Buceo en la Costa Blanca (norte)

December 2007

The wreck of the “Atlantic” has been found by local technical divers Kexy Svara, Fabian Schmid and Volker Borchert from Deep Impact Diving centre. The “Atlantic” was built in 1914 for the J. S. Emery Steamship Company of Boston. In 1917 she was sold to the Berwind-White Coal Company of New York, and renamed to “Wilmore”. On September 12, 1917 she was torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-64 off Cabo de Palos. The Wilmore now rests in 115 metres on its starboard side. This American steamer had never been dived before and the experience of being the first divers to see her for 90 years must have been tremendously exciting.
More info at: Deep Impact Diving centre 

June 2008

Well, they did it again. The Deep Impact Explorer team have confirmed the identity of a shipwreck discovered on the 12th of June. A mixed OC and CCR dive team, now consisting of: Mike Long, Jussi Hyttinen and Volker Borchert, has identified the wreck as that of the Greek steamship SS Despina G. Michalinos. The ship was quite large at 2827 tons, 100 metres in overall length and 14 metres wide. She met her end from a German torpedo on October 14th, 1917. The SS Despina G. Michalinos now lies fully upright at a depth of 88 meters off Cabo de Palos. 
Finding and physically identifying two historic shipwrecks in such a short timeframe is an incredible achievement.

P.Esser

SSI’s new TechXR programs available at Ali-Sub, Villajoyosa.

As an SSI Instructor Training Facility Ali-Sub is now offering a full range of technical diver courses, from Advanced Nitrox/Technical Foundations, Decompression Procedures, and Normoxic Trimix to Advanced Decompression Procedures.

Everything you will learn through TechXR has been designed and tested under the most demanding conditions. All of the complex information has been broken down and made simple to understand.

High-quality professionals with years of experience will teach you the skills necessary to become a technical diver. You will develop confidence and comfort with these new skills through repetition and supervised experiences. Training will be designed to match your goals and objectives.

Picture courtesy – Ali-Sub

Ali-Sub, Villajoyosa.

P.Esser

After patrols in the North Atlantic the German U-boat U 77 managed to sneak into the Mediterranean past Gibraltar. A bold manoeuvre I must say. The U 77 sank many ships in the Mediterranean before it was finally damaged by 4 depth charges and 1 bomb from 2 British Hudson aircraft. On March 28, 1943 it sank east of Cartagena as stated by the official report.

Moraira, July 2003
The explorer dive team, a German and French group of technical divers took up the search for the U-boat U 77 which - according to Ernesto a community policeman and veteran diver - could be found here in the local waters around Calpe. After nearly three years of intensive historical research combined with memories from Ernesto, the team isolated a high-probability area for the U-boat’s sinking. No dives have been conducted on this wreck by the team until 2003 when a permit from the Spanish government allowed the investigation. 'Headquarters' was set up in a large villa near Moraira

When they arrived at the GPS coordinates they could see nothing on the Fishfinder. Multiple survey dives were made over several days, even an ROV was deployed, but nothing was found.
Back in Moraira the team came in contact with some curious local fishermen, they told about them getting stuck with their fishing nets in an isolated and as yet unidentified object. And so, with new GPS coordinates the search was back on. Eventually, on one of the last days of the expedition after searching for nearly a week the outlines of a wreck appeared on the Fishfinder showing the profile of a submarine. It was broken into two sections and covered with fishing nets.
The wreck lies on the sandy sea bed at a depth of 80 metres. A mixed gas diver began the descent but was hindered by very strong currents. At 76 metres he had reached the site but could only feel the hull because the visibility was practically zero. While there is no direct proof, it is likely that the unusually long vessel was in fact the U 77. The next expedition might reveal the wreck's true identity.

Update: on May 21 2004 the U 77 was positive identified by a team filming the documentary “80 metres above death” featuring the last survivor; the 81 year-old Ernst Peter. The film aired on the German WDR channel in March 2005.
Dive the U-77: Some local dive operators are already visiting the site. At 80 metres the U 77 is far beyond the limits of a sport diver but after entering the water on a clear day one can see the wreck from about 40m down. 

Location: About 9.4 nautical miles off Moraira's port heading 148°, GPS coordinates: 38° 33.327 N - 000° 14.877 E (GPS for reference only. Do not use as your sole source of navigation). Prepare for a 2 knot current both on the surface and on the wreck.

The launch of a type VIIC U-boat very similar to U-77

P.Esser

BSAC “Marina Alta Branch” No. 2360 (Calpe/Calp) 
We are a group of scuba divers based in Javea/Moraira/Calpe area of the Costa Blanca. We have now completed the formation of a fully authorised branch of the BSAC and are looking for people with a primary interest in scuba diving but who are also keen to meet a whole new group of friends with common interests. Our current group consists of all ages from 16-60+ with experience ranging from complete novice to highly trained instructors. BSAC is a club – not a commercial organisation – and training is included in your annual membership fee. All certification from Open Water Diver right through to instructor level is internationally recognised. Speciality courses also available including First Aid, Rescue Management, Oxygen Admin. Chartwork & Navigation and many more. Divers from other training organisations and all nationalities are welcome. We now also have an active social section organising non-diving activities i.e. trips to other parts of Spain, boat trips, meals out, BBQs, windsurfing, etc. Come and get involved and help make the club a successful part of the community. For more information please contact Mike or Chris on 96 573 2559 or for social membership please call Gail on 96 573 2559. You can also visit our website www.bsacmarinaalta.com for basic details and current events. 

BSAC “Marina Alta Branch” No. 2360 (Calpe/Calp)
Web: www.bsacmarinaalta.com
Tel: 96 573 25 59 

Fundación Greenwich de Actividades Subacuáticas C.V (2006) is a non-profit, organization in collaboration with the University of Alicante. It’s mission is to preserve historical, cultural and archaeological resources within the National Marine Sanctuaries. Membership of the foundation is drawn from historians, archaeologists, scientists and ancillary disciplines.

Project: Greenwich WW's
First Project: to locate, identify, and document the status of all ships sunk during both world wars, including U-Boat U-77. The search will concentrate on locating the wrecks between Cabo de la Nao and Cabo Cervera. The area is littered with silent reminders of those days gone by. This is a project of immense scale that is bound to surpass any previous expectations. 

Fundación Greenwich de Actividades Subacuáticas C.V
Calle Benimeli, nº4
03560 El Campello
Alicante (España)

www.fundaciongreenwich.es (The website is still in a preliminary stage, with content gradually being added).

P.Esser

DÉNIA.
A group of 82 divers cleaned the sea floor of les Rotes last Sunday and at this action they took more than 500 kilos of rubbish to the surface. This was much more than the previous year; with a similar action they brought only 350 kilogram's rubbish to the surface. The divers have cleaned the part of the sea floor that lie between the restaurant Meta and the range Marineta Cassiana, in sum a surface of approximately 4000 square metres.
The divers - all volunteers - were members of the dive associations Marina del Reig, Samaruc, Aguazul, Tauchring ACIF and of the Fundación Ecomar-Marina de Dénia. Citizens had thrown more than 90% of the debris in the water. 

CostaBlancaNews

Location of important Roman wreck is revealed 

The location of a sunken Roman ship off Spain's Costa Blanca has been revealed. The 22 metre cargo vessel was found last year but kept secret because heritage officials feared treasure hunters would pillage it. The structure of the ship is almost intact and there are around 2,000 containers of preserved food and other trade goods aboard. Spain's Regional Heritage body kept quiet about the find, but around 70 amphorae containers - worth around £1,000 each - have already gone missing.
Regional Heritage has now decided to reveal the wreck to force authorities to protect it, reports the Costa Blanca News. Experts have labelled the Roman ship as one of the most important archaeological finds in the Mediterranean. It is off the Villajoyosa coast at a depth of 25 metres. The vessel and its contents will eventually be displayed in a museum, but excavation and preservation could take 10 years and cost 2.8 million Euros. Heritage officials have agreed to name the treasure after its discoverers, two scuba divers called Bou and Ferrer.

CostaBlancaNews

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