By Kevin Baldacchino Those of us who were not deterred by last year’s lashing storm religiously made our way back to the scene of last year’s carnage, be it in more substantial accommodation. Most people arrived sometime on the Friday to setup camp and then relax with a few drinks and a couple consumed something that burned like metho and you could tell the next morning who they were as they looked pretty ugly! The wind blew fairly hard during the night but when Saturday dawned it didn’t look too bad and so after the dive briefing by Rob, the divers and boats quickly assembled on the beach and then each one was launched in a team effort. But as quick as David Pearn had launched his boat, it had to be retrieved almost immediately due to a broken prop which was quite a bit of bad luck. With all the boats gone we made our way back to camp for morning tea as a few of us opted to just relax and go for a walk with the kids over to Squeaky Beach. After returning from our walk it was time to start preparing for the big Saturday night BBQ which our club was supplying this year.
 The Unlucky Prop Sunday morning looked very promising, but first up was Mick and Kathys cook up of bacon and eggs for breakfast. After we were all fed it was Rob who reluctantly gave a brief on the days diving, some of us opted again to stay ashore and climb Mount Oberon while the rest headed for the beach to launch the boats. Around mid morning a group of us headed over to where the shuttle bus stop to be taken up to the Mount Oberon car park, once there we all set off for the 3.5km uphill walk. Although the walk is all uphill the spectacular view from the top is well worth it and we all sat back and just soaked it in. The seas looked quite calm from up there so we  decided we would try and head out for a dive when we returned to camp. It was much easier for most of us walking back as it was downhill all the way, but for one of our walkers The unlucky prop she found it trickier walking downhill and she has the cuts on her hands and knees to prove it, Hey Carol! 
When we returned back to camp Jason had a quick talk to Crispy and he agreed to take out the boat for a dive and no time Crispy, Jason, Andy and l were zipping out to the Glennies for a single dive. Conditions were great with the viz at around 15m+ and the usual big swim throughs which are common at the Prom. Two hours later we were back at Norman beach with the boat back on the trailer, not a bad way to finish off the weekend.  We fired up the club BBQ that evening and cooked up some of the leftover meat from the previous evening for those who wanted. Just before nightfall Gwen gathered the children together and guided them on her now famous night nature walk while we relaxed back at camp with a few drinks and some nibbles. The weather closed in during the night with quite a bit of rain falling, but not as bad as last year.
Monday was quite windy so there was to be no dive adventures to be had. For breakfast it was the traditional pancake feast and Rob was actually giving cooking lessons to the kids who were totally enthralled around the BBQ by Robs apparent expertise in the camp kitchen, with pancakes, eggs, toast and not to forget the ala carte ‘Toad in the hole’ being on the menu, the kids really enjoyed this activity. The rest of the day was spent either lazing around or going on one of the many walks the Prom has to offer, Mick, Jason, Denis and l took a walk out to Pillar Point after lunch and were nearly blown from the point as the SW wind was howling.  The magnificent view from Mount Oberon |
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