The Nippo Maru was used as a water carrier, is 107 metres long, lying upright with a list to port, at 50 metres in the Fourth Fleet Anchorage to the east of Dublon Island.  

We descended the anchor line to the bridge of the Nippo Maru.  Neil signalled me to get near the little tank with no gun barrel which is near the port rail in front of Hold 3, and he took some photos.  Chenney showed me the truck frame further forward.  We all looked over the bow as Neil photographed us from ahead of the ship.  The forecastle has big anchor winches, a gun platform, but no gun.  Michael and I explored the forecastle and found some Japanese shoes.

We entered Hold 1 and explored the tween decks (37 metres) so as not to go too deep.  We found gas masks there but no mines.  We moved on to Hold 2 where there were stacks of 10cm shells, then through to Hold 3 where there is a large heap of beer bottles.  The stern is overlooked, by a sand hill.  I reached 48.6 metres while exploring Hold 4 where there is a big pile of bottles.  This ship is full of bottles! 

On board the Blue Lagoon dive boat, Doone and I were chatting and were unaware of a real drama being enacted below.  We had one of our own!  The motion of the boat changed in the two-foot chop.  Doone looked at the anchor rope and said, “The anchor has come loose!”  There was no underwater buoy on the Nippo, so the hook anchor was used to hold the boat.  The weight of the divers on the rope had pulled it off the wreck.  The Easterly wind blew the boat towards the reef off Dublon Island.  Doone started the starboard outboard and positioned the boat over the divers so that they could climb aboard after they were released from their decompression penalty.

A six-foot mako shark circled the tight group of divers at the final decompression stop on the anchor line. With their knives out, they alternately watched the shark, their dive computers, and the rapidly diminishing air supply in their pony bottles. The 80 cu ft drop tank hung temptingly under the boat, but no one was prepared to leave the safety of the group.

Neil was the first to surface after me and told me that a six-foot mako shark was bothering the divers.  They had first attracted its unwelcome attention near the bridge of the Nippo where he had been photographing the engine telegraph.  It reappeared while they were ascending the anchor line and proceeded to circle them.

Although this shark was not a large specimen, the mako is known for its unpredictable behavior so caution is required.  The shark did not go into the classic attack pattern. It may have been intimidated by the compact group of five strange, bubbling, beeping, aggressive creatures.  Paul boarded next leaving Michael and Rod below with Chenney, our guide.  Michael surfaced and climbed aboard with his camera.  Rod arrived quite unconcerned, with Chenney last of all with his spear.