Treasure Islands : True Tales of a Shipwreck Hunter

**"Crawford's absorbing account of his first adventures in the salvage trade . . . an unusually likeable, as well as interesting, memoir." --__The Scotsman__** In 1971 Alec Crawford is determined to make his fortune from ship salvage. Early attempts lead nowhere until he teams up with a new partner, Simon Martin. Diving in Hebridean waters, they explore remains of the Spanish Armada, and the wreck of the SS __Politician__, the vessel made famous in the film __Whisky Galore!__ But money is scarce and irregular, and the work is fraught with danger and disappointment. Until they hear of one of the most incredible wrecks of all time--the White Star liner RMS __Oceanic__, which, when built in 1899, was the biggest and most luxurious ship in the world. Widely regarded as an "undiveable" wreck, lying somewhere off the remote island of Foula, they decide to take the challenge. They face unbelievably dangerous waters and appalling weather conditions, and when a large salvage company takes action against them, they also have a huge legal fight on their hands. But if they succeed, the rewards will be enormous . . . **"Crawford pioneered many of the methods now used in deep sea recovery, but this book is more about the excitement than the technicalities. It is also a love song to Scotland and a vanishing way of life." --__Sorted Magazine__****"Crawford is a born story-teller, and his tales unfold as easily and naturally as he were an old friend." --__The Shetland Times__****"A story of genuine adventure." --__Desperate Reader__** "Crawford's absorbing account of his first adventures in the salvage trade . . . an unusually likeable, as well as interesting, memoir." -- The Scotsman In 1971 Alec Crawford is determined to make his fortune from ship salvage. Early attempts lead nowhere until he teams up with a new partner, Simon Martin. Diving in Hebridean waters, they explore remains of the Spanish Armada, and the wreck of the SS Politician , the vessel made famous in the film Whisky Galore! But money is scarce and irregular, and the work is fraught with danger and disappointment. Until they hear of one of the most incredible wrecks of all time--the White Star liner RMS Oceanic , which, when built in 1899, was the biggest and most luxurious ship in the world. Widely regarded as an "undiveable" wreck, lying somewhere off the remote island of Foula, they decide to take the challenge. They face unbelievably dangerous waters and appalling weather conditions, and when a large salvage company takes action against them, they also have a huge legal fight on their hands. But if they succeed, the rewards will be enormous . . . "Crawford pioneered many of the methods now used in deep sea recovery, but this book is more about the excitement than the technicalities. It is also a love song to Scotland and a vanishing way of life." -- Sorted Magazine "Crawford is a born story-teller, and his tales unfold as easily and naturally as he were an old friend." -- The Shetland Times "A story of genuine adventure." -- Desperate Reader An extraordinary true story of danger, innovation and deep sea discovery. In 1971 Alec Crawford is determined to make his fortune from ship salvage. Early attempts lead nowhere until he teams up with a new partner, Simon Martin. Diving in Hebridean waters, they explore remains of the Spanish Armada, and the wreck of the SS Politician, the vessel made famous in the Whisky Galore. But money is scarce and irregular, and the work is fraught with danger and disappointment. Until they hear of one of the most incredible wrecks of all time – the White Star Liner Oceanic, which, when built in 1899, was the biggest and most luxurious ship in the world. Widely regarded as an 'undiveable' wreck, lying somewhere off the remote island of Foula, they decide to take the challenge. They face unbelievably dangerous waters and appalling weather conditions, and when a large salvage company takes action against them, they also have a huge legal fight on their hands. But if they succeed, the rewards will be enormous... In 1971 Alec Crawford is determined to make his fortune from ship salvage. Early attempts lead nowhere until he teams up with a new partner, Simon Martin. Diving in Hebridean waters, they explore remains of the Spanish Armada, and the wreck of the SS Politician, the vessel made famous in Whisky Galore. But money is scarce and irregular, and the work is fraught with danger and disappointment. Until they hear of one of the most incredible wrecks of all time - the White Star Liner Oceanic, which, when built in 1899, was the biggest and most luxurious ship in the world. Widely regarded as an 'undiveable' wreck, lying somewhere off the remote island of Foula, they decide to take the challenge. If successful, the rewards will be enormous, but unbelievably dangerous waters and appalling weather conditions are just half the challenge. When a large salvage company takes action against them, they also have a huge legal fight on their hands. This is the extraordinary true story of one of the most dangerous and audacious salvage operations ever, that of the RMS Oceanic. This amazing search for and discovery of the wreck of the Titanic’s predecessor in the freezing waters off Shetland is a classic adventure story from one of the pioneers of deep-water recovery.