Well it has taken a while for me to get back into Diving. My last Dive was back in 2004, which incidentally was the time I proposed to Zoe, which I will come back to again.
Back to my recent dives, it was an early start as Zoe and the Girls were coming out with me. I was so glad that they were joining me, we got there OK it was overcast and a bit windy. I got my gear ready and the girls helped put on my suit, it was funny looking at their expressions, like "what the hell is Daddy putting on him?" They were so excited to see me going off on the boat and they were waving all the time. And I was so happy with them waving me off.
As soon as the boat left the harbour (which was Dun Laoighaire Harbour in Dublin), the wind got very strong and the waves got high, I had to hold on very tight, the waves would splash right over us, and that was my first taste of how cold the water was and what to expect when I got in there. We finally took shelter behind an island that looked much more calmer.
So got kitted up and backed over the side of the boat, it was a shock at first how cold it was, but as I went under and started to move around I got warmed up and didn't noticed the cold. There is not much to see on the east coast of Ireland mostly kelp beds and rocks, but you can find some marine life between the rocks. On this dive I saw lots of Crabs, Sea Stars,some Shrimps and an Octopus, I also saw a little worm which I think was a very small baby Moray Eel, so I suppose it wasn't bad after all.
I was a bit excited to get back to see Zoe and the Girls about it, but as the boat turned around the harbour I could not see them I could not see the car, Ahh... they were not back yet. But I didn't have to wait too long they turned up and we had a picnic over looking the boats and told them all about the dive.
Then it was time for me to go out one more time, the girls again waved me off. The sun had come out by now but still a bit wild out there, found a different spot a bit more deeper that the last one which meant the visibility wasn't as good and it was much colder. This site had much bigger boulders and had lots of coral plants on them we nick named them "Dead Mans Fingers" because that's what they look like. Other than Sea Stars and some crabs there wasn't much else to see, but still enjoyed it.
This time pulling in to the harbour Zoe and the Girls were also just pulling in. Eimhear and Cliona were out of the car like a shoot to watch me coming in, which made me happy. Eimhear than helped me with my gear she wanted to know everything that was going on.
Maybe one day she will take it up herself.
