Wednesday Night Dive
Four shady characters meet in a carpark at sundown and make their way down the rocky path by torchlight to the still, inviting waters of Mermaid’s Kitchen. The baby pink and blue of sunset gives way to the velvety black sky as night falls over the Cook Strait.
We fumble about in the shallows for a few moments, adjusting our masks and acclimatising to the water temperature before beginning our short surface swim out to the chosen dive site. Our fins slice through the glassy water in silence.
We descend in unison into the dark waters beneath, four torches illuminating the sea bed below and throwing light on the busy nocturnal scene that invites us in. We’re met almost instantly by a rather large squid caught inadvertently in our torchlight. It shimmers and shines as it dances in and out of the artificial light, investigating the new visitors curiously. Satisfied that it would allow to stay, it darts off back into the darkness.
We begin our journey out to see. Rob leads the way, his torchlight bathing the canyons and swimthroughs in an eerie white light. Shadows dance on the rock walls as kelp ebbs and swayes in the gentle ocean currents. The occasional glimpse of a pair of eyes peering at us from the shadows is enough to remind us that we’re being watched by our hosts. Pairs of cray eyes shine and sparkle like demon’s eyes as they get caught momentarily in the torchlight before the owner receeds back into the darkness of their rock wall.
We move on, through canyons and caverns, over kelp, under overhangs, passed wonderlands of vibrant colour and light…wild pinks, electric blues, lemon yellows, soft violet, golf ball sponges, wandering enenemies…all unveiled only for seconds by the passing torchlight before being cloaked once again by the darkness.
Suddenly the familiar rock wall disappears, giving way to an endless undisturbed ripple of white sand continuing out into the black chasm of the night ocean indefinately…a reminder of how small and insignificant we are in the big beautiful ocean. While my buddies are a few paces away from me I test my nerves for a few seconds and turn my torch towards my chest, burying the artificial light in the neoprene of my wetsuit. Suddenly I’m cloaked in darkness…still, unpolluted and infinite. A strange feeling of calm sweeps over me as I just kneel on the ocean floor for a few moments and bask in the darkness…perhaps I was a Crayfish in a passed life! Eventually my nerves give way as my imagination starts to kick in and I return to the warm, familiar glow of my trusty torchlight.
We all turn round now and head back to shore…leaving our ocean home behind us for another night. The journey back is just as beautiful and eerie and, watching the depth gauge change, I’m quietly reasurred by the thought that I’m heading back to a hot bath, a bright and cozy house and a nice warm bed.
In the shallows we’re met by a swarm of what I can only describe as sea maggots…thick and fast they dart around the artificial light and dance in and out of the rays in a frenzied yet graceful ballet. We remain still for a few moments and watch as these creatures surround us and glow in our torchlight. As they get more plentiful and I begin to feel them on the exposed skin of my face I decide to make my excuses and leave as I’m down to 50Bar anyway. Me and my Buddy ascend to a clear starry sky and begin our surface swim back to shore, leaving the other two beneath to explore the shadows. As I look down through the clear water I can see their torch lights dashing and darting about below and moving slowly shoreward beneath us. The two groups exit within minutes of each other and again, converge on the car park..beginning the excited frenzy of post dive chit-chat. Dive No. 153 logged…one of the better ones…Thanks Buddy!
