The P&O ferry ‘St Ola’ passed the 'old man of Hoy' by and turned into the sheltered waters of Stromness harbour. A few minutes later and our party of nine had laid claim to their few square feet of bunk space that was to be their home for the next week.

M.V. Annette Rosenkilde was a neat looking vessel, and with good storage space as well as “on-board” air and nitrox, we felt more than pleased as we slipped out of harbour toward our first dive site, the ‘Brummer’.

Heading down the line toward the light cruiser ‘Brummer’ my excitement was hard to contain as the hull came into view in the ten metre visibility. Dropping over the ship’s deck it was clear that time and gravity had taken their toll. The once proudly painted and polished armour plate was now bending under its own weight and peeling off the deck like poorly pasted wallpaper. The German vessel was among the last of its kind having been built to do battle shell for shell against a similar foe.

The rest of the week did not disappoint with the sheltered waters of the flow teeming with life. Shoaling pollack and specimen sized cod greeted us on every dive with curious wrasse, ling and poor cod now permanent visitors to this unique underwater museum.

After the battleships and cruisers of the flow we had a change of scenery diving the block ships Gobernador Bones and Doyle. These dives were spent admiring the clear waters and prolific life in channels regularly swept by 4-5 knot currents with our skipper ensuring that we enjoyed whatever slack water was available!

Our penultimate dive was the James Barrie, a modern trawler with not a gun in sight yet a memory that will stay forever. She appeared in ghostly garb lying on her side in 42m, looking for all the world like some prop from a black and white movie with the light penetration and clarity of the vis’ mocking my torches attempts at improvement.

The party of nine from Bishop Auckland Sub Aqua Club were a diverse and experienced crowd not only at diving but also at clearing a Kings feast at one sitting and inventing new lyrics in the Karaoke bars of Stromness. All too soon though our week was over and as we said our goodbyes to our skipper we left behind the banter and the unlikely good weather of the Orkneys.