Fourth Element Adventures

• About Team Leaders Leigh Bishop and Pete Mesley

  

  Pete Mesley hails from New Zealand. He is a technical instructor trainer, Trimix & Rebreather instructor and a frequent organiser and participant in deep wreck exploration. He has particular expertise on the wrecks of Truk Lagoon, and with Pete as trip leader, you are in good hands.

  

  Leigh Bishop is one of the worlds greatest wreck photographers. His pioneering work using ambient light and long exposures have produced some of the most evocative images of many wrecks worldwide. Leigh ran photography workshops during the trip and we will be showing some of his work online soon.
  
  In addition, world-renowned diving physician, Simon Mitchell was part of the deep diving teams and on hand to offer emergency assistance.
  
  Truk Lagoon is a dream destination for most wreck divers, but few realise that many of the wrecks are within the reach of recreational divers.
  
  On this trip, dives were designed for all levels of diver, from the serious recreational diver to the rebreather diver looking for longer run times and of course, photographers looking to capture the eerie beauty of the Truk Lagoon wrecks.
  
  

• The Destination

  

  Truk Lagoon (Chuuk) is a very special place that has taken a cruel and ugly part of its history and turned it into something beautiful. During WWII Truk Lagoon was a centre of wartime activity. The heritage it left, buried under the sea, has become a haven for coral and fish life. It is a maze of military wrecks waiting to be explored. Here in this special underwater world you will find every kind of military equipment that you can imagine—ships, submarines, planes, bulldozers, ammunition, cannons, tanks, jeeps, medical supplies and much more.
  
  Near the end of WWII the US Navy unleashed the full fury of Operation Hailstone on the Japanese Imperial 4th Fleet stationed in Truk Lagoon. In the blaze of battle, 100’s of thousands of tones of Japanese naval ships, tankers, cargo ships, and planes disappeared beneath the sea. Operation Hailstone was six times more powerful than the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour and these tragic events have created an area that has been declared a national monument.
  
  For wreck divers, the events have also created a uniquely haunting and enchanting environment. As you sink down the anchor line beneath the warm, 30 degree blue water, history comes to life in the eerie tranquility. The awe inspiring nature of the wrecks, and the tragedy and violence of their arrival at the bottom of the ocean, jarringly contrasts with the beauty and life that now surrounds them. In their destruction, these wrecks have found the most beautiful of graves.
  
  

• Some of the Wrecks in Truk Lagoon

  San Francisco Maru — lying upright at a depth of 48m to 60m, this medium sized freighter carried military equipment. Loaded with so much war material, it is often nicknamed ’the Million Dollar Wreck’. You will also find the bow gun, ship’s bell, and an open safe.
  
  Nippo Maru—check out the wheelhouse for a great photo stop. This is a deeper dive and dives are limited to the bridge and deck areas.
  
  Nagano Maru—3800 ton army transport the wreck lies upright on the seabed. Top of the bridge lies in 45m with the deck sitting in 50m, 60m to the sand.
  
  Oite— One of the deepest wrecks in Truk. A Kamikaze Class Destroyer 1500 tons. Sitting between 60- 70m broken in two. This wreck has been rarely dived and has amazing artifacts.
  
  Katsuragisan Maru— Cargo vessel of 2400 tons sitting in 60-70m of water, rarely dived by people so again another virginal wreck. This is the deepest wreck in Truk!
  
  Rio-De Janeiro Maru— 9600 ton ocean liner. This is not a deep ship max depth 34m to 12m!! But we can have the most fun on this vessel exploring the internals. Not all these ships we will be diving will all be deep. And divers will be placed according to their qualifications and experience.

• Get Involved in the next Expedition

  We will be running two more expeditions in 2011 to Truk Lagoon. To register your interest and to keep updated email: expeditions@fourthelement.com

`The Fourth Element Adventures Truk Lagoon Expedition is organised and run by Pete Mesley. Fourth Element Ltd is not involved in the organisation or implementation of this Expedition and Fourth Element Ltd accepts no responsibility for the above. Fourth Element Ltd is providing marketing and publicity support for the expedition, but is not involved with the running of the trip in any way.