Gortein Point, Loch Fyne. Sunday 21st Jan 2007
First day diving in the Uk this year and have dropped weight, moved the twins over to a comfort harness and Stainless backplate from the IQ pack and Ali backplate.
Met up with Robert outside Aquatron and got a lift up to the pitstop to meet Fran & Stewart.
Stew decided to sleep in so I had plenty time to get a couple of rolls with scrambled egg and cheese, couple of nice mugs of tea and then to do a pre dive ballast adjustment 
We decided to dive at Anchor Point on Loch Fyne, bumped into a few familiar faces at the pit stop and said our Hello’s.
Off we headed although when we arrived the little parking space was mobbed and it looked like it was going to be diver soup so we decided to brave the possible ice and go for Gortein point (dive site guide from congeralley.com)
We had Gortein Point to ourself, we slowly took out kit down to the rocks via the grassy, wet icey hill before finally getting drysuits on and heading down to prepare the kit.
The last metre or so of the entry is pretty dodgy, steep, wet slidy rock face.
Anyway Robert and I where buddied up and both of us having dived the site only for two dives each we decided to stay close to Stewart and Fran who have both dived the site a number of times.
After a few minutes we got to the cable that runs almost parallel with the shore and Stew and I then buddied up as Fran and Robert where having a wee look at someting further back.
We headed down the first reef looking at the many anenomes, deadmans fingers and squat lobsters all over the place.
Up over the first reef over to the second reef for a look around, found some very pretty anenomes, lots of large orange & White star fish, a pretty sunstar, lots and lots of brittle stars and a very fat starfish that Ive no idea what type it was but it was very cute!
Just before the safety stop on a shallow reef Stew found a tiny hermit crab on top of a rock and I noticed something under the rock, it looked like a baby eel, I showed Stew and he seen it but not quite sure what type of fish/eel it was.
Dive one (116 Total /14 in 2007) Stats:
Twin Tens Entry: 12:06, Duration: 37 Minutes.
Max depth 30.4 Metres, Average water temp 9oC (top 6 metres 7 oc).
AIR(BAR) IN: 222 Out: 121
Stewart, Robert and I had a chilled out surface interval drinking hot soup, eating cheese sarnies, munching on those excellent caramel eggs while Fran mucked about changing her single cylinder, carrying the old one up the hill and setting up again (Stew kindly carried her fresh cylinder down).
After just over an hour we buddied up Stew and I together this time and Fran & Robert buddied up from the start of the dive.
Similair start of the dive down and over the first reef then just finned about in the sandy area between the reefs collecting scallops with a large bag full (although a fair few got put back as they where too small), we found a couple of really pretty anenomes side by side and a collection of urchins, plenty of squat lobsters & edible crabs to be found.
Dive two (117 Total /15 in 2007) Stats:
Twin Tens Entry: 14:23, Duration: 35 Minutes.
Max depth 27 Metres, Average water temp 9oC (top 6 metres 7 oc).
AIR(BAR) IN: 110 Out: 32
A nice wee days diving was had, we headed over to the Village Inn at Arrochar for a pint of deco juice (no chips as the kitchen was shut by the time we arrived!)
I went home and made a great salad (leafs, plumb tomatoes,red and yellow peppers, red onion, garlic powder, balsamic vinegar & extra virgin olive oil tossed in a salad bowl). Seared the Scallops in a very hot frying pan with butter and I squeezed half an orange over the top as they where cooking to just enhance the flavour, took them out the frying pan after about 90 seconds and served with the salad.
Yummy in my tummy! Might not be Egypt but it was a great start to my UK diving for 2007.
Cant wait to get some more dives in!
