The cruise departing on the 4th of March 2013 was “One
Way”, boarding at Mohamed Qol and disembarking at P.Sudan. A cruise crowned
with a vast success with the weather, for the cheerful, close, enthusiastic and
willing company, and absolutely special for sightings. This week the current
has been weak, mainly northward and the hammerhead sharks have been spotted
during almost all of the dives, except for, obviously, the ones at the wrecks
of Sha’ab Suedi and Umbria!
We had the check dive at Merlo
south - southeast side in a paradise of corals and a multitude of coral barrier
reef fish. And this is already a splendid start, as having a small bite of an
attractive cake, before tasting a whole great slice of it. Then the initiation:
the first dive at Angarosh. Sea temperature was 27°, mild current, “soft”, good
visibility. We’ve spent the first two days in the area of Shambaia, between
Angarosh, that has deserved 2 repetitive dives, Merlo and Abington and the third day we’ve
started going down Southbound with a first dive at Qita el Banna, not very generous this time, followed by the exploration
of the Suedi wreck. At Sha’ab Rumi, due to the current, schools of grey and
hammerhead sharks had moved up North, rather than to the South plain, according
to tradition, giving us original dives. At North Sanganeb
the first dive, splendid, but with no hammerhead sharks, had followed a second
one the next day, proving us that perseverance gets rewarded: a beautiful
school came up from the bottom greeting us. The end of the holiday expects, as
per usual, a dive in the wreck of the Umbria,
before heading the bow, alas, towards the port.
The queen’s
sceptre of this week dives goes without any doubt to Angarosh. Once plunged off
the rubber dinghy, going down quickly heading to the 45 metres plain on the
East side, already at 30
metres the show displayed as if we were expected: a
dense cloud of " Sparidi" swimming as silver blades with dancing movements,
while in the middle, with slow and elegant fin kicks, two beautiful specimens
of grey sharks were following the sweet swinging. An orchestra of lights and
reflections, a harmony isolated into the blue. Then a silvertip or Charcarhinus Albimarginatus has appeared. A real theatrical
“entree”: it got close very tranquil, regal, getting about among us vaguely
indifferent and intrigued at the same time. We are very happy, it was missing
since a long time! Then going up, already satisfied, with perfect direction, as
grand final, the chorus has been drawn in the blue: a school of hammerheads.
Slow, elegant, sinuous, initially blurry, suffused in the distance, they got
close to us and opening and spreading themselves, they’ve started going around
us. They’ve looked almost "sliding in the honey", as a friend commented. Our
clock has run out, calling us up to the surface, before they’ve got tired of
the game: with regret it’s been us having to get off the stage!
A dive to
remember.
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