MV Mary Doune
2/3 October, 2004

Keeping up our regular habits we returned for a weekends diving on the Mary Doune with Skipper Andy Tibbets at the helm. This is their last weekend before 'closing down' for the winter.

Saturday 2 October.

Dive 1 - Loch Hourn, Rubha Ruadh.
The poor weather, strong winds and rain, decided us to head up Loch Hourn to dive this splendid wall on the south shore of the Loch. This a familiar site with lovely vertical walls down to below 40 metres.

Dive 2 - Loch Hourn, Rubha Ruadh.
After lunch on board we moved further to the west on the site and found yet more superb life encrusted vertical walls.
Leopard Goby and female Cuckoo Wrasse on Rubha Ruadh.

Sunday 3 October

Dive 1 - Loch Nevis, Reidh a Ghuail.
The weather was still poor so we headed south into Loch Nevis to another lovely underwater cliff on the north shore of the Loch.


Now you see them - now you don't. Spotting scallops is not always easy to the untrained eye.

Dive 2 - Loch Nevis, 4.5 Metre reef.
This site is a plumose encrusted pinnacle rising from over 30 metres to 7 metres from the surface. It must have been a super-spring LW the day they named this site. All the surfaces are covered in anemones, brittle stars and Luidia ciliaris starfish.

Above, on the left, are Plumose anemone and Brittle Stars on the 4.5 Metre Reef with a Common Sea Urchin and Protanthia anemone on the wall at Reidh a Ghuail. Left are some of the big Luidia ciliaris on the pinnacle top of 4.5 M reef.
All images by Jim Anderson


Once again we (Gordon, Jenny, Big Al, McGoo, Ian, Old Ian, Martin, Peter, Russell and Jim A) send our heartfelt thanks to all at Doune for another great weekend.

Great diving, great company and a lovely meal. Have a good winter and be ready for our return in the spring.