By JH ( September 20, 2010 at 9:56 am) · Filed under Fathom Annual, alby ziebell, ben cropp, Bill Foster, black cod, bob grounds, christine danaher, Clarke Espie, dave rowlings, dean cropp, Denise and Wally Muller, Dr Robert Endean, Gai Girdlestone, grey nurse shark, harold holt PM, henri bource, Irvin Rockman CBE, jocelyn edwards, John C. Fairfax and Sandra Greentree, john gillies, John Harding, john harding pictures, John Michael Harding, john sumner, kathy troutt, kay milburn, louise west, lynn roberts, Mal McLeod, norm smith, north shore sea hawks, Peter West, Phil Eather, Richard Weir, ron cox, ron taylor, st george spearfishing club, sydney sea hunters, ted louis, tommy thomas, Trevor Collins (with marlin), valerie may taylor, van laman, vic ley, wally gibbins, wally muller, Walter A.Starck

Double click picture
A larger and similar picture is at http://fathomoz.wordpress.com

Walter A.Starck, Vic Ley, Ron Taylor, Phil Eather, Richard Weir, Wally Gibbins, Mal McLeod, Gai Girdlestone, John Harding

Wally Muller, Van Laman, Ben Cropp, Kathy Troutt, Lynn Roberts, John Michael Harding, Bob Grounds, Dean Cropp, Ron Taylor, Trevor Collins (with marlin), Valerie May Taylor, Henri Bource.

The Late IRVIN ROCKMAN CBE
RON IBLE (White Water Wanderers) 30 April 2013 R.I.P. mate
Permalink
By JH ( August 2, 2010 at 4:35 pm) · Filed under Around the Coast, Free divers and Spear fishermen, bob grounds, captain wally muller, coralita, first scuba dive boat history, fishing boat to the coral sea, francis preston blair, John Harding, liberty ship wreck, ron taylor, ron zangari, saumarez reef, the coral sea, wally muller
We went 250 miles offshore in this tiny fishing boat. A great adventure with a pioneer of The Great Barrier Reef, Captain Wally Muller- later of Coralita charter boat notoriety. Coralita was Australia’s first scuba dive boat on the GBR, launched in 1969.





Wally Muller built Coralita which was launched in 1969. Originally it was intended as a cruise boat working the islands and reefs offshore on the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef. The vessel, while being an excellent open sea craft was prone to ‘rocking wildly’ at anchor. Tourists were often seasick. Wally Muller then turned to fishing and diving charters. Through his friendship with Ron Taylor and John Harding (then the founding editor of FATHOM) he was able to attract local and overseas scuba divers, especially from USA. Hollywood producers seeking shark scenes obtained these in The Coral Sea. Wally returned to Saumarez Reef several times and found a magnificent bommie in 100 feet of water that rose to 30 feet under the surface. Modestly named “Wal’s Bommie” it was for a short time one of the best scuba dive locations known. Today the location would be ‘lost’. Although Wally Muller chartered and named many reefs in The Swain Reefs, only one retains one of his original names “Riversong Cay”.

Permalink
By JH ( April 22, 2010 at 12:01 pm) · Filed under Free divers and Spear fishermen, australian spear fishing champions, ben cropp, brown spotted cod, coral trout, John Harding, nor west island, riversong, ron taylor, spearfishing 1963, sykes reef, vic ley, wally muller, world spear fishing champion 1965
Permalink
By JH ( January 13, 2010 at 1:26 pm) · Filed under Fathom Annual, australian spear fishing champion 1960's, ron taylor, world spearfishing champion1965
Ron Taylor won his world crown in Tahiti, 1965. After returning home this picture was taken at Montague Island off Narooma (New South Wales, south coast). It could have made a good Rolex advert had not water drops been on the lens port of the Rolleimarin housing. The Yellowtail Kingfish still exist but large fish are no longer common.
The speargun used in Tahiti is shown with Ron Taylor, in 1995 at his former Roseville residence, Sydney.
(Updated 5 September 2010)
Permalink
By JH ( December 7, 2009 at 4:10 pm) · Filed under Uncategorized, captain wally muller, ron taylor, the wreck of the yongala

GT
Golden trevally (1984)
School of Batfish above the Yongala in 1984 helped to mark the location
My first dives on the Yongala were in October 1984, while aboard Coralita with Captain Wally Muller. This was the era pre GPS so finding the wreck might take some time using radar fixes and the echo sounder. The other factor to help ID the location was a resident school of Batfish, so numerous on the surface they could be spotted a hundred meters away.
On my return dives with Ben Cropp in 2002 the wreck was noticeably changed. One morning while doing a solo dive on the wreck I heard the sounds of the approaching – and anchoring tourist dive boat run by my friend Mike Ball. A rare experience no doubt.
What a racket of sound underwater. Zodiac’s positioning buoys, the rattle of heavy anchor chain and the thumping drone of big boat engines. Do fish get accustomed to this noise and ‘put up with it’ or do some clear-out?
The Batfish were gone - perhaps that’s a seasonal thing? So were the stingray, giant groper and black kingfish.
Since 2002 I’d expect that ‘marine parks’ have placed permanent moorings in place. If not then these are long overdue. These prevent anchor damage from continual boat arrivals.
Yongala is still a worthwhile dive if only a fraction as exciting as in 1984 – which is to be expected.
Ron Taylor made a 50 minute film of the wreck in the late 1970′s when it was in it’s prime. JHH
Permalink
By JH ( August 29, 2009 at 8:34 am) · Filed under 1. Our best adventure - ever!, john gillies, len mcleod, red morwong, ron taylor, spear injury on fish, sydney sea hunters, usfa, vic ley, wally gibbins, white water wanderers

Former spear wound on red morwong, Marley NSW



White Water Wanderers - a Bondi spearfishing club. Sydney Sea Hunters a City of Sydney club.

The spear gun used by Ron Taylor in the 1965 world championships was not built by Ron. The above picture was thirty years after he won the main event. Ron found the gun floating in the sea off Yeppoon, Queensland in 1961.
Permalink
By JH ( August 28, 2009 at 2:43 pm) · Filed under 2. Sharks Guide, blue water white death, John Harding, ron isbell, ron taylor, slaughter at saumarez, white tip shark


One of the family known commonly as whaler sharks, "the sharks that fed upon harpooned whales".


Permalink
By JH ( August 17, 2009 at 5:48 pm) · Filed under 6. Coralita - New Charter Boat, manta ray, ron taylor


Text by Ron Taylor reprinted from his Sunday Telegraph newspaper column.
Permalink