8-16-2008
The summer is in full swing down the Jersey shore. In previous years we were gone a lot of the summer, this season we have been a lot more local. It has given me a chance to see the Jersey shore of my youth, in all it’s glory and splendor.

The hustle and bustle of the summer is in stark contrast to the quiet winter days I enjoyed with my family. Even the occasional traffic jam comes as a surprise to me. The stores are busier as well as the beach. It is nice to see the shore enjoying such a good summer.

The sun was just starting to show it’s self as I pulled into the lot at the boat. I could smell coffee brewing already. Today’s group was a new one for the boat, Blue Water & Elite divers. We were eager to make a good impression. I even had myself and the boys dressed in collared John Jack shirts. One by one the divers arrived and stowed their gear. At about 10 min. to 7, I gave my boat orientation speech to 14 divers. With Captains and crew this gave us 20 P.O.B. ( people on board) quite a comfortable group.

It was a little foggy as we headed out the inlet, but nothing Captain Rich couldn’t handle. As we headed offshore, the diesels spun up. We were headed to the tug Venturo today. When we arrived there, we found the Venture 3 already there and diving. After a brief conversation with Captain Paul Hepler, we decided to change locations to the Cranford Ferry. An intact car ferry in about 70 ft. of water.

Once we arrived onsite, Captain Tex jumped in to set the hook. The bag was up in short order & we were ready to dive before 8 AM. In groups of twos and threes, the divers hit the water. On the bottom, conditions were good. About 20 ft. of vis, with the water temperature in the mid 50s great conditions for some of the newer divers in the group. The seas were less than 2 ft. making for a perfect day on lake Atlantic !!!

As some were just getting in, the first divers were returning. The shallow water made decompression un-necessary. A few of the divers had brought back mussels, but no lobster.

The divers relaxed in the sun after their dive it was only 10 AM but it was lunch time on the John Jack. My boys Nick and Steven served a nice lunch of hot dogs with salads to the hungry divers. After awhile, as the mood struck them, the divers returned to the water for a second dive.

Conditions remained the same, making it a nice easy dive, no muss, no fuss. After the divers returned onboard Captain Rich set us free to head back in. We spooled up the big cats and returned home. There were smiles all around, as we backed into the slip. Another great day of diving, and fun. Aboard the John Jack was had by all.