Welcome

To the Whitby Dive Site, I have made some minor changes lately but I am not making any major changes as I am working away in the background on a complete new website which will bring together all my interests.

The Beginning

My first introduction to sub aqua diving was as a member of the BSAC in 1985 and I continued on to become an Open Water Instructor using my knowledge and experience to introduce students to the wonderful world of sub aqua diving. I was undergoing the process of taking my instructor grade to the next level and had passed the theory test to become a BSAC Advanced Instructor, unfortunately finding a suitable venue for the open water element was far more problematic and I did not follow it through. As far as diving went my passion was wreck diving. I looked forward to the challenge that deep diving offered this was reflected in the majority of dives I undertook. It would be quite difficult to choose the best dive I have ever done in the past I have listed a 58 metre dive to an unknown wreck as one of my most memorable. The wreck was known locally as The Flagship, after an angler brought up an admiralty ensign! The wreck was well broken up, however the visibility and light was really worth the depth (and decompression time)! This is in stark contrast to my first open water dive in Hartlepool Coal Dock, although it is now largely filled in and forms part of the upgraded marina. The dive was a stark introduction to open water diving, it was a very cold and dismal day and it sends shivers to recall the bare wet suit I had on. The underwater visibility was such that I could just make out about two feet of the buddy line I had attached to me. I can but wonder what encouraged me to continue after such an eye opening dive.

My diving career has had its highs and lows and they serve as interesting reminders in to what turned out to be a varied and interesting sport diving career. In 1994 I was part of a four man dive team diving the wreck of a U - boat in 52 metres, it was a day I will remember for the rest of my life as we lost a very experienced diver in a diving accident. My buddy and I entered the water hoping to find the diver with a problem but something we could overcome. Despite our best efforts I was the diver who found our friend we recovered him and my memory was seeing the helicopter departing the scene it was without doubt the worst point I had ever experienced in all the years I had been diving. The fall out afterwards was upsetting and in part traumatic, something I would never hope to ever repeat! The diver was well known throughout the town and was a lifeboat crew member as well as part of the fire brigade crew. He served the fishing fleet and local boats and it could be said that his loss touched so many facets of Whitby. He left behind a family with young children and his loss is a timely reminder that sport diving is not without risks. I have added this to my home page so as to encourage qualified divers or those in training to take a moment to consider their diving practices and to look at reducing the risks of an accident.

I considered myself an experienced diver and instructor and used this to write my first book, Scuba Diving. The book is an overview of sub aqua diving, and whilst I was primarily a BSAC member the book was not intended to be biased toward any specific training agency. With the success of my first book, I started putting more emphasis on writing and had some limited success with diving magazine features. I did not really find this too productive and found the popular magazines sometimes complicated to work with. In early 1999 ill-health forced me to hang up my fins, and whilst I am no longer actively diving, I still retain an interest in sport diving. I have no plans to cut myself off from the diving community altogether, after all my diving experience must be worth something. This has meant some dramatic changes, and whilst the web site remains primarily a diving related website featuring the wonderful wrecks off the Yorkshire coast, I have added new pages and made some changes to the website dynamics.

Once again Whitby played host to the familiar green coloured charter vessel Ocean Dancer. The vessel on charter to the international best selling author Clive Cussler resumed its search for the Bonhomme Richard. The vessel and its crew have covered swathes of ground but the location of the infamous vessel remains ever elusive. I am always welcome aboard the vessel and look forward to getting reacquainted with the crew. I have an individual web page here on this website dedicated to Dr. Clive Cussler that gives more insight to his endeavours to locate the Bonhomme Richard. As chairman of NUMA Clive has carried out extensive searches over the years locating many unique wrecks although he is especially keen to locate this one. Divers from around this part of the coast are only to well aware of the wrecks importance and over the years many teams have tried to locate the wreck site to no avail.

*** NEWS ***

On the Sunday the 1st of June the former lifeboat was officially unveiled to the public for the first time at a special dedication ceremony, I have added a new page to this website which details of the dedication and some of the many photographs I took that day, the new page can be accessed using the link below.

WILLIAM RILEY OFFICIAL UNVIELING

I have completed putting the finishing touches to a new page that covers the challenging fund raising venture the William Riley as it recreated the journey undertaken by the Tynemouth lifeboat Henry Vernon in 1914 from South Shields to Whitby to raise money for the RNLI with the row coinciding with the Lifeboat Weekend and the Blessing of the Boats.

WILLIAM RILEY / HENRY VERNON FUNDRAISING ROW

As if any proof where needed of how the story of the Rohilla continues to amaze me it would have to be the very recent discovery of the Rohillas Bell.

The hospital ship's bell turned up in the possession of a local family who have loaned it to the organisers of the Lifeboat Weekend. As the William Riley comes into Whitby it is hoped the bell can be rung.

The bell was found to be in a room at the Coach House in Aislaby Hall. It was assumed the heavy bell would have gone down with the ship. It was surprising therefore to learn of its appearance in the possession of the late Sir John Harrowing, a local ship builder in the 1800s, who lived at Aislaby Hall.

Patricia Harrowing (88) married Sir John's grandson John Colin Harrowing and now lives in the hall with her daughter, Wendy. She said she does not know how the bell came to be in her family's possession. "I remember seeing the bell when the stables were being cleaned out many years ago but have no idea where it came from," she said. "It might have been a gift or it could have been salvaged but I never really took any notice of it." The bell is inscribed with the details of the wreck and when the stables were converted into holiday accommodation it was relocated to the living room. Mrs Harrowing will now be a guest of honour at the Blessing of the Boats on Sunday to hear the bell being rung.

Since its discovery the bell has been lovingly cleaned and has been undergoing extensive polishing at the lifeboat station. I have been to see it and can testify to it being a fascinating piece of history. A number of theories have risen as to whether it is the actual main bell from the Rohilla, on the face of it, it looks everything one would expect from a genuine ships bell, the text on the bell reads as follows.

During its short life the Rohilla was prefixed by SS, HM, HMT, HMHS and it accepted that ship's main bells usually have just the name of the vessel inscribed on them, sometimes with the shipping line emblem with other deatils on a plaque above or below where the bell is fixed. Details of the Rohilla's loss would not have been inscribed, although they could have been added afterwards if the bell was salvaged or removed when the wrecked ship was boarded after the sea had calmed. Many shipping companies carry spare bells or 'blanks', could this bell be such a case or might it be a cosmetic replica?

Whatever thoery is accepted or refuted, it is clear the bell has suffered from the effects of sea water, more importantly will we ever know the truth? An ex employee of the British India Steam Navigation Company has seen the bell and has refuted the bell as being the authentic bell. Unfortunately the bell has real distinguishing features or none that have been found to date, the outer side of the bell has now been widely polished yet the underside is still the green one expects from oxidisation.

There is no doubt whatsoever that the bell is something truly unique and something that was quite costly, it is solid and extremely heavy something I couldn't begin to lift. It is clear that a lot of work has gone into creating the bell and I am looking forward to hearing what is likley to be a deep resounding sound when it is struck. It would be nice to have irefutable proof on its provenace, but for me it is without doubt as real as anything I could have percieved.

Whenever I have made changes to the website I have always maintained a page dedicated to a pretty child called Megan Armstrong, who was diagnosed with an extensive brain tumour from birth. Megan has already suffered more than many people do in their lifetime. I have battled since 1999 with three brain tumour's but as extensive as mine are, I am perhaps fortunate that mine are benign as opposed to Megan's malignant tumour. I feel a close affinity to Megan and can only sympathise with her plight. My family have pledged their support to Megan's appeal and I had hoped to take part in a sponsored parachute jump. However, my somewhat chequered medical history made it impossible for me to take part. I have added a link on the navigation bar or this link which accesses a page I have dedicated to Megan. Megan's parents already have their own dedicated website Megan Armstrong Cancer Appeal and I hope that having read through Megan's page on my website that I can encourage you to send a donation to the appeal, Megan is without doubt a pretty child in need of your support.

Please take the time to view the remainder of the Whitby Dive Site website and if you find it interesting please recommend it to others. I have recently added the search facility above which I hope you find useful, please feel free to contact me using the link below.