The Teasel

Photo: Phil Hutchinson Photo: Phil Hutchinson

Being a superficial kind of guy, I don’t like to dwell on the tragedy and suffering that often surrounds the sinking of a ship, it doesn’t sit too well with the appreciation of a wreck which has become a favoured dive site. But when I first swam onto the bridge of the Teasel, and through the gloom saw the lifeboat davits still swung out from the side of this upright ship, I couldn’t help but give a thought to the crew. Their last desperate actions before abandoning the sinking vessel had been to use these davits, but then to a man lost their lives battling to survive against a stormy winter sea.

No one knows for sure what happened to sink the Teasel. On 6 January 1948 she was bound for Manchester from Belfast under Captain W Jones and a crew of eight. Her course took her around the northern tip of the Isle of Man, the Point of Ayre, and then down between the island and the English coast. However, when she was six miles east of the Point she radioed a single call of distress, and that was the last anyone heard of her. The Ramsey lifeboat was the first to respond, and in the appalling weather conditions nearly lost one of her own crew. A salvage tug ‘Salveda’ was despatched from Campbeltown in Scotland to assist in the search, as were the Douglas and Peel lifeboats and other vessels, along with ten RAF aircraft from Aldergrove. Despite this, the Teasel was never found. Some mistaken reports said they’d seen her further south, and for many years it was thought she’d struggled on some miles before foundering off the east coast of the Isle of Man. However, a wreck was found by a survey vessel in 1999 and first dived and positively identified as the Teasel by Solway BSAC members later that year, showing she’d foundered very close to the position where she’d radioed distress.

The day after the sinking, bodies of some of the crew and other items from the Teasel were recovered by ships or washed ashore. Two crew members’ bodies were found on a raft quite close to the wreck site, but other bodies and wreckage were found many miles away, in Scotland and off the Isle of Man. The 16-foot lifeboat complete with burnt-out flares was also recovered, showing that the crew managed to abandon the sinking ship but couldn’t survive the mountainous seas. The best guess as to what happened to the Teasel is that her engines broke down, allowing the cargo to shift and so giving the vessel a list. She must have foundered shortly after sending out the radio distress message.

The dive
It’s not just the circumstances of her loss that provoke a sombre mood when diving the Teasel. Right on the depth limit of air diving, it’s often dark and gloomy, and while the water is never murky, even in good-visibility summer conditions a good torch is a real comfort. At low-water (LW) slack the sea bed surrounding the Teasel is at 49–50m, but this has been scoured out deeper very close to the wreck, and care needs to be taken not to enter the scour and dip below 50m. The worst case is when the shot misses the wreck and lands in the scour – you need to watch your depth as you approach the wreck and stop just before 50m, where you should now be able to see the wreck and get across to it without descending further. A good plan is to send your best diver down first so if necessary he or she can reel out a distance line from the shot to the wreck. The Teasel is clearly a dive for the more experienced, and the deepest point is under the stern next to the propeller at 53.5m.

Once on the wreck you are rewarded with an intact and upright ship. Although only 38m long and weighing 300 tonnes, the short time afforded at this depth means it can be difficult to see everything in one dive. It’s advisable to do the bow and deck area first and so finish at the shallower stern. The bow and winch areas are very scenic and well encrusted with life, as is the whole ship. Down the forecastle ladders brings you to the deck at 50m, and you can look down into the holds below that and see the cargo of iron bars as the hold covers are now missing. Many large lobsters inhabit this area and seem more fearless and aggressive than on other wrecks in the area – clearly the narcosis affects them too!

Heading to the rear of the ship brings you to the best part of the dive. Ascending up to the raised stern deck level brings you into a covered walkway going right around the stern of the ship. As you swim around, you can look down the side of the ship past the intact portholes to the sea bed, or in through the broken windows to the rooms within. At the stern, an open hatch and stairway leads down to the engine room. We’ve not as yet explored the inside of the wreck; despite the heavy marine growth, the site is quite silty, and so squeezing inside at these depths should not be undertaken lightly.

Coming up one level brings you on to the bridge. This was made of wood and so has disappeared, leaving the spectacular helm standing on its own above the flat deck. This is completely covered with white plumose anemones and is by far the most scenic part of the wreck and not to be missed. Holding onto the wheel and pretending to drive the ship is obligatory. The only parts standing higher that the helm are the lifeboats davits, which on the starboard side are snagged with netting trailing down to and around the propeller and rudder. The net floats above the wreck somewhat on buoys, but is tight and so fairly safe. On one dive we found that cutting the buoys free so they shoot to the surface is a good way of spooking divers descending the shot-line.

Dive planning
54° 28.351’ N
004° 11.279’ W
Low-water slack is the only real option for diving this wreck on air, where most of the wreck can be explored at 50m or shallower.

From England, Whitehaven is the closest and easiest launch point and can be used at all states of the tide. The Teasel is 25 miles almost due west of Whitehaven. The nearest harbour is Ramsey on the Isle of Man, being 13 miles to the southwest, but there are difficulties launching at Ramsey at anything other than high water (HW). Whithorn in Scotland is another option, being 18 miles north of the wreck, but this suffers the same problems as Ramsey for LW launching. Douglas on the Isle of Man is a good launch point but this is 27 miles from the Teasel and there are many other good wrecks closer to Douglas.

The slack water window starts 1.5 hours before LW and ends at LW.

Setting the shot
It’s worth taking some time to ensure the shot has the best chance of hitting the wreck. Wait until nearly slack water time before setting your shot. As you approach to drop the shot weight, the current dictates you will be heading roughly southeast (120 degrees M) and you will clearly see the scour appear on the sounder. After that, a wreck trace at 48–49m indicates the forecastle, 50m indicates the deck/hold area and a trace coming up to 46m indicates the stern/bridge. Use the diagram opposite to orientate yourself above the wreck relative to the current before LW slack. The obvious target for the shot-line is the large stern showing the trace at 46m, but often the current will carry the shot into the scour on the port side next to the broken mast. Having a dedicated cox in the boat, so the shot can be dropped and all the divers jump in during the slack water window, is the best option for diving this wreck, or contact Solway BSAC who may already have it buoyed.



Useful information
All of the following will give helpful advice on diving out of Whitehaven:

James Tyson, Solway Branch Diving
Officer
tel: 01946 67928

Alan Goodwin, Solway Branch
Training Officer
tel: 01946 690656

Peter McLean, Solway Branch Boats
Officer tel: 01946 822265

Phil Hutchinson
tel: 01946 590866

Whitehaven harbourmaster
tel: 01946 692435