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X127 Lighter – Carolita Barge a true wartime wreck in Malta

Well here we are again – Sunday in Malta so it must be off for a dive…

And today we have the new scubaworksmalta.com truck!! Furthermore I get to ride in it

It is shiny and red and has a whole extra gear in the gearbox (the old truck had a couple of extras ground in there somewhere) and nearly a whole 200cc more engine capacity. I was expecting to have to carry the red warning flag in front of the truck… but was told in no uncertain terms that if I wanted a lift to get in the fricking truck! Gratitude.

Anyway, crash helmet on, I strapped myself in with the 5 point safety harness, grabbed the hang rails on the roll cage and off we went, backwards, at first. But never mind.

Once again the weather is not checking the forecast, so after a coffee at Cirkewwa we set off down South to dive the X127 otherwise known as the Carolita, amongst other names.

It was touch and go that we would actually dive as everyone wanted to stop off at Duck Village and then Duck Village 2.

More importantly, the gate was locked, but the friendly Security Guard eventually crept out from his well camouflaged bunker and cheerily let us in.

Ho hum another onlyinmalta.com moment.

The X127 is a nice dive – a “warm water UK wreck and rummage dive” is the best description. It is a veteran of World War 1 having been designed for the Gallipoli Landings, but was sunk in World War 2. She was a water lighter serving around the harbour and was sunk when the submarine moorings off Manoel Island were bombed.

The moorings were just off the old isolation hospital, so a number of beds, baths, toilets, spent cartridges, live cartridges, marmite jars, medical thermometers, clay smoking pipes, clay oils lamps, a car, fire extinguishers etc., etc. can be discovered.

Our dive was shaping up to be interesting as someone was going to try diving without a mask… I know the vis for a harbour dive is never that good, but that was a bit extreme. Something about BSAC Training or Technical Diving was muttered as they went back to the truck. No mention of a good idea to do buddy check before leaving the vehicles when the entry point is a few minutes walk away.

Being a kind group we waited for them to return properly dressed for a dive. (Basically I needed to be sure of getting a lift home.)

Oh yes, then the same person warned us they they may go round in circles as they were, allegedly, trying out 2 different fins…

Just goes to show that anyone can make a mistake or two

Instructors need to show that they are in fact human. So well done that person.

The dive was excellent and it was in fact, exceptionally good vis. A number of purple nudibranch (technically known as wee purple cartoon frilly beasties), a lot of small bait fish (damsels and possibly sardines), a few grouper, some green tongues and then on the way in, a beautiful big flying gurnard.

A nice 50 minute dive to 21.5m and a refreshing 16C. I was in my wetsuit as my trusty drysuit was becoming a wetsuit… It was not too bad really.

Then it was back out through the high security system (nobody was there), more photos of Duck village and some snacks from Cafe Jubilee.

Another excellent, relaxed dive with the scubaworksmalta.com crew.

See you all next week?

Tags: Dive in Malta, Diving, Manoel Island, Scuba Diving, wartime wreck in Malta, Wreck Diving in Malta, X127 Lighter Carolita Barge, X131 Lighter Carolita Barge a truly wartime wreck in Malta