The trip proper started on Saturday morning. It was bright and sunny without a breath of wind in the trees - was this really one of Flossy's trips?. We headed into Salcombe to meet the skipper. Traffic in Salcombe is a complete nightmare and we spent a very stressfull 2hours trying to get parked and load the boat. Skipper Richard didn't seem very impressed with our performance so far, but as we shot out of the harbour at a 'relaxed' 36knots the sun was shining and everything looked like it was going to be ok.

We got to the Maine in about 3 minutes and were genuinely efficient getting in the water quick smart. The wreck was in around 32m of water, and despite all the other divers the vis was a surprisingly good 3metres (unless of course you were swimming behind Chris who apparently has just graduated from the Ryan Crawford School of Finning. Well done Chris, I'm sure you mother must love you). The wreck appears in Diver's Top Ten UK sites and justifyably so. Its about the same size as the James Egan Layne but a bit more broken up, and with more of the decking structure in place has more opportuninty for swim-throughs. A great place for a bit of a rummage and definately needing several visits to get a feel of the place.

We were whisked back to Salcombe and given a very leisurely 3hours for lunch. Pasties and ice-cream were the top choices, and we all sat in the baking sun, watching the traffic in the estuary.

The afternoon dive was on the Oregan, about 10minutes outside Salcombe. Everything was fine till Richard had to sort out the fuel for the starboard engine and knackered the gear-box. The remaining engine struggled to get past 11. Still, its faster than the Maid Maggie. The Oregan was in around 35m and is very broken up and spread out. The vis was great, and there's loads of nooks and crannies to be exploring, and it was teaming with life. Scallops were plentiful, as were crabs, lobsters and congers. The extra depth, and the morning dive shortened most peoples dives, but the general consensus was positive. The single engined journey back took an hour, the highlight of which was Chris returning Ali's treasure to the sea bed. Ali really needs to be more discerning with his definition of treasure. A scanky old light swich and a fishing net float that sinks really is taking the piss. Buck up Robertson!

The plan for Saturday night was to dine al-fresco with a bag of chips and a pint of beer in Salcombe. The chances of getting into a restaurant were pretty slim due to the large number of yachty sorts that had descended for the weekend. The plan was 60% successful. People's Front of Judea? I'll say no more...

Sunday morning arrived with most people having had a decent night's sleep despite Johnny's Foster-esque snoring demonstration. The hope was that we'd be able to get a mechanic to look at the boat over lunch, so we headed off to do the Maine again. Familiarity certainly helps with a wreck, and I definately had a better dive, seeing a lot more and being better oriented. Vis was also much better as we got in before Chris. Still want to go back and do it again though.

The afternoon dive was on the wreck of the Soudan, which is just outside Salcombe. Richard the skipper gave it a big build up and I was initially disappointed as all that seemed to be left of it were two boilers. However, once you started looking around the place was absolutely teaming with life and even though its very flat and small, its got plenty of holes to be sticking your head in. It was only in 15m of water, and the excellent vis and sandy bottom meant that it was very bright. I think that its the closest I've come to diving in an aquarium in the uk. We spent at least 10mins looking at the boilers. Four huge congas, blennies, crabs, lobsters, squat lobsters, shrimps, fish all squeezed into a space no bigger than our living room. A truly excellent dive.

Back at the campsite we had a quick turnaround and got ourselves to the Royal Oak in Marlborough to celebrate Jame's 25th birthday. We were settled by 6:30 and James started on a fatefull mixture of cider and Jamesons. Within the hour the Jamesons had run out, and he was onto Glenfiddich. Two hours later, and the Glenfiddich was gone, and he was making do with vodka. We were chucked out at 10:30, and the PFJ disappeared into the night in Ricky's motor leaving Chris, Tess, Floss and Dez to steer James the mile and a half back to the camp site. A plot had been hatched to help James 'celebrate' his birthday by making him do the walk in his birthday suit. Expecting a bit of a fight he was wrestled to the ground, but to the surprise of all the consipritors, he was most helpful, and practically undressed himself before disapearing into the night. The journey was made more interesting by James' fantastic demonstration of how to undo a bra with just one hand. Cat has obviously been teaching him well! The real highlight came when we reached the camp site however, with James bringing a whole new meaning to the phrase "going commando".

Monday saw James suffering from the effects of the previous night, and Chris suffering from a flat battery having left his fridge plugged in over night - muppet. Slick as ever we were on the boat and RTG just in time. The plan for the morning was a scenic 2knot drift with the hope of stumbling onto a wrecked paddle steamer. Richard the skipper got our hopes of finding treasure up as we cruised over the gold coin wreck, however, only Keith and Johnny found the steamer, and we all failed to find the 2knot current or any gold. It was a good potter, and the time spent underwater certainly helped with the hangover situation.

The afternoon dive was the wreck of the Liberta (plus others) that sank 100years ago, again just outside Salcombe. Having been down there for so long, the site was pretty much flat and totally overgrown with weed and kelp. It was a bit of a challenge finding anything that look like a wreck at all. However, once you got your eye in there was loads to see, and as it was mostly at about 4metres, there was plenty of time to be looking at it.. Keith and Johnny again showed the benifits of experience over youth by finding the accomdation block and getting a good bit of penetration. Floss and Shandy demonstrated the perils awaiting any prospective squidgy divers, by not finding a single bit of wreck and spending 45mins swimming through kelp.

So, a top weekend was had by all. The weather was great, the diving was superb, and the company was exceptional. Salcombe is a top place to go diving, there are wrecks accesible to all levels of diver making it a great candidate for a club trip next year. Richard the skipper grew on us over the weekend and is a genuinely nice bloke who knows the area like the back of his hand, and always has a story to tell.