Day 2: Sevona
(July 30, 2004)
Sevona's anchor at Little Sand Bay boat launch
Friday found the crew driving north to Little Sand Bay, the nearest boat launch to the
Sevona. On the way to Sand Bay we stopped at the National Park Service headquarters for the
Apostles Islands Lakeshore to meet with Bob Mackreth, Park Historian, to discuss shipwrecks within the Apostles Islands. After a brief visit we continued north from Bayfield and arrived at the Little Sand Bay ramp just as rain began falling.
The
Sevona's Bow
With overcast skies and a steady rain, the 3-mile run to the
Sevona was quick and smooth with 1 foot waves coming from the north. Visibility was improved over the day before, allowing us to see 10 to 12 feet underwater. On the first dive Keith operated the video camera while Tami scootered over the bow section (see the
Sevona site plan). After a short surface interval, Tami again piloted the scooter while Paul operated the video camera over the larger stern section. Surveying was much easier with the better visibility, but the large size of the
Sevona and her debris field required very long survey lanes.
Survey Team
The survey team consists of two divers: the scooter pilot and the video operator. The scooter pilot tows the video operator with a nylon strap. The pilot is responsible for navigating straight survey lanes over the wreck at a constant depth. The video operator is responsible for shooting video while pointing the camera directly at the bottom, without tilting it from side to side, also maintaining a constant depth. The team then “flies” over the wrecksite shooting lanes of video as they go. The team flies back and forth over the wreck, with each lane close enough to another so adjacent survey lanes slightly overlap slightly, creating a video of the entire wrecksite.
Tank Tops are scattered around the site
