Phil prepped Top Cat on Thursday evening ready to tow it to Anglesey on Friday evening.

We met Anna, Mark and Julian at 8.30am in the car park at Rhoscolyn in order to set up our kit, prepare and load Top Cat ready for launching. This was to be Julian’s first sea dive.

Phil had planned 2 non tidal dives, however the first site on The Beacons had a strong tidal flow at either end therefore he decided to move to the small rocky island beneath the Coastguard Station. As Mark’s ears wouldn’t clear Anna dived with Julian.

The viz was 2/3m at best and the site was silty. The water temperature was 17C –about 3C more than we expected. The rocks were covered in short red weed, and Deadman’s Fingers. We spotted lobster, Velvet Swimming Crab. Ballan Wrasse, Gobies, Tompot Blennies, Comon Prawns, Boring and Elephant Hide Sponges, Hornwrack , Star Sea Squirts, numerous  Sea Orange  and Bloody Henry Starfish.

Julian’s first sea dive was 58 minutes long—- brilliant buoyancy and gas consumption!!

We went back to Rhoscolyn to change Julian’s cylinder and take an early lunch break.

Our second dive was The Kimya. at 15m.  Mark shotted the wreck. The viz was 2/3m, and there was a slight surge which washed the detached seaweed back and forth. Again, a silty site but a significant amount, of marine life. Large lobster, Spider Crab, Saithe, Pollack, Cod, Velvet Swimming Crab, Gobies. The port side was covered in Common Prawn.