Dive Report: Bibb Date: Saturday afternoon April 8, 2000 Boat: Diversity Captain: Bob Borselli By: Mike Rodriguez The Bibb was a Coast Guard cutter built in 1935. It was named after George M. Bibb, the Secretary of the Treasury under President Tyler. The ship is 327 feet long with a 41 foot beam. It was powered by two reduction-geared turbines and could travel at nearly 20 knots. The Bibb was active during World War II when it rescued 300 survivors from six torpedoed vessels. It was also deployed to Vietnam and later rescued 70 survivors of an airliner crash in 1948. In 1985, the Bibb was decommissioned and was later purchased along with its sister ship, the Duane, for $160,000 to become artificial reefs. In 1987, they were sunk 100 yards apart near Molasses Reef off Key Largo. The Bibb now rests on its starboard side with the bow pointing north in about 135 feet of water; the port side of the ship comes to within about 90 feet of the surface. The Bibb's guns were removed before the ship was sunk and the large turret at the bow was sealed to prevent divers from entering the ship. During the sinking, however, the metal plate covering the turret was dislodged leaving an inviting opening for divers trained and equipped for overhead environments. The Bibb sits right in the Gulf Stream, so the currents there are usually formidable. However, the clear Gulf Stream water also means that the visibility there is usually exceptional, sometimes as much as 200 feet... Everyone was at the dock and ready to load the boat around noon. On our way, the seas were running about two feet. The air temperature was 80F and the water surface temperature was 75F. At the site, we found a light current. I was diving a light trimix with 50% and 100% oxygen for decompression. The captain tied off the boat to one of the mooring buoys, then our group geared-up and jumped in. I've been diving this wreck for many years and was on it a few weeks earlier, so rather than spend any time touring outside, I immediately entered the open turret near the bow. Inside, I tied in a guideline and clipped my deco bottles to the line, then I entered a corridore and lost sight of daylight. Since the Bibb is on its starboard side, it's very disorienting inside; all the walls become floors and the floors become walls. Stairways are especially difficult to figure out. This is one of the things I find most interesting about the Bibb. I did a line placement just inside the daylight zone and continued deeper into the ship. The corridore I was in dead-ended a short distance in. There was a lot of extremely fine rust dust all over the bottom and, in the tight quarters, it was hard to turn around while dealing with the guideline without disturbing the silt. Compounding things, my exhaust was disloging even more silt from the ceiling. I made my way back to my last line placement, then took a different corridore which also ended a short distance away at a door. I tried to open it, but was unable to. I returned to my last placement where, by this time, the visibility had dropped to about 10 feet since I'd been through the area three times, each time deploying and reeling in line. Following a line is certainly much easier than laying it. I checked my gas supply and bottom timer, then decided to try another corridore. This one seemed more promising than the others. It went toward the bow of the ship and ended at a wall where I had to choose to go up (port) or down (starboard). I shined my light up, and it vanished into the distance in the clear water; I chose up. A few feet up the corridore it intersected another bow-stern corridore. I now had three choices; up, left, and right. I continued up and made a mental note of the location of the crossing corridore so I could explore it next time. I wrapped the line on what looked like a cooling fin on a power transformer, then I went on. At the end of the corridore was yet another hallway running the length of the ship and a room above me. The room didn't have any portholes so I couldn't tell if it was at the port side of the ship or if there was more of the ship beyond the far wall. I decided to take a closer look around the room. I locked down my reel, then wrapped the line on a light fixture and left it hanging there so I could move around the room more easily. The room was maybe 15 x 15 feet. It had some electrical boxes on one wall, but nothing much else of interest. I cupped my light to see if I could see daylight anywhere... it was pitch black. I poked around the room for another five minutes contemplating how I was at the bottom of the ocean deep inside a ship with silt everywhere and no hint of daylight in any direction. I checked my gas supply, and although I'd only used a small fraction, my bottom timer told me it was time to turn the dive. I picked up my reel and weaved my way back toward the enterance undoing my placements and wraps along the way. At my initial tie-off point, I ran into two other divers from our group on their way into the wreck. They hadn't seen my line and were setting up their own line to go inside. When they saw me exiting, they backed out and decided to explore another way in. I exited, stowed my reel, then picked up my deco bottles and headed out of the turret. It seemed very bright outside in the sunlight, but it also felt good to see daylight again. I had a few minutes left in my planned bottom time, so I went for a leasurely swim toward the stern. I know there's an enterance to the engine room near the stern, but I've never been able to find it. I looked around for it, but all I found was a restroom. The toilet was seemingly on a wall since the ship is on its side; I found this funny and it made me chuckle. Eventually, I gave up my search for the other way into the ship and headed back toward the mooring line to begin my ascent. The current had picked up a bit while I was inside the ship, and as the divers began to converge around the 20 foot stop, I deployed a jon-line to stay out of everyone's way and relax in the current. Decompression went as planned and a while later everyone was back on the boat talking about the dive and looking forward to the dive the next day on the Northern Light. The Bibb, even though it's not a very deep wreck, is always a lot of fun to explore, and I'm looking forward to my next dive on this ship when I plan to explore some of the corridors I didn't get a chance to look at on this dive.