Posted Tuesday, July 21, 2009 -- Hatteras, NC
Outer Banks Diving, Discovery Awaits

Story and photos by Maria af Rolen with extra photos by Amy Staubs and Jason Quiring

It's been a while since I last got my fins wet. Though I'm an avid diver from the Baltic Sea, I've been reluctant to lower myself into the muddy rivers of West Virginia, seeing as how they're infested by vicious snapping turtles and catfish the size of cars. So I was happy to once again return to my beloved saltwater where all there is to worry about are sharks and stingrays.

At the crack of dawn I joined my fellow dive buddies Amy Staubs and Jason Quiring for a day of diving with the friendly and knowledgeable people at Outer Banks Diving in Hatteras (http://www.outerbanksdiving.com), North Carolina. As the weather gods were not quite on our side this day, the captain of the Flying Fish decided to take us to the nearby wreck of the F.W. Abrams.

In the midst of World War II, the tanker F.W. Abrams, was being guided through the fog when she lost sight of her escort and wandered off course into an allied minefield where she sunk after being struck by three mines.

Barracuda and Spade Fish

When getting our gear together we had the pleasure of seeing some bottle nose dolphins play in the distance, as well as a leather back turtle that surfaced right near our dive boat for a breath of fresh air.

I tried in vain to capture this beautiful creature on film (or rather my memory card), but he turned out to be a rather camera shy fellow and took a dive every time I got my camera out. And as my luck would have it, sea turtles can keep their breath for 30 minutes under water.

While dodging jellyfish left and right we made our way down the anchor line to the wreck that awaited us 80 feet below the waves. We arrived at the remains of the steam engine and the large boilers. Covered in decades of rust, this once mighty tanker is slowly being consumed by the ocean floor. Sand tiger sharks and barracudas patrolled the ship keeping a watchful eye on us intruders. The sharks in particular have learned to follow the divers carrying spears, in hope to snatch a free snack or two.

Yours truly checking out the remains

On this dive I came across something I had never seen before, which was a spawning conch shell. It was quite an amazing sight, reminiscent of something you might expect to see in one of the Alien movies.

Not to mention the Pacific lion fish which has found a new home in the warm waters of the Gulf Stream. Not normally spotted this far north, this poisonous but beautiful fish is believed to have been released into the ocean by unwitting fish tank owners. Not having any natural predators in the region has enabled them to grow to abnormal sizes while munching on the cute and defenseless smaller fish.

The top deck of the Flying Fish was ingeniously equipped with waterproof beanbags, perfect for passing out on in between the dives. This setting was also the ideal location for one of my favorite things about diving, which is to sit around and share stories with your fellow dive buddies.

While working the grill, one of the crew members told us of an acquaintance that had been stung by a box jellyfish off the coast of Australia. He was in such excruciating pain that he kept screaming even after being medically sedated. Luckily there are no such jellyfish anywhere near the Outer Banks.

... ready to find a Megalodon tooth

After completing our second dive on the F.W. Abrams we headed back to the Outer Banks Diving shop, which is stuffed to the gills with fossils of prehistoric sharks teeth. While being licked free of salt by their adorable dog I was poking around in a box full of curious looking fossils. When I came across one that was shaped almost like a human ear, Captain John said it was the fossilized ear bone of a sperm whale and generously suggested that I keep it as a souvenir of the day.

It turns out that sperm whales, closely followed by blue whales, are capable of emitting the loudest sound on earth. A sound reaching the mind-blowing level of 188 decibels. If you keep in mind that 120 decibels is the pain threshold for humans, a sperm whale's singing could easily shatter your eardrums. So there's no wonder the size of this ear bone took up the entire palm of my hand.

Outer Banks Diving, run by Amy and John Pieno and their outstanding crew, is a full-service recreational dive shop that caters to divers of all levels. I would highly recommend them to anyone and hope to book a slot on one of their Megalodon fossil hunting trips this fall.