Wreck Inspection Report The Caprice

Dates Inspected: 06/02/2006 and 07/02/2006

Zach Woodford Dianna Zwart Debra Shefi

Amanda Hale

Maritime Archaeology Field School Flinders University Archaeology Department

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Wreck Inspection Report – The Caprice 1 Site Name ........................................................................................................... 3 2 Date of Inspection.............................................................................................. 3 3 Personnel............................................................................................................ 3 4 Approximate Location...................................................................................... 3 5 Access to Site...................................................................................................... 3 6 GPS..................................................................................................................... 4 7 Compass Bearings ............................................................................................. 4 8 Visual Transits................................................................................................... 4 9 Transit Photographs ......................................................................................... 4 10 History of Caprice.......................................................................................... 5 11 Water Depth .................................................................................................. 5 12 Water Visibility ............................................................................................. 5 13 Water Temperature ...................................................................................... 5 14 Local Flora..................................................................................................... 6 15 Local Fauna ................................................................................................... 6 16 Seabed Composition...................................................................................... 6 17 Equipment used in Survey ........................................................................... 6 18 Methodology Used in Survey ....................................................................... 6 19 Limitations..................................................................................................... 8 20 Plan of Site ..................................................................................................... 8 21 Site Photographs ........................................................................................... 8 22 Description of Site ......................................................................................... 9 23 Direction of Lie.............................................................................................. 9 24 Is the wreck wood, iron or composite.......................................................... 9 25 Wooden Remains........................................................................................... 9 26 Anchors .......................................................................................................... 9 27 Mast or Rigging Remains ........................................................................... 10 28 Other Contents, Describe ........................................................................... 10 29 Site Condition .............................................................................................. 10 30 The Wreck Site Is Affected By................................................................... 11 31 Recommendations ....................................................................................... 11 32 References .................................................................................................... 12 33 Figures.......................................................................................................... 13

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1 Site Name

Caprice

2 Date of Inspection

6 Feb., 7 Feb. 2006

3 Personnel

Team One: Zach Woodford, Dianna Zwart, Amanda Hale, Debra Shefi.

Supervisors: James Hunter, Peta Knott, Toni Massey.

4 Approximate Location

155 meters from shore, 10 meters West of Dutton Bay Jetty (see Fig. 1). Mount

Dutton Bay, Eyre Peninsula, South Australia.

5 Access to Site

The team walking down the jetty fully kitted in SCUBA gear obtained access to the

site. The BCD and tank were then removed and lowered by rope from the jetty at

pylon 30 into the water. Team members entered the water via a ladder at pylon 31,

where the jetty expands and then donned their gear in the water. This required only

a few meter swim to the wreck location. An alternative approach is to enter the

water by stairs at the beginning of the jetty and making a 155 meter surface swim to

the wreck site.

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6 GPS

GPS points are to Pylon 30 on the Jetty 10 meters East of the wreck site. Datum

WGS 84: Lat: S34º 31’ 59.3” Long: E135º 24’ 54.8”

Easting: 539632, Northing: 6178643

7 Compass Bearings

From Jetty Pylon Number 30, 10m East of wreck: 1st transit - 20º down Jetty to

furthest West window of the Woolshed owner’s home. 2nd transit - 296º to large

white house on waterfront. 3rd transit - 154º to radio tower on hill top.

8 Visual Transits

From Pylon 30 on Jetty, 10m East of Jetty. 1st - To Large white house on waterfront

one finger to left of small tan shed to the north. 2nd – Electric pole one finger to

right of tan rainwater tank of the Woolshed owner’s home. 3rd – Eastern peak of

public restroom roof and aligning electric pole.

9 Transit Photographs

See Fig. 2

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10 History of Caprice

There is very little historical information on the Caprice; the majority of information

comes as an oral history. Flinders University Technical officer, Rick Bullers, was

able to provide the following information: The Caprice was a cutter type fishing

vessel owned by Paddy Lynch. The ship’s recorded measurements were: length:

8.8m, breadth: 2.9m, depth: 1.7m. She operated out of Mount Dutton Bay as part of

the fisheries industry. The cause of loss is attributed to the boat dragging its anchor

and smashing against the Mount Dutton Bay Jetty. The boat was subsequently

burned and abandoned.

11 Water Depth

1.2-1.5 meters

12 Water Visibility

Visibility was quite variable on the site. The disturbance of the seabed resulted in

an immediate reduction of visibility. In the mornings, the visibility tended to be the

best at 5-7meters. This could be reduced to only 1m after divers entered the water.

Strong winds also caused waves with white caps whose energy would disrupt the

seabed resulting in poor visibility. Sea grasses floating in the water made visibility

poor for photographs. The slight westerly current would transport a portion of the

silt away; however, this was at a slow pace.

13 Water Temperature

18-21ºC

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14 Local Flora

Various varieties of sea grasses are present and cover approximately 70% of the

seabed.

15 Local Fauna

Local Fauna on the site include, but are not limited to: Octopus, Crabs, pipefish,

globefish and Jellyfish

16 Seabed Composition

The seabed is mostly a sandy/silty mixture. Approximately 20cm below the sand is

a hard limestone layer.

17 Equipment used in Survey

2x 30m tapes, 2x10m tapes, 20m carabineer ending lead lined rope, 2x starpickets,

2x tent pegs, hand sledge, Air-probe, Olympus C-5050 digital camera and housing,

underwater slates, mylar, pencils, and water dredge.

18 Methodology Used in Survey

A baseline was set up parallel to the wreck (running 250º) approximately 1 meter

North of the Caprice. The datum for this baseline was trilaterated using pylon

numbers 28 (P28) and 30 (P30) from the Jetty. The distance from P28 was 7.04m,

from P30 was 9.05m and the distance from P28 to P30 was 12.42m.

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A Star-picket was hammered into the seabed with a hand sledge where the two tapes

crossed; this point became the initial datum. A lead line rope was stretched tight at

an angle of 250º, parallel to the Caprice, to mark the baseline and a second star-

picket was placed at the end of the rope for a second datum.

A second baseline was established by moving 5m at 160º from the primary baseline,

and using the sledgehammer placed a tent peg as a parallel datum. A tape was then

stretched at 250º for 20m and secured with a second tent peg. This gave the team a

parallel baseline 5m from the primary baseline. A photographic record of the ship

was attempted; however, visibility and sea surface conditions limited the application

of photography (see Fig. 4 to Fig. 8).

In order to determine if more structure remained of the Caprice hand fanning was

conducted in various locations on the site. An air probe survey was also conducted

to assist in determining if buried remains were present. The air probe was used at

2m intervals along both baselines with probes taking place 1m South, directly on,

and 1m North of the baseline. The main structure of the Caprice was mapped using

the baseline-offset method. Measurements were taken to all points deemed

important and necessary to producing an accurate site plan. The primary baseline

was used throughout the mapping process. Because substantial remains were

discovered by hand fanning, dredge work was authorized to commence. However,

due to mechanical failures the dredge was not employed during the team’s time on

the Caprice.

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19 Limitations

There were several limiting factors during the course of this survey. A compressor

breakdown resulted in limited air for SCUBA diving operations. The consequence

of this was a total of 5 dives for a dive time of 5hr. 25min. The early removal of our

team to another site limited the amount of information gathered. Particularly, new

areas of structure that had been discovered by hand fanning were not mapped in.

The malfunction of the dredge system prevented its use by our team. Visibility was

often poor on the site making measuring difficult and photography nearly

impossible. The slight current at the site could also bend tapes causing inaccurate

readings. The water temperature resulted in shorter dives and a loss of focus as team

members became cold.

Human error must also be accounted for. Visibility, current, time underwater and

cold all can play factors in human error. These could be as simple as reading the

wrong number off the tape, failure to ensure a 90º angle for the offset, having the

offset at an elevation to the baseline, lack of tightness in either the baseline or the

offset line, failure to record a needed point, and poor handwriting resulting in data

difficult to interpret.

20 Plan of Site

See Fig. 3

21 Site Photographs

See Fig. 4

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22 Description of Site

A section of the Caprice measuring 7.80 by .75 meters is exposed on the seabed.

The sections exposed include parts of the keel, centreboard, and centreboard casings.

Several fasteners and other copper alloy parts are also visible (see Fig. 5 to Fig. 8).

A flat scarf can be seen on the keel approximately 2.4 meters from the Eastern end

of the structure (see Fig. 8). The area directly around the Caprice is sandy with

several varieties of sea grasses present. A few bottles and other recent cultural

artefacts are scattered around the area. The hand fanned exposed area with black

granite stones not mapped is located a few meters northeast of the main structure.

23 Direction of Lie

WSW 250º

24 Is the wreck wood, iron or composite

The wreck is composite. Most of the remains are wood. However, the centreboard

and centreboard casing are covered with copper alloy sheathing.

25 Wooden Remains

The keel, centreboard, and centreboard casings are all made of an unknown type of

wood. See site map, Fig. 3 and site photographs.

26 Anchors

No anchors were located on site.

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27 Mast or Rigging Remains

The mast or rigging remains were not located.

28 Other Contents, Describe

A few round black granite stones were located approximately 5 meters northeast of

the wreck. Hand fanning in this area resulted in the exposure of several wood boards

that are part of the Caprice. The limestone substrate in this area seems to dip too

greater than 20cm below the sandy surface of the seabed. Hand fanning was able to

expose approximately 2m by .5m of wood. This consisted of several different wood

boards, possible scantlings and planking. Several granite stones overlay parts of the

wood. These stones may have been ballast aboard the Caprice. Due to time

constraints and equipment malfunctions, the area was not explored further and was

unfortunately not mapped.

29 Site Condition

Mild to strong Southerly to South-easterly winds are present nearly continuously.

This, in combination with the tides, produces a westerly flowing current that is

variable, but generally mild. A limestone substrate is located approximately 20cm

from the sandy seabed over most of the site. The exception to this is where the

additional remains of the Caprice were found approximately 5m northeast of the

main site. The limestone layer at this location should only be a few more cm below

the remains. The combination of the winds, current and a shallow average water

depth of only 1.4 meters probably resulted in the break up and dispersal of most of

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the remains of the Caprice. Although the wreck is not heavily encrusted a good

growth of sea grasses are present, as well as local fauna such as crabs, and octopus.

30 The Wreck Site Is Affected By

Currents are the most serious threat to this wreck. The seabed is fairly flat and

uniform so no natural barriers are present to protect the site. The current pushing the

remains against the limestone substrate will probably affect the wreck slowly. It is

possible that people swimming from the jetty would be able to locate and disturb the

site. Fishing lines becoming entangled among the wreckage could also adversely

affect the site. Corrosion of the copper alloy sections has and will continue to occur.

A corrosion potential measurement could provide information on the rate of

corrosion.

31 Recommendations

Very little historical information on the Caprice is available. Therefore, it is

recommended that the remains be left in-situ for further research. The area to the

northeast of the wreck that was exposed by hand fanning deems further research to

be carried out on this wreck. Although the extent of the remains is unclear, it is

believed there is enough present to warrant a more detailed examination and

excavation of the site. A yearly monitoring of the wreck should also be initiated.

The purpose would be to determine if the remains above the sea floor are remaining

in a stable condition or if deterioration is occurring at an unacceptably high rate.

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32 References

Bullers R. Technical Officer, Flinders University. Personal Communication.

12/02/2006

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33 Figures

Fig. 1

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Fig. 2

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Fig. 3

Caprice Site Plan

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Fig. 4

Western end of Caprice. (Photo: D. Shefi 07/02/06)

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Fig. 5

Centreboard and Centreboard Casings, located on southern side of the Caprice. (Photo: D. Shefi 07/02/06)

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Fig. 6 (above) and Fig. 7 (below)

Detail. Copper alloy fasteners (above) and copper sheathing (below) located on the southern end of the Caprice. (Photo: D. Shefi 07/02/06)

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Fig. 8

Detail. Flat scarf located on north side, along the keel. (Photo: D. Shefi 07/02/06)