber from my double rubber, 1.1m undersea barracuda! And swim round looking for luderic when, it happen, salmon surround me from every where, I dive down excited. I remember how Simon told me to pick one that will swim ahead in front of the gun and aim and fire but Paul Roso mode doesn’t kick in. I aim and fire but the spear nicks the fish after falling short from only having one rubber and at full range. I go up as they circle and reload but get tangled, I undo the tangle and chase the school, it hurts to load the rubber on my stomach but I don’t care. I can’t see any but this time hunting mode kicks in, I dive to the bottom and find them; I chose one that looks ok and wait, wait and head shot! Didn’t stone it but still all good, my rig got a little tangled so I spent 4min fixing it up.
Still was angry at myself since when I saw the school there was a goatee the size of Pete’s on the bottom feeding with a baby snapper or bream which I couldn’t find now. Suddenly out off nowhere, a dead garfish floats by, hmmm.
It doesn’t say anything in the rules that they have to be alive when you find them? I try rigging it and its head nearly disintegrates and I wonder what one does when they catch garfish, impale my float with it? The salmon was still having a cry about me shooting it so I shoved the garfish in its mouth so it could do something use full and hold onto it for me. There were a lot of big mowies out today and saw a lot of small under 500g snapper, only one being about that.

I went back to look for it and decided to look in a cave around 12m had a look and went up and was going to go on when, what do you know a cuttle fish comes out to get shot. Go down and shoot it, spear goes through and hits bottom but was cushioned by the firkin calamari which was 3kilos or so. Though I was trying to be like Ahab and go into comp mode as he says, I wanted a feed of rings and my dad likes them so I have a lump of muck to drag round now. I go back to where I though I saw the salmon and bellow where bream. I’m looking round at a spot next to a 1m drop off to flat sandy weed on rock, “yes! I see some good bream!”
“Yes! I see a spangled Emperor twice as big!” hunting mode kicks in, it’s there 1m from the bottom in the middle of the flat area, chilling out with the bream, which it looked like from far away.
“let’s go,” I take a half lung full so it’s easier to sink, make a little movement and a few kicks. I level with it at 7m and don’t equalize or make any movements to scare it, my gun extended. I decide to go crash its party, it swims away doing some turns and I glide and wait, wait for the invitation and hello Bam! Ow yeah didn’t miss this one. Didn’t stone it but came close to its head, so I was happy since it’s the second time I’ve seen them, first being in clovely. It put up a fight, jabbed me with its spines and made a tangle of my rig that took 10min to undo. All good. I decided to stay there and look for the bream and goatee, I also saw 1kilo drummer, leathers, small silvers, sergeant bakers, lots of luderic and bream. I ended up shooting my first bream, which I forgot to take to eat and tried hand catching leather jackets not being bothered to shoot. I was unlucky and didn’t shoot anything else, my sinus played up a bit but I fixed it by blowing out from the nostril that went with the ear. It fixed it for 15min each time but taking out all the seal snot, my nose hurt from the mask and I went out of hunting mode. I still tried getting luderic but it was time to head back. I stopped to see a why a diver got out on the rocks thinking like ahab says “either a shark or a big Jew?” made it to shore after battling the rip and waited to see if anyone else came out. Turned out it was someone else so I grab my 8 or 9kilo’s of fish and my gear and ran like a crazy Ukrainian to get the fish weighed, I was 15min late but it wasn’t an Aliman, would have made it if I had a sea devil.
Scuba Pete won with 8 species, biggest fish was 6kilo kingfish that John speared, first one and congrats, most meritous fish was my 1.3 kilo spangled Emperor and highest scoring fish was my fat mowie the new guy let go at 2.3 kilo’s and around 90 points. Take that Sash aka shadowkiller akaa mowie killer.
To comment on the day, I’d have to say there were two mayor factors in me shooting the Emperor,
1) My gear got me there in one piece and it worked, thanks to Ahab lending me some gear and helping me get the gun.
2) By learning from divers like Ahab who also got me to dive with Paul and watch someone in true hunting mode which I can’t yet come close to imitating.
3) Bit of luck is also good. lol and if Dave had slept through today that poor fish would still be swimming round in the ocean. Ow and maybe global warming also helped.

Still there is always room for improvement as Ahab say’s, still hasn’t caught Moby thingy. I missed out on 5 other species from in experience and bit of confusion as rules changed for this comp a bit. Eg pike and leathers
As a note that darn cuttle fish was such a pain to clean, esp after I burst it’s ink sack. It’s back bone came out easy but, by cutting at the front off it, it had a beak like a parrots and boogly eyes.
IMG]http://www.spearfishing.com.au/forum/attachments/empP1010007.JPG[/IMG]

 

[the seal]

dive 4/3/05
Luminescence
first blue mowie.
spot x1

Tide= high 9:45pm
Moon=last quarter
Visibility=15m
Water=22c
Swell=0.3
Fishyness=medium

It’s 6:45, I get in the water, with me the gun and hand spear, the rest of gear and a gut filled with 2 bananas a pizza and some donuts. I get in while a lightning storm is going off around me and thinking “this better be worth it!.” This is a complex thing but anyway, I get some tangles on my gun but within 6min my gun’s loaded. Wasn’t very hydrated and didn’t put enough spit in the mask to make it stick, so took some readjusting and spitting in it, getting my wettie out of the way. Jumped in and only saw small school of trevally type fish, then swam to the right, all the school were heading south, in a bit of a rush to get to bed or their hotel? The storm was to the south of me and the fish were flocking towards it, kinda. I decided to swim north anyway, against my gut feeling but I still wanted to explore! I started swimming and went for my second dive, to maybe 13-15m where the cliff dropped off 50cm to a sand bottom the size of a sand pit. I wanted to use the hand spear and practice with it but it was getting dark and I was at the end of a breath hold I saw a blue mowie, my first and told myself
“I’ll get it for sure!” aimed and fired with my gun after tracking for 7 seconds and thwack, “darn,” I thought, not a stoner rather high. As usual I was dying for air and went up letting go off my gun, went back and dragged my first blue up, put it on my lap and ripped its gills out. It took a while to string it up because I tried putting the hand spear on the shark clip and had to hold onto it etc while I strung it up and stuff, this took maybe close to 10min, rather happy I continued further. Dived a few times and didn’t bother looking into caves as it was already really dark. Contined saw school of flighty silver drummer, maybe 7-10kg some were really big! Did get close to one, exhaled and sunk but shot to soon and spear stopped in front of this fishes eye. Anyway all the fish were racing south to bed, even the dozen salmon that swam under me, in quite a rush. Saw 500g goatee, swimming with red mowie, put the hand spear on my line and instead just got close to the mowies but let them live.
Eventually decide to go after it got so dark I almost shot a puffer fish, forgot to prod it.
Coolest thing was how when I was swimming back, I was looking at my gloves and saw something like pieces coming off them and was angry, thinking the gloves are falling apart.
“must be light from the sun making them shiny and silvery?” after 3min I looked at my spear tip and noticed it was there too, that theory’s out the window!
“I know it bioluminescence,” sorry for the long word. It was around 7:45 when I started to notice them and later realized what they where every where as this disruptive kunt swam through the water. They would light up when disturbed and not mentally, these little bacteria and critters looked like stars in the water, so amazing swimming in a sea of stars, that’s how I’d describe it!
Well the banana’s didn’t screw me too badly, think junk food was worse, only held my breath for 1:10 max and dived 16-17m max, so not too happy.
Got out in one piece while the storm was going nuts at sea, I bolt per second!
I remember a few times when under water there was lightning flashes probably close by and it sounded like a light bulb bursting or popping on…
Didn't weigh it but was 40cm long


Cat fish killer strikes again
Dive 7/3/05

I wanted to dive after university and was looking for a buddy, after a lot of sms messages cat fish killer replied to my delight he was looking for a dive buddy to go and “kill some fish,” guessing he meant cat fish?
I arranged a lift and as soon as this happened he messaged me to say something came up and won’t be able to go. I respected the decision but have to note in order to catch fish our memory must serve us well. I considered spearing by myself, then after 5min in bed I considered sleeping, still very tired from the weekend. After some rest I got some gear and went for a swim at Clovelly, to look for crays and breath hold with the trusty swimmers and mask etc. It’s 6:15 very cold winter weather so I put the small amount of gear I have on and jump in looking for relief from the cold. Water is colder at 19C, bugger, with lots of muck, I jump in swim to the deep area underwater away from the junk.
I’m swimming underwater and Lo and behold catfish killer has struck, some how from somewhere… a limp dead body of a 50cm long catfish sways with the swell on the bottom. “Ur out of control catfish killer,” I think, any way not sure what killed it, it had no marks. I heard they tasted great but doubted it’s freshness though it looked only a few hours dead. I burllied it up with the help of my hands, the grouper was too posh to eat it, only sea urchins and turbine snails, but an eel tried swallowing a huge chunk up before I grabbed it. Didn’t find and lobsters and left after getting mildly hypothermic.
Catfish how do you do it?

 

[the seal]

dive 8/3/05
Another crazy day in my life
dived spot X
vis=6-4m
water=20
swell=1m-1.5
fishyness=low
after uni went home and then got pumped 4 a dive at my spot. went there hoping swell was low but was in wane. put my gear on around looking at entry point thinking "yeah, there's a quite period every few min"
putting my fins and booties on at the spot, then "shyet, run run!" ah, now it's quite again, after a wave comes over and nearly washes my stuff off. keep on putting my gear on then "shyet! run, run, run!" Then it's quiet again and i try convincing myself i'm crazy enough to get in at the point during this swell (very hard spot to get into.)
"shyet, run, run, run!" ok i'm not that crazy, after this happened tried getting in from exit point and was kinda the same story, only came closer to getting hammered.
Desperate, i can only think of one thing, i put my gear back in my big bag and walk 30min to the next spot...
i get there around 6pm and start swimming, much, much more quiet there. see a huge whiting when i get in, looked 500g. didn't get it, continued, decided to add some fish on my species list. lots of rays about, only saw a few luderic and some small trevally. shot a fan bellied leather i think, shot a pike, which took some aiming. best thing i shot was a squid, stalked it from the bottom before taking a long shot at it's head through the tube and burst it's ink sack. on the way back shot my first silver, very dark and sunk down into ledge and shot at some silvery fish. thought it was a big bream but when i pulled it in cr@p silver. swam round to unprotected area and vis was 4m so just left. Thought i saw a boarie and shot it but turned out to be an old hag (old wife) . saw bait etc, couldn't find any flat head. anyway good to be in water and add some totaly crap good for nothing fish to my list of destruction....I’d give it all up 4 a kingy. miles send some of ur yellow fin our way. please.
gonna use fish for burly some day, utterly stunk cleaning them. squid will be eaten.
Alex.

Clockwise: Silver Drummer, Rough Leatherjacket, Squid hood, Old Wife, Yellowfin Pike.


forgot 2 say, i saw a wobbie close to a meter so i dived down but it swam under a rock, scared of this crazy animal. waited for few min thinking i lost it but it came out and i swam down and grabbed it by it's tail....
it tried to break free but when it realized this wasn't gonna happen, it tried biting my hand so i swung it round like a snake before grabbing it's head. it was totally pissed and sh*t scared of what the seal was gonna do with it. thought about it and let it go as it was so small. (A Greek friend of mine loves to cook sharks!)


Blue bottles and a King Fish
Dived with Captain Huffy, Daniel and Dutchy AROUND Randwick
Dive 13/3/05
Temp=23
Climate=sunny day
Vis= 10m
Fishyness=medium
High tide 11; 45am
Swell: 1m
Moon: new
Stingers=plenty

I called around some days in advance to find out Dutchy had some shaky plans to go diving in Randwick, some time around 1pm. After some days of anxiety and nervous wait, Sunday came and I called Dutchy to confirm he was still going.
“na, not gonna make it,” he said and I think
“ur dead!” but luckily he continued to mention huffy and his brother Daniel are still coming so I would have some dive buddies, for once. I called huffy and arranged to meet, he picked me up from my place, Waiting, I lubed up and sat around trying to think positively that everything would go as planed. So he came 1:15 and we arrived at the car park at the same time as dutchy who turns out was now coming, suited up and went to get in the water. There were a lot of blue bottles but I wasn’t disheartened,
“go hard or go home!” I though like pete says.
Got in, loaded my gun straight away incase there where whiting but seems their on holiday. Then looked at my rig line and thought, “arrrhh, dam,” all tangled. Spent some time trying to untangle it and then caught up to Huffy and friends, while hoping they had better luck than myself. Swam ahead a bit to try untangle my line, spent 10min at it then see a strange fish below that looked like it was hungry, hungry for steel!
I dived down to see it go into a cave and see it trying to get out the other end so thwack! Let go of the gun and surfaced wondering if I shot it, pull this limp thingy up, pulled it’s gills out and onto the rig line. Spear went through its head and out its eye. Swim around a bit then stop, burly some sea urchins and wait to see if anything comes while I try untangle my rig line…. Another 15min
Note: always have your rig line neat and tidy before going in.
Managed to give my self sufficient line for diving then swam off, full steam to catch up to the boys. After 5min I see a school of tarwine and persue one close to 1kg for some time, ended up not taking a shot. Not good. Also saw some big luderic and still didn’t hit them either, kept on shooting a bit off and not close enough. Blue bottles constantly attack me from all side as I swim, get a small sting on my face. Catch up to the boys, who are turning back now, the bottles are too strong. Misinterpret dutchy and think their going to spear around the shore, whereas their getting out. Was about to get tangled in Daniels rig line so did a U turn and then decided to swim around to deeper area as I was feeling very happy with my diving. I was using 3lb less, so 6lb on me and managed to dive 15m with 20 sec bottom time in one dive, longest dive around 1.20sec. Swimming on the surface around 15m and a huge school of big salmon swim round me, dive and rush my shot “arhhh, how bad was that?!”
Load my gun as quick as I could and follow them into deeper water. They leave my but when I chase them and dive down they start to circle me. Dive down again, “come on!” look for some big salmon that I first saw-4kg as I stay down, then think bugger! And shoot at one only to miss!
Kept on swimming round and saw a kingy cruse by, dive to it and run out of breath before getting close enough, looked 5kg or so. Totally pissed at myself,
“I though everything was going to die? What happened.” Decide to start swimming back to shore around deep area where there was a school of bait fish very spread out. I look to my right and think.
“hmmm, yes, no, yes, no? looks a around 70cm, kind of cute and all, die!” as I level with it at 3m I aim the gun to my left and fire when it swims round in front of the gun, stoner. Bleed it and string my first kingy up on the line. Bit disappointed as it was very small looking, lucky to be 3.5kg but it’s good to add more fish to the list of death and destruction. Didn’t get anything else besides a big sting from a bottle on my way in; get out to be met by 2 life guards. Think,
“shyet", here comes trouble, gonna give me abuse and all.
"you killed the fish!" their gonna say.
They come up to me to have a look at my catch which I don't show off that much. They look at my float and one says
“hey, you caught a king fish, you must be really good!”
“hahaha, sweat, few, owe yeah!” to describe how I felt, the kingy was pretty small and they thought I did well. Anyway, the boys come down to me already dry and look at my catch, thought they would be angry for my late arrival but guess they were happy to see me alive? Anyway, Mr huffy dropped me of at home after we had oportos and turns out the kingy was 69cm, other fish was a crap whirra cod.

Other notes: good diving, crap hunting and aiming, spear was bent at tip. Saw sting rays, no flat head as hard as I looked, didn’t find any. One sting ray was really well covered and thought it was a flat head. But no.


king and wirrah

more

 

[the seal]

Double trouble
Dive 27/3/05

I met keith through the net and we decided to meet at 8am, though that may sound simple after day light savings we ended up meeting at 7am. Anyway due to the big swell we decided to go to south head. Keith would be able to launch his kyack from there and we would swim from camp cove to south head and back…with some fish, some big fish. We lubed up and hopped in and blah. Vis was 3m, 4m at best, agonizingly we continued, then keith had an idea. He would swim over in his kyack to south head while I staggered on and check the vis out at the point. About 15min later, he came back with bad news, vis is crap over there to. we decide to head somewhere else, I swim over and get out from lady beach and meet him back at camp cove. I was somewhat happy to get out since for some reason my ears weren’t equalizing and the snorkel keith lent me was slowly depriving me of oxygen. Hey he paid $1 for it. We went round looking at cooge and lurine bay to see a monster 4m swell batering the coast, some spearo’s getting out at lurine reported ok vis-6m so I was optimistic. Finally we arrived at south maroubra to see surfers flocking to the monster swell. Keith wasn’t keen so I decided I’d risk my neck and go try kill something and report back how conditions were. Suited up once more and got in from the beach, got 100m out within a very short time via the rip, would regret it later.
I saw heaps of luderic and they were being very friendly, very friendly but I missed quite a few shots. A- because I suck, B-the swell dragged the gun back and forth and once the trigger jammed a bit. Also found a school of salmon and went down and missed…because I’m retarted really, they were a bit skittish though. Couldn’t find them wen’t back and started slaying the luderic, boming them, waiting till the schooled round me and were ready for 8mm of stainless. Shot 1 around 41cm long, also shot two in one go, stoned both and another two later. So 5 luderic, now it was getting a bit borring, could have taken 20 easy. They were schooling in big 100 fish schools and came by to ogle at me all the time.
The most notable thing was when I deived down and was looking and thought “rat kings?” then I came closer and thought
“what tha? Those are two massive goatees!” they looked 1.5 but since I suck so much I didn’t get close enough to shoot. Bugger. I tried to signal to keith to get in as conditions were good-8m vis and quite fishy but he didn’t see me.
Eventually after 80min I decide to get back in, taking the rip head on!
Big mistake
I swam, swam and swam against the ragging torrent until I gave up and headed straight through the surfers and breakers. Lucky I didn’t shoot any big fish as my dive rope undid twice, once one the way in. I grabbed my rostan and used it as a boogie board catching a monster wave that sent me to shore until I landed on boogie boarders head. Finally got out after 30min battling the ocean and sprawled out on the beach like a dead seal.
Keith didn’t have time to get in so I gave him some fish and he dropped me off home.


On the way back I got a message from dave he was keen on a dive so of I wen’t again, he also is a great diver so I decide it would be good to observe and learn. Dave picked me up at 3pm and we went to long bay. Spoke to a spearo there and report was not too good but we were still keen. We hopped in and
BLAh, 3m vis, terrible, we swam round to the middle and zigzagged round the place only finding 6-7m vis in a few spots, it was mostly 4-5m. only notable things were a ok sized goatee I saw and missed then when I was looking for my gun in 15m I saw a 1kg blue mowie, lovely.
Finally dave said,
“lets get out of here,” we split up and naturally I found some ok fish after he said it. 2 surgeon, my first around 800g and 2 ok red mowies. It was dave’s birth day, not much of a gift of a dive. Dave got 3 mowies as a friend was cooking them up for his birth day, the proper way. So we “mowed” down long bay and I got my first surgeons, still room for improvement. All good, I guess.
And a happy birthday to Diving Dave.

Curse of the seal
The watsons bay Alliman

Quite exited for my first comp but my gear was not well prepared at all, should have listened to Captain Ahab before and gotten rid of my metal bridles from my undersea and some other modifications to it. Day before comp, diving, one metal bridle broke, during the comp the other. nuts. I spent the night filling away at the bridles so I could put a dineama rubber on. Did this while watching some movie that had one plot about strippers and the other assassination, this made filling quite entertaining. Got to bed at 2am and snoozed off, tired from previous days spearing. I was really considering just sleeping in and not going to the comp, Captain Ahab called in to tell me he was sick, so my boat ride was gone, it seemed like a bad omen, if only I knew.
Got up went to comp, heaps of people there, lubed and everything I said hi to some familiar faces and then chased up judge. Gota say, thanks Judge for getting me a boat ride and thanks Criss for taking me onboard. Last minute I was told by Steve from another club he could give me a ride but i already had my gear in Criss's boat. After 15min we get to north head, a mad spot, I don’t wear my gloves and as soon as my gun is chucked to me it cuts into my hand. First spot I only get one fish, a leather jacket which after shooting a school of bonito pass by. Next spot i do a bit better as I get 3 more fish, 2 ok leathers and a garfish. Shot the gar with one rubber when I saw the school I aimed ahead and waited for one to go in front of it. Bam! Fired and saw I hit it, but it’s still swimming, so I do the obvious, I chase it until it dies which after 2min it does. Up the wettie and back to the gun. Saw a bit wobby and gave it a provoking poke with the gun. Was angry at my hunting, missing easy shots at sargo and shot a mowie to have the spear go through and hit a rock so the flopper didn’t open. Some time during the dive my other rubber bridle broke so I only used the 20mm rubber, which somewhat over powered the 8mm spear.
The last spot was south head, I jump in and shoot a sargo, feeling optimistic I go to try bag some luderic, silver drummer or black drummer around the shallows. I see some and have some shots but all are to high as spear is over powered. Water was about 2m deep and very clear, then after I lost a silver I look up to see a big wall of white water sucking me towards it.
“nuts, dive, dive, dive!” all I could think, I quickly dive as it steams over me and wrenches my left flipper off, pushing me towards the rocks.
“nuts dive, dive, dive” another freak wave breaks while I try swim to deeper water. I get there really pissed, I signal Nick that something’s wrong and get into the boat. He drops me off on the harbor side of south head, to my surprise there is 4m vis compared to 15m vis on the other side. I swim with one fin and an over powered gun kicking my self about why I bothered to go to the comp and have all this crap happen to me. I tried getting some fish but the gun shot pretty high I recon, ended up missing a nice black drummer and some big luderic.
We get back and put the fish in the que to get weighed in, my ride, John had to go so after some time I just took the fish and left, not bothered to weigh them in after a cursed day of hunting. Interesting notes: biggest kings around 10kg taken by NZ with 1.3m guns, while Roso took one 6kg or so I think but he was using a 90cm gun. Roso did pretty well, heard Ian P won the comp the animal, some nice blue mowies, bastard trumps, red rockis, goatee’s, surgeon and leather’s taken. A Watson’s leaping bonito was also taken and some 2-3kg bonito also taken. A small Jew and small snapper.


The Hand spear comp
A healthy experience
10/4/05
vis=12m
moon=new
water=21C
fishyness=fishy
climate=sunny 27

Arrived at car park around 8am with $200 I painfully dispensed to various people, including ash who I bought a handspear, flag and flipper thingy’s from. I was pretty much set. Trippe gave the nod and the wink and we were off at 8:15, all keen to be the only one to spear a kingy or smth over 5kg. I was buddying up with Dave Greg, we all rock hopped, as the rule’s said, as much as I tried I couldn’t find the motivation or will to keep up with 1 and ½ flipper (one normal and one mini from Tuna ps thanks mate). First I dove down to 10m, saw a mowie behind me, through some sand up, slowly got closer and closer and Bam, released the hand spear, it flew and flew, right to the middle of the fish catching one of it’s scales, crap. Need to get closer, need to be less lazy, these things only have a 1m range, it’s been a while since I used one.

 

[the seal]

Kept on swimming towards the point, stopped in a bay just before since it was lookin fishy there. There was boulder terrain at around 7-12m and had heaps of bream, luderic and tarwine. I bombed some luderic and they hid under a rock, waited and shot one in the head, could be a better start. Would have gotten some bream I snuck up on but my set up failed me. Clipped the shark clip onto the handspear rope, planned to set it up bit diff but it still did ok, just wrapped round my arm a few times.
Tried getting a garfish around the shallows but never got in close enough to have a good shot, don’t know how other’s got them. Then, “what tha, yes!” a big 3-4kg bonito checkedin me out, nice and silvery looking before the school swam by, bigger fish at the front. I dived amongst them but could only get a bit under the hand spear’s range, not enough to land a 3kilo fish, dam. Will try swim under them and shoot up but swimming in the middle didn’t cut it. They came by when I was at 13m water cursing at 3-10m depth over the boulder bottom.
Wen’t to shallows (4m) and chased a big 700-900g goatee but didn’t load my handspear properly. Still managed to sneak up on another goatee and head shot it from a rock. Also got a six spine and rough leather. Swam back to boulders and shot a mowie when it came out from under a rock, typically a bigger mowie came out too, funny it had a scar from a 7-8mm encounter. When I go up and start rigging it I look to my left and Hola!
A kingy about 8m away, 10kg, it had a short look and did a U turn, quickly I burly some of the mowie, would regret this later, the king must have thought I was ugly. Continued to the point, vis dropped a bit, went to see what’s in deeper water, nothing much just saw some small mowies, only good thing was bottoming my float rope 3 times, I shortened it to 19m, give 35m a go some other time, hehe.
Started my way back, was a bit late as I played hide and seek with the luderic, their cheaters. Got out at 12:30pm, and we went to weigh in, the magnum ice cream Dave and myself ate got rid of the salty taste in our mouths and the bitter feeling of all the big fish that where not to be.
Interesting notes: the dude that won, a former SSD gone to the dark side NS caught 10 fish and 9 species, he got 1000 something points, shot a bastard Trumper 1.8 and some other good fish. He admittedly isn’t a good diver, not diving down more than 8m and staying down for 40sec the entire day, that’s what he claims at least. This being said he did better hand spearing than with a gun compared to the Allimans, he has almost always used a hand spear, only got his guns recently.
Like it how scuba Pete said “this raises a question, how the hell did we get into spearing by starting out with this nuts.”
Other notes: only pelagic: 2.3kg Samson, by tuna
Biggest goatee: 800g
Biggest fish 2.6kg a black drummer, no kings haha.
Overall, it was healthy trying different methods of getting in very close to the fish if only they worked out.

went 4 a dive at clovely today to look for lobsters.

saw some big muma luderic and the usual huge bream. a novelty was seeing 2 salmon there, on holiday from their migration i guess. i feed the fish some sea urchins and practice getting close, it's good that there's a spot for the stupid fish to breed.
i looked around the break zone and noticed this monster goatee, would be around 1.5+kg. but naturally i had no spear gun and though the idea of trying to knife it was appealing, i knew better.
the pesky grouper was there as usual, swell was around 1m so it was hard looking in the holes and cracks, all excuses as i didn't find any lobsters.
only thing i found was a new mask and snorkel around the break zone.
vis is around 12m and water temp is 21
lost my knife but found it again.
through some sea urchin at a garfish and watched it gulp the orange stuff down.
found a crab in a crack and battled to get it out for 1min before knifing it and going up for air. the grouper then grabbed it and ran off very happy. there was also a 1.5kg silver trevaly with a scar(looks like from a spear) following me around to get a feed of sea urchin-when i couldn't find any lobsters i decide to ravage some sea urchins.
i also went down and tried doing some back flips underwater. Then after 90min in the water i left, last one in the water.
can't wait to get in with a gun-in a legal spearing spot of course.

 

[the seal]

Dive 24/4/05
South Head Dive with keith
vis:7m in hoarbour 15m at south head.
full moon.
fishyness: low
swell: 1m
water:21.

I few quick calls and keith and i where going to south head. It would be bowth 4 exploring and to see if i could find my lost fin. that was not to be.
Sluggishly i got up and got ready, he came and we left getting in at camp cove at 7:50 am. He was using his kyack and i was using one dive flipper and one spearo flipper. Swimming along i saw either a magpie mowie or a crested mowie-200g 20m from entry point, i admired it and pointed it out to keith, also saw a flute mouth 300g further away. Not a chalange so left them alone. didn't see much in the harbour except a lone 400g? bream and missed. Shot a leather jacket for burly; saw dozens of them in the harbour, litraly. Most where rough, reef and yellow fin i think, practiced my hand catchin-3 caught a released rather pissed off. Had a look for red rockies but didn't find any. Eventualy i got to south head and swam about to the shallows to try my luck, keeping my eyes peeled for a lonely flipper. bugger.
i was at a ledge going from 1m to 3 when about 6 black drummer swam over, i dived and waited till a bigger one came closer and k-pow! The spear hit him around the gills and
"yes" i got him, then
"cr@p, i don't" it tore out and he retreted into a cave with one or 2 others next to the ledge/overhang.
"excellent, it's trapped now" i though and after some breathe up i went down and started looking. as soon as i did i realised the cave-only 15cm tall and 3m wide or so went back very far and opened up a bit. I went up and started to breath up, i'd have to stay for a while to have a good look along it. ready i dived and started looking along it, i saw something come over to look, not a drummer, something eel like-maybe a ling?
I shoot at it, the spear bounces of the cave floor, misses and goes way to the back of the cave.
"i'm so screwed now" i thought, this is what people mean when they talk about loosing your spear in a cave, I couldn't even reach the end of the spear. i went up rather emotional but hopefull, would south head claim something else from me?
i went back down and started pulling, it seemed stuck, then i got some slack and pulled it closer. there was something at the end..the ling?
I went down another time and finally pulled out a black drummer i shot in the tail. it must have been way back in the cave, good it cosioned my spear, only a small one about 1.3kg.
went down 5min later and gave the ling some instant death action, de-brained.
My first ling-600-700g i recon, an ok size.

swam to deeper water, bottoming my rig-18m and saw a tail sticking out of a cave.
"dumb ass fish" i thought, i went down to see what it was and maybe grab it. I look in the cave-13m and get a fright when i see 3 portjackson sharks about 1.2m each.
"maybee they'll gang up on me" i thought.
Keith is close by so i thought i'd give him a fright and tell him to have a look in the cave. He goes down and 2 of the sharks go leaving one. I ask him if he saw the sharks and he said he didn't??
So i go down and wrench out the other Jackson left there taking it up and wigling it at Keith. Yet he was rather fearless so i didn't get the desired effect.

He still hadn't shot any fish so i decide to shoot some mowies for him, shot 2, about 1kg and where talking about going-he was on the kyack when i look down and see a wobbie that was creeping stealthily towards one of the mowies-mid water.
I could have proded it away but all the Americanism on tv saw me launching a pre-emptive strike on the 1.2m devil fish.
K-pow!
Wham!
clinck!
a swift shot at the beast head saw it towing me around and bleeding alot. i grabbed it by the fins while it tried to bite me in vain, i tried punching it in the head and i have to say, they have one very thick skull!
After stabbing it and punching it i put it up to Keith. In it's death rows it lached onto his hood and he and the wobbie battled for 5min over it while i laughed my head off.
I gave him my Gun and strung the wobbie up and attached it to his kyack, he..kyacked off towing the wobbie back to camp cove. Reportedly the fishows thought a shark was after him as it rolled round in the water.
i was going to get out at lady beach but the abundance of homogayas or weird naked men and a few beast 4 women encouraged me to swim all the way back. As i passed the point at camp cove, low and behold a John Dory about 500g-A dead John Dory?
i think the fishows are a bit dodgy with their "catch and release." Dutchy!
Shame, it's my first sighting and though it was about a day dead it was very bueatiful, i burlied it up and finally got out.
Took some picks but don't know when i can get them up since my comp has got a bad STD and thats where i saved the pics.
spear only wen't through 95% of the wobbie's head to my surprise. it was the devil to clean, not that hard to kill but i still have a chunk left i'm yet to filet.
we weighed the wobbie 10kg degutted and cut it in half with a saw. The devils blunted all my knifes!
The seal.
pic of ling

 

[the seal]

25/4/05
Decent shark encounter.
Dive with John and Dave
Swell 1m
High tide 8am?
Vis 15m
Temp: 21C


I awoke to see I had 15min to get ready
"Lets do it"
20min later I called john to find out where he was-had another 20min to muck about. He came with Dave G and we where off to long reef. Yet on getting there we got a report that Vis was 5m in most parts and lots of bronzies, so we went further up the coast. It was now 9am or so and I just wanted to get my hide wet, we finally decided on where we would dive, an island surrounded by shallow water the fishoes walked through at low tide. We got in from the surf, I was the first one in, desperate to get some salt in my eye, we started swimming out. This is where I had the highlight of the dive. The Vis around the beach to 80m out was 5m and then drastically went to 15m in just 20m distance. As I was 30m from shore I look to my right
"Holey moley that a monster fish, a kingfish" I get excited, its 4m away and I look at the tail to make sure it's a kingfish.
"Bugger, only a shark," I couldn't make out what type of shark it was exactly but it was around 5-6ft and glided away into the gloom even though I tried chasing it.
I think it may be a bronzey as I was told that spot is good for them but it was rather murky.
All good, I keep swimming out and am happy the vis changes so fast, I tell my buddies about the shark when their out of the water. I was using a fin Dave lent me and ended up wearing away a chunk of a toe as the fin was to big and meant it slowly grated as I kicked.
The thing that really gave me the sh!ts as some would say, would have been my snorkel, it's a good snorkel but it was letting in water big time and I couldn't figure out why. I took it off and looked at, the little cover/flap at the bottom snagged so it was letting in water from the bottom. I straightened it out-beauty.
I was hopping to do some deep dives so I had taken 30m of rope and only 6lb for my 5mm top and 2mm pants, the deep dives where not to happen and it was a pain diving shallower than 10m or even going down. This resulted in scaring some of my fish away as I had to kick extra hard to get down the first 5m.
The terrain was reef bottom I think, allot of caves, overhangs and ledges--broken ground. I decided I’d shoot a mowie for burly and one to eat as that Asian recipe I got from this site kicks ass. On shooting one of them, a cuttle fish attached it, I let it help kill the mowie for me and then went down to stab it, the knife stuck out of it while I pondered how I would kill it. As I did it stretched up and bit my knife, leaving quite an impression, I stabbed it some more and strung it up. After getting past the ink cloud I went in around the island finding the usual luderick and saw some sort of strange fish. I shot a small one of the species and guest correctly that it was a spine foot.
Now just a note: feed me wirrah cod, feed me silver drummer but I’d rather die than eat a horrible spinefoot!
I’d later learn about that.
I went to the point of the island and burlied up some of the cuttle fish before running out of time. I also found a cave with 3 ok wirrahs hanging round a 5ft wobbie, I gave him a thorough prodding for good measure and once it was really pissed/distressed I continued. (didn't shoot wirrahs)
Saw only 4 salmon going at light speed through the break zone at the point, in 0.3m of water. Also saw silvers and had a shot at some black drummer but aiming wasn't up to scratch. Didn't find any ling even though I tried looking in caves or any holed up black drummer. On the way back I saw a bastard trumper and sent my shaft flying down the side of his head and into his skull. Oddly enough, it didn't fully go through and he didn't die either but was stuck hard.
I was late and tried getting out at the rocks around the pool there, no, no. Swam another 100m before getting out through allot of kelp and dragging my float out with a 3kilos of the stuff clinging to it. Ran to the car and found Dave and John waiting at the car. They where more upset about me taking what was left of the cuttle fish back than coming late but forgave me, with a warning to never take one again in his car.

The Seal




Dive 29/04/05
Samson fish
Full moon
Low tide 4pm
Swell 0.3m
Fishyness: rather fishy
Vis 15m
Dive at spot X

I knew the conditions where perfect, it was Thursday and I was at Uni. The sun was out and the swell was tiny, spot X was calling. I couldn't get it out of my head, I had to go for a dive as only a few days a month does the swell drop down low enough so that I can hop into the water off the rocks at one of my favourite dive spots.

The protest against VSU in our uni where on and though I wanted to join them, I couldn't resist the fact we could skip class that day, I had to get wet.
I got to central station and waited to find out my bus was stuck due to the protest, caught another bus and ran home the extra distance, I didn't have time to "seal about".
After getting a lift from my neighbour I climbed down the rocks, lubed and suited up. Time to rock and roll.
I stood at the rock platform, ready, a wave came and with a big jump I flew into the water and experienced a rather painful belly flop that seemed to hurt my nuts more than my stomach. I gave off a distressed moan and swam to some deeper water. It was 3pm. I could tell as soon as I got in that it was fishy, there where mowies schooling and sweep and black drummer all round. I decided to swim round the drop-offs and see whats there. Saw a school of small surgeons and continued, went out to bottom my float rope-only 17m and see what where too. I breathed up and dived, descending down to a drop off that started at sand-3m bellow me! I waited and had 3 small snapper come to have a look. After making a note I should burley there in future I went back to just around the entry point to drill a black drummer. I was swimmin over a drop off from 4m to 8m and looked ahead. There was a school of samson fish having a look at me from a platform. The water was only 6m deep over the small platform a few meters from where I got in 20min before.

They’re where perhaps 7 fish in the school most around a kilo with 2-3 standing out. I dived down angled towards them, they sused me out and did a U turn while I slowly followed. Crap, I stopped I knew chasing was useless so I stayed at 5m down and strummed my rubber, hopeful they would come back. 10 seconds passed and I was about to give up hope, then to my left one of the bigger amberjack came back for a look.
Wham!
"sh!t, I’m gonna loose it!" I thought as it burst to life like a rocket and started break dancing. I pulled it in as soon as I surfaced and bled it after stabbing its brain. It was over pretty quick.
Sweet.
I decide to continue as there was still 2hrs left of daylight, though I constantly would check my rig rope to make sure no shark had claimed it, it was still worth it. I shot a bream as it raced past I the shallows and swam north to explore. It was annoying diving there as drop off went right from 4m to 20 in some parts and I only had so little rig rope. The mowies where out in force, I’m only after a monster though and think I saw one with a hunch back looking around 2.5. Also saw a banded mowie, but can't believe I missed like 4 shots at some drummer and 2 shots at some big goatees. Lazy and unko I guess. A fisho was trying to land a grouper so I thought I would assist him, funny how there where like 3 groupers just a few meters away from the platform he was fishing off. Burlied 2 sea urchins and they skulled em down but would take the bait he was using, even when I dangled it in front of them-other fish weren’t so picky.
Swam on-didn't find much in caves and headed back, the current helping me along. I swam past this bombie that silvers hanged around and had this totally stupid silver swim over. I hadn't shot any big silver drummer yet and wanted to see how my gun fared on a large fish, as it was medium sized silver. I just dived after it and gave it one in its guts. It was fun, towed me around a bit, with some direction away from the bombie and degutted itself a bit. Not too sure what happened but think the spear went through but then went out a bit and the flopper opened in its guts, so a trail of its ass contents came out.
I couldn't find any wobbies to persecute so I bothered the bioluminescent organisms floating round as I got out around night fall-not as many as before.
Silver probably 7kg
samson around 3kg
Bream 500grams
All good
The Seal.

 

[the seal]

Dive 30/04/5

“Turkey shoot”
Dived with Emanuel at little bay
Vis 20
Temp 19
Fishyness medium
Swell: 0.5

After negotiating with Emanuel many times before we finally settled on a Date to get wet on. He was keen to do some practice diving for the next day-long reef comp and had his eyes on going to little bay, I wanted to go to spot X but he wouldn’t budge so I let in. He picked me up in the morning around 8:30am and we rolled off to our destination. I knew Emanuel was a great diver so I took my 30m of rig rope,
“maybe this time I’ll bottom it,” was what i hoped for.
Once again I used 6lb of weights with a 5mm top and 2mm pants, taking my one normal free diving fin and a baby snorkeling one as I lost the other one-remember?
After a good nights sleep I woke to munch on a custard apple-a fav of mine instead of a sugary breakfast.
We got to the car park and got lubed and suited up, some other spearo’s where also going in about 5min ahead of us. Strangely as soon as we got some water on our toes an urge came over Emanuel to break off a few logs.
“I’ll be 3min” he exclaimed
“whatever, just warn me if it floats!” I looked away while he did his thing..
“ok, all good, lets go,” looking back I see some dark floating objects slowly going towards my float.
“nuts, I told you to warn me about that!!” I pull it in, just in time and race away from Emanuel and the scene of the crime. He catches up and we swim through the schools of big garfish parading there. He swims ahead while I struggle with the crapy fin, I’m swimming just out from the entrance of little bay and go past a big school of bait fish. I notice something ahead of me just to my left.
“What do we have hear?” I think as I see something in mid water.
“maybe those other spearo’s shot a mowie and it broke off, no marks on it but” I swim a bit closer to the dark shape angle slightly towards the bottom. Only 1m from the surface and the water was 4m deep over there, I consider poking it as I get closer but notice some fin strokes coming from the fish.
“That a big bream, could be asleep of something, I’ll wake it up!”
Pow
It bursts into life and struggled but the spear had gone through its gill plates and it was stuck. I strung it up and had a good look at it, nothing wrong with it?
Yet it wasn’t a normal bream, it was a dark bronze colour and its tail was black as night.
“A black bream?!”
Happy, I swim over and tell Emanuel to have a look at it, he comments it’s a good size and we continue. Did a few dives and he shot a goatee around 900g while I dived and was happy with my breath hold. We swim to the point and start diving, I tell him
“lets go further out,” we go out 50m and he ask if it’s enough
“no! further!” he ask again
“no, not yet!” finally we have been swimming without sight of the bottom for a while.
He goes for a dive while I wait, getting ready to go myself.
“so, how deep is it?” I ask since he has a D3 dive watch
“9m”
“what, ur kiddin!” I think. I brush it off and have a quick breath up, it’s only 9m.
I start descending and descending, into the thermo cline and reach the bottom, lying down looking ahead.
“Dam, I suck, my bottom time is only 15sec, time to go up already?” I look above me and see my float right above me, the rope is almost totally straight except for 2m of slack rope at the surface. I swim back up and tell Emanuel
“You’re watch is f*cke# dam it!!” his like
”yeah I know.” We go back to normal depths and he goes down to a cave
“is that for burley?” I asked about the cutle he brought up
“no, food!” He decides to use some of it for burly and clean the guts out. We stay there for 10min waiting and then go.
After 20m distance I look to my right and see a Kingy 8kg about 6m away crusing ahead, I dive and try strumming my rubber but it doesn’t work and the fish get to live another day. We head back, the other spearo’s pass by with a black drummer and I meet Emanuel back in the bay.
We examined the bream and he concluded it’s a black bream, around 1.1kg and 43cm.
Got home around 1pm to the surprise of my family and put the bream away in the freezer with all the other fish I have there, still yet to eat.
The Seal

Turned out to be a Tarwhine with black colouration?!
edit

The BLACK BREAM STORY continues

now that "black bream" story continues...
our club had no record 4 it so i decided to claime it...
Simon was Sus about it,(he is about everythin,) so i went to the fish museum next to hyde park.

"WOW," they got excited, first they thought it was indeed a black bream, then a new species..
a cross between a snapper and a tarwhine lol, i was chuckling to myself. just too good.
"maybe a snapper or Tarwhine got desparete"
Then they did a ray count, scale count, looked at pics etc and concluded...
would have never guessed this, everone who saw it agreed it was a black bream but Tom, the fish bio, yeah shadow there are those who know more than you...
said it was a Tarwhine
just a normal Tarwhine...."colour darker than usual," never guessed it, weighed bit over a kilo.
Ow well, i've developed my own theory...
you see Emanuel bova had taken a sh!t in the water-aqua bog- just before we swam off you see and maybe it mistook the brown looking material as food..
or perhaps Emanuel had wiped himself like too well and the fish had perhaps got a wiff of the polluted water slowly flowing from between his legs.
then again maybe the tarwhine had a skin condition similar but opposite to micheil jackson, we will never know.

 

[the seal]

Gear troubles

last few dives have been just a nightmare for me, gear troubles and failure one after another.

The long reef comp-

we know conditions where good etc anyway.
i had a feeling things wouldn't go very well for myself and i was right.
problems-
due to not sanding and grinding down the shaft notches on my gun and some crappy unloading technique i had cut through about 1/2 of the dynema or more so loading the rubbers meant carefully putting the bridle off centre and rubbers not aligned.
My float rope consisted of 4mm orange rope (13m) which is pretty good and 14m of washing line type plastic tubing with line inside of it, i thought this would good, need to get slapped/sat on by scuba for being so dumb. The washing line cord tangled on itself, the fish, the other rope and the rocks, as i was diving mostly shallow. when it tangled on the rocks, i pulled it off and it just snapped like 20lb mono but was so tangled i didn't have to re-tie it to my float. Also caused allot of troubles when i dived deep to around 18m since there wasn't enough slack rope!
I think i fixed the problem, i bought 2*15m of blue 6mm rope (washing line rope is for the washing line) and since, though that tangled due to it's natural coiling-from when it was packed, i connected it to a tree branched and a full garbage bin stretching it out over 2 days, it now has no tendency to curl up. Hopefully no more float rope troubles.
I got a grinding disk and put it onto the bolts from my drill sanding thing, with some artistic grinding the notches are well angled and smoothed them out with grinding paste by dipping a rope into the stuff then working the notches. Trippe gave me this advice-but would say you can only slightly smooth things out with the grinding paste, or maybe I’m just too weak?
Also had another shaft-a toress not so tuff for riffe mech i smoothed out a bit.
As for the shaft, though the notches are smoothed out it is a bit bent and unlike spring steel is made from stainless i believe...and is hard to bend back without bending it in another place. Simply put, i need to buy a new gun?!
and not a crappy sea hornet or good for a few dives undersea, time for some thing like a carbon barrel last a few years- i recon, we will see.
i used a 5mm top and 2mm pants which kept me relatively warm. But since i was mostly diving around 2-8m the 11lb lead was not enough.
I had some scary moments in a ledge/cave in 3m of water where my shaft kept on getting stuck and when i went in to get it, a set came in and the current raced one way, then the other like a vortex. lucky i held on for my life and saved a grating and possibly loosing some more gear......did that about 3 times before i had enough.
Missed 3 sargo's, 2 wirahs and had a few shots a luderic and they tore off or missed, i'm so bad .
also a pike but hunting mode just isn’t kicking in. just going into "selective hunter BS mode," and letting everything go... or at least saying to myself "I’ll find somethin bigger."
Maybe do better in the next comp...i hope.
Still i lived through that and some people prob had it worse off than me.
I got back into the boat with trippe and we went to some more barren area's he wasn't too happy with, then too the weigh in.
I got 148pnts, yeah i weighed in this time....a 700g bream, 1.5 kilo mowie and a 500g black reef.
If i shot/got those other fish perhaps a score around 400 but we can all talk about doing better, it's doing it that counts. Simon trippe came 2nd, shooting about 15species i think and 700+ pnts, if we stayed at that area prob would have done better.
Interesting fish taken where- in general
a 6kilo jew shot in a cave....
a remora or sucker fish clinging onto a big sting ray that got a hell of fright when the thing was blasted off!
mullet
Simons 1.4kilo bream

rainbow runner on a ski trip
good sized kings and some others.
Pucko the destroyer killed it beating even trippe with 22 species and 1200+pnts..
Anyone know what fish he speared.

Another dive some more troubles-
week after comp went diving on a Sunday with some hell spearo's from the dolphins-(there all hell spearo's besides me.) Still hadn't fixed my dynema bridle and it only got worse, the guys really helped by tying the undamaged bits together, left me with a 4cm bridle...lots of fun!
I could still load the 20mm band sized for a 90cm gun on my 1.1 but i doubt it's accuracy and loading wasn't allot of fun so i didn't fire at anything that much. On suiting up i didn't put enough lube into the wettie/plus it's an old wettie but when muscle man john gave it a pull down a massive tear opened up on the back, very good for aeration or diving in cairns. I froze.
Swam for 30min, before the shakes came over me, wasn't diving too good either. I swam round shot and berllied some fish, a few b&s drummer where keen on getting shot around the pnt and close to the pool, i had lots of fish in the freezer. Tried to be a man but even my ukrainian vodka filed blood didn't help and after shaking like north shore does when they see the dolphins turn up for a comp i climbed out from around the pool.
A weekend of bad weather came and went, then off diving again, with Dukas from our club, one of the mighty greek gods in the ranks of the dolphins. I thought i had things figured out, i put the torres tuff spear on the undersea and it seemingly worked well, too well. !
The old spear is 8mm and this one was 7mm made from spring steel, rusts but more flexible. i think.
so i jumped in, i had also gone to a shop in bondi-dive centre- and they fixed alllll my rubbers-20mm and 2*16mm. i decide to use a 16mm and have the 20mm just in case. loading on the shark fins is so much better, from that little experience anyway.
Anyway, hoped in, loaded the gun and saw a mowie .....went down and thought
"dam this is just to easy!" the sad irony...with the fish looking at me side on i pulled the trigger...
"ahm...fire dam it!
bugger" the trigger went allll the way back and stayed there, the spear didn't fire...
I got my finger to push the trigger into the mech and then it fires..when i'm at the surface. To make things worse, the bungee string undoes and the spear just flies to the bottom
I tie it back on and it does it again until i do a proper knot. still it's just bloody hard to fire the spear. it only fire once i think without me shoving my finger in. I tested accuracy on a cuttle fish which was good, used it for burley, thinks aren't looking too good.

Our plan's are a miss, i tinker with the gun and Dukas swims off-he gets himself 2 salmon and a cutle fish. I found my first red rockie via burly, only a baby around 300g-disapointing. Some really big sargo's attacked my flashers, they looked 2kg or more. nothing much came from burly though or flashers.
Some highlights where seeing an eastern blue devil fish at the start, it swam right next to the cuttle i shot. looked cool, i can understand why their protected as the trigger happy NS young guns seem to enjoy shooting small fish that are non-comp related. And be proud of it too.
Not to mention, i also saw a weedy sea dragon around 30cm long in 3m of water. Looked mad and very timid.

The worst part was swimming on a plaform 3m deep and seeing a 10kg king fish swim by 3m away just after i had a shot and missed a mowie...
prob investigating the noise....still don't know if i would have got it the way the gun was and will never know.

Somewhat bored, agitated and pissed i decide i would feel better if i bottomed the new 6mm blue float rope i got (30m) but after swimming a few hundred meters i could only find something around 29m. Funny how i sank like a stone after 18m. I had 11lb 7mm long john pants and 3mm top. Wasn't diving too well that day though, i had a bad nights sleep and allot of meat in the mornin, but the new flipper i got from adreno to replace the lost one helped. decided I should stop since Dukas was far away. We bumped into each other again and got out.
Met 2 greek dudes keen on spearin when we got in, maybe soon they’ll be a greek-mboat in comps and perhaps the sport isn't dying either.
Now the gun....
See night b4 it was firing. yes out of the water with no glitch, it did bruise my arm from the recoil though.

Talked to Trippe the spearin Einstein and he told me too soon that what was wrong was that my line release was too tight, he was right, i hade recently made it tighter. i loosened it a bit and was confided things would go better the next day.

 

[the seal]

Near Death experience 2

There was a little comp on between John some of his friends etc, called Dave Greg and he had plans on crashing their little party, well my gear was ready right?
He picked me up the next day and we met at Malabar 7:30am, only john and another guy where there so i decided to hop in and test the spear out. I loaded it up and found a fish, aimed pulled the trigger, all good!
another little fish and fired nicely only when i pushed the spear a bit to hard into the mech did it jammed up again. i went down and decided to burley some sea urchins and get something to come to me. dropped the gun to let it sink and swam away a bit as i was still sus with how it was working. I'm down on the bottom burling
"hey that’s not meant to be next to me?" the spear drifts down next to my head, about a meter away. I go up and realise the gun misfired....
Reload it and just wait, after 30 seconds it misfired again .
By now i see guys entering the water, comps started, i get out to grab my float, rope and spare spear just encase. I messed around with the gun for 30 more min before deciding
"it's not worth it," put the other spear on, and messed about a ling cave for 30min practicing scuba pete's ling technique.
"fire, reload, fire, reload, fire, reload. there’s a ling in there somewhere" haha, didn't work, caves too deep, or my technique isn't that good, decided i'll rather try loosing my shaft on a big fish. Saw another ling being followed by a cuttle fish. Saw that mowie again, with a spear tare in it, still keen on getting shot. Also saw a penguin close to white water, looked all plump and cuddly, reminds me of scuba.
Saw a 3kilo kingy after shooting something.
berlied alot but nothing came, only person to see a king, none shot. practiced on garfish and still aiming isn't good for some reason...?
Also when i unclipped my flashers i prob didn't clip the float back on properly and realised this 30min later, spent an hour looking before getting onto the rocks and finding it floating where i prob had left it. That was my best catch of the day.
The gun did fire normally with the old spear.

Didn't take any fish back, only notable thing taken was a 2.7kilo giant boarfish sitting next to a red mowie in 4m of water...next to the car park where i had gotten in before...twice...
I guess my luck ran out when i the spear just missed me. Dave called me from the rocks to get out??
He wanted to walk back, like 500m, rather swim but i decided not to question it.
"Is, this what you usually do?"
"No, first time going back this way," wish i swam, nearly stacked it hoppin around and mask + snorkel fell off somewhere there, couldn't find it later
Has anyone noticed how many faces are in this story?
The Seal


There have been many reports of a diver in our club cough scubapete cough cough who devours fish while under water even in comps, here is one that got away.

 

[the seal]

MY Shafted experience,

12-15 june 2005
After many weeks of anticipation and somewhat less of preparation it was time to make a pilgrimage to Eden that is recommended by many competition spearo’s. Somehow I felt I had already been there long ago but the memory was to vague and had no spearing in it to be of significance(something to do with a dumb blond chick called Eve.). I started the preparation by talking to other spearo’s in my club that had boats and where set on going. Unfortunately there was a fair amount of confusion to weather each would be able to go but each eventually told me they had other things to do. Finally I called up Mr Murphy and was told that he was 90% confident he was going 2 weeks in advance, things where panning out well and I kicked back and relaxed.
It was the 5th June and I was at the gunammatta bay competition, after a disappointing day of diving for myself I engaged in chit chat with other fellow spearo’s. One thing that stood out was a friends comment if I had found a ride to eden
“yeah, I got a boat ride and lift, with Murphy.” I said
“what Dr. Murphy, your better off not going,” he replies to my surprise.
“why?” I ask
“he’s going to ruin your trip!” he yells to me as he walks of to put his wet gear away.
I shrug and don’t take it too seriously. I wish I had.
A few days later I called Murphy up for confirmation that we where going, he was confident he would buy a new van and we would use it to tow his boat. It was Tuesday.
Thursday came before I knew it and I called to find out he still hadn’t bought the van but would borrow a Ute from his friend with a tow bar. The next day after university I arranged a lift for myself to his place and got there around 4pm, the time he asked me to arrive there. Taking all the possible items I may need I unloaded it and put inside the boat, except some lunch I swatted to take on the road. Murphy was outside and working on something. My friend asked
“will you be ok?” which was a little strange
“yeah, no worries!” I say in surprise
He goes and I talk with Murphy, he says he has a few things to do and we’ll go around 7pm. 7pm what are we gonna do for the next 3 hours??
To name a few things, fix the break lights of the trailer and give the car and boat a general service. Murphy also pop’s off for 30min to buy some junk food in the supermarket while I wait minding his boat. He comes back and puts the food in the car, I’m getting hungry so I eat all my food while he goes to do something in his backyard. A few minutes later he has a lot of chains and carries them to the Ute. He explains his boat is 2000kg but the toe bar is rated 1000kg so we need to string chains around it to other parts of the car to lower the stress on it. 40min later a funny spider web design decorates the back of the ute. I wonder what else is left to do while Murphy goes to get all his gear ready for the trip. Daven calls me up asking if I still need a lift to eden and I ponder the possibility of just running of with him. Then Murphy comes back and starts working on the break lights again. After turning daven down I help shine the torch for Murphy in the cold quiet darkness. I look at myself, then Murphy and realise why I’ve always seen Murphy greasy and in battered close, his always been working away like a little gremlin under his un-road worthy vehicles and boat trailers. He emerges and looks like a grease monkey.
It’s some time around 10pm and after a snack in his mum’s place finally we connect the car to the trailer and head off to get petrol. We fill up and add some air to the trailer wheels, the little tubes thing leaks air but we fill up some air with the help of the attendant. Then we go, only stopping twice to pull over and work on something at the back of the trailer. All good.??
Now we are on the open road, it may be close to 12am but we are moving!!
We hit the highway after inspecting the tow bar, all good.
Our plan was to go along the coast instead of through Canberra. Very simple, we are on our way to Wollongong, just stopping once when there was a little bump.
“let’s check it out,” I say, Murphy pulls over.
I hop out of the car and notice something spinning in the middle of the road.
“Why the f*ck is there a wheel in the middle of the road!?” I wonder as I car smashes into it, another stops and avoids it, it’s lights highlighting the spinning wheel in the dark night.
“some kids up to no good? Sealman to the rescue?” Then I look at the boat and something is wrong, I check the tow bar, it’s still there, I look at the boat and think,
“that’s not right,” it’s leaning over to one side somewhat?
I inspect the trailer and then realise what just happened.
“I’m alive, yes, I’m still alive!!” I say to myself as I look at the metal axel of the trailer while Murphy rolls the wheel back.
“Sh*t, f*cking sh*t man, look what happened, fn hell…..” Murphy who spits when he’s nervous or angry is spitting like a camel in between swear words. I’m rather ecstatic as I recalled an article about a car rolling when the boat trailer wheel fell off on the free way, yet we are still in one piece, well almost. I notice a sign up ahead and go inspect it to see if it’s an emergency phone and while briefing a friend on his way to Eden of our luck, he is in the car with some other spearo’s and a has his phone set of speaker, a roar of laughter comes across to me and I’m told that
“damaging the road is no laughing matter!”
I head back since the sign has no phone, we are stuck at 12am between Sydney and Wollongong on a stretch of free way boarded by a gully and a sign warning of sever fog. Murphy admits he had changed the wheel that broke off a few days before but didn’t tighten the nuts enough so the bolts just sheered off. A car towing a boat pulls over 50m ahead so I go see who it is.
“hey Ahab!” with some other keen spearo’s meet me, they go inspect our situation, have a laugh, give me a beer and go. Not much they could do. Murphy had spoken to the NRMA but was not insured fully for these types of moments so he decided we would sleep in the car or boat and go buy new nuts in the morning. I was worried, how would we sleep in the car/boat while cars wiz by and the sign warning of extreme fog had me worried about the passing trucks that intermittently go by. The suggestion to take our gear and leave the boat, going to a hotel for the night was not followed. I was starting to get angry, but then it was time to sleep so I popped into the ute and Murphy set up inside his boat.
Did I mention the car reeked like some hairy monkey sweated all over it?
I slept like a viking before sprawling out and setting my alarm so to turn the hazard lights on if thick fog came in. intermittently I slept with semi wake moments like a twilight zone, cars and trucks came zipped by shaking the car and boat, lighting up the dark forest around us. Eventually all the discomfort went away as sleep took over, I was woken a few times by my phone alarm to turn the hazard lights on in the morning fog.
Murphy woke me around 7am while a vehicle raced by, I look at the seat and notice that I was sleeping on someone’s underwear, where my face was.
“are these yours?”
“no, don’t know who’s they are” he replies
I lost any sense of humor I had at that moment, only a grudgingly melancholy anger come over me as I recalled what a mate had said
“don’t go with Murphy, he’ll ruin it for you.” Crap.