Wave Shape
Wave Shape

Trip Report: Last Tango of Weymouth, 6-7 August 2022

Waves Shape
By trip organiser Andy Botten

Saturday dives HMS Ethel 38m, Lulworth Banks drift 25m
Sunday dives Holmtown 35m, Grove Point drift 25m

The first weekend in August marked our last dives on Tango of Weymouth, and what a great weekend it was. The weather could not have been better.

I first dived Tango on 5 August 2002, about six weeks after she came into service. Twenty years and two days later it was my last dive on her. Seeing her at high tide on her original mooring, as I did all those years ago, she was unmistakeable with her Tango orange hull.

This was a brilliant boat, an Offshore 125; one of the stalwarts of the diving and fishing industry in the early 2000s. She has a big and spacious deck that seated 12 divers comfortably, in the days when most divers had singles and the occasional twinset. And best of all she had accommodation on board, so there was no hunting for B&Bs in the height of the season.

Skipper Phil was a local crabber, so he knew the waters very well and you felt very safe in his hands. I also always found the biggest crabs when diving with Phil.

I ran trips on Tango on and off until 2009. Then, in 2017, I was invited along to fill a space and fell in love with the boat all over again, running club trips on her every year after that.

My favourite was in 2019 when we had a very experienced team and dived the Salsette and the P555. Both 45m to the bottom. The latter required ropes off at 5am on Sunday.

On our final trip were six divers from Dacorum Scuba, plus Maggie C a regular visitor, four divers from Eastcote sub-aqua, known to many of us from previous trips, and finally Andy B from Derby, also known to a few of us.

The conditions topside were very good. A little chop on Saturday morning but very calm after that. We dived the Ethel first, in atmospheric visibility. This cargo ship – 88m long and weighing nearly 2,500 tonnes – was sunk in the second world war. She is fairly broken up and on this tide was 36m max and 34m at the shallowest. The parts were easily recognisable, boilers, engine (on its side), a prop shaft that ran down a long prop-shaft tunnel. The prop shaft came to an abrupt end. She was covered in life.

This was followed by a drift on Lulworth Banks for some scallops. Evidence of dredging made for a dull bottom and small scallops.

Sunday was even better, and we dived the Holmtown – previously known as the Arfon, until the Arfon proper was found. Holmtown was a trawler, so much smaller than the Ethel, used as a minesweeper during WW1. Unfortunately she hit a mine, and sank rapidly. The seabed was just over 35m. Visibility was not great, but much better than Saturday. The triple expansion engine is very impressive, fully upright and 4m tall. On the Holmtown, the prop shaft goes fully to the stern with a propeller on the end. The rudder was easily identifiable alongside the steering quadrant. Being a small wreck it was easy to get around all of it. Just behind the identifiable bow we found an anchor still in its fairlead. Again, being less dived, she was covered in life.

We made our return via Grove Point for a drift. The undredged seabed was more interesting and the scallops bigger. A crab pot snagged my DSMB so I had to let go of the reel, and my buddy sent up a second DSMB.

Tango will be sorely missed by all those who have dived from her. She goes up to the north-east coast. May whoever dives off her next have as much fun as I did.

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