The Zenobia, Cyprus, 2005
Well it's that time of the year again. It's known to me as the "Jolly Boys Day Out", or even a week at least. Generally it is a choice between Oban, Scapa or even the Red Sea, this year it was Cyprus. Even in February the weather is fantastic, it gets hotter by the day.
We used The Dive-ln Centre, run by Chris Demetriou. It is situated conveniently close to our hotel and only yards from the sea. The main attraction in this area is the wreck of the Zenobia, a Swedish roll-on, roll-off ferry which sank in 1980; apparently due to a computer problem! Heading from Sweden to Syria, she was on her maiden voyage at the time.
We used The Dive-ln Centre, run by Chris Demetriou. It is situated conveniently close to our hotel and only yards from the sea. The main attraction in this area is the wreck of the Zenobia, a Swedish roll-on, roll-off ferry which sank in 1980; apparently due to a computer problem! Heading from Sweden to Syria, she was on her maiden voyage at the time.
The wreck site is just a 10 minute boat journey from the port of Larnaca. The Zenobia is one of the most popular wreck dives in the Mediterranean, boasting of its size, water temperature and clarity.
The top of the wreck sits at 16 metres and the maximum depth is 43 metres. The ferry had 104 fully loaded articulated lorries on board when she went down, and many of these can still be seen along the wrecks halls and decks. Certain portions of the wreck are firm favourites, such as the two huge propellers, the bridge, the Cafeteria (check the mural pictures on the lobby wall before entering the bar area), the anchor and the bow thrusters.
Because of its depth and enormous size, my buddy and myself decided to hire a pair of very expensive to buy scooters. Just the job for flying around the entire ship twice, briefly parking up now and again to have a photo shoot and explore before circling around the shot line in a spiral pattern until we reached the trapezium bar where we could rest and complete our decompression stops.
Also in that week we dived a Navy vessel called "HMS Cricket" which lies up side down at 30 metres. A very enjoyable dive, which provides a break from diving the Zenobia.
The crew and myself would like to thank John and Mo Fuller for the organization of such an enjoyable Jolly Boys, a great time was had by all, where to next?
Article by Glen Halsey
The top of the wreck sits at 16 metres and the maximum depth is 43 metres. The ferry had 104 fully loaded articulated lorries on board when she went down, and many of these can still be seen along the wrecks halls and decks. Certain portions of the wreck are firm favourites, such as the two huge propellers, the bridge, the Cafeteria (check the mural pictures on the lobby wall before entering the bar area), the anchor and the bow thrusters.
Because of its depth and enormous size, my buddy and myself decided to hire a pair of very expensive to buy scooters. Just the job for flying around the entire ship twice, briefly parking up now and again to have a photo shoot and explore before circling around the shot line in a spiral pattern until we reached the trapezium bar where we could rest and complete our decompression stops.
Also in that week we dived a Navy vessel called "HMS Cricket" which lies up side down at 30 metres. A very enjoyable dive, which provides a break from diving the Zenobia.
The crew and myself would like to thank John and Mo Fuller for the organization of such an enjoyable Jolly Boys, a great time was had by all, where to next?
Article by Glen Halsey
The Crew
Back row: Mike Rousou, Mike Gerrard, Andy Bannister, Mark Hadley, Glen Halsey and John Fuller.
Front row: Dave Goldon, Maureen Fuller, Gillian Dyson and Andy Moss.
Back row: Mike Rousou, Mike Gerrard, Andy Bannister, Mark Hadley, Glen Halsey and John Fuller.
Front row: Dave Goldon, Maureen Fuller, Gillian Dyson and Andy Moss.