The Diver: Bill Martin

The Diver Arrives

Who should jump in the vile and sub-life sustaining 55 deg water when “Bill Martin” artist and part-time prop diver does this professionally (fee: about the cost of Jim’s medical co-pay). It is important to contribute to the local economy.

Plus, I am not sure what is worse: the swift cardiac arrest of cold water OR the slow death due to a rare case of typeedis (rhymes with fetus) or certainly a wicked case of gleep (Lara’s Howard family is aware with these diseases, in an academic sense, and they are not to be fooled with).

Jim’s story of the morning: I was at the Harbor Master office at 0800 sharp only to find that they are closed on Sundays. So I went down the street to a deli that was opened and asked if anyone knew how to get in touch with a diver. The proprietor looked thoughtful and said that Bill Martin is the only diver left in Neah Bay (the other two moved to Port Angeles where they can make more money).

Apparently, Bill Martin’s phone had been disconnected but the deli guy told me to walk down the street to the MiniMart and they could tell me how to find Bill’s house.

So I traipsed down the road, and on the way I passed an interesting looking guy on a 3-wheeled bicycle. When I got to the MiniMart, the lady behind the counter didn’t know where to find Bill’s house but hollered over to an old Indian guy in the back of the store who had just come in. He said that Bill’s house was just around the corner but that Bill wasn’t there because he just saw him (wait for it....) on his 3-wheeled bicycle heading up the street toward the marina!

I power-walked back looking for him without success. I stopped back in the deli and he told me that Bill was probably getting breakfast up near the general store.

More walking... then I saw the 3-wheeled bicycle coming back toward me. I waved him down. He dragged both feet (Fred Flintstone style) until he came to a shuddering stop. I relayed my issues and he agreed to meet at the boat in a few hours with his dive and cutting gear.

Bill Martin was right on time. He drove up on his tricycle toting a large basket with his dive gear (including tank, wet suit, flippers, mask). He used our Salon to change as he noted that the dock was quite nasty.

In a dash, Bill was under the boat sawing away at the gnarled mass of “bullet proof” rope. Great News: It appears that no harm was done. Jim with the "offending mass".

Bill stayed for lunch and we found out that he is a totem pole carver! He learned the trade from his grandfather. Here is an example of his work:

He personally cut down the trees (from a specific location) with a chain saw and spent a year carving and assembling this “long house”. He is also a professional diver (the kind that uses a metal diving hard hat) and fisherman. His history and experiences were fascinating. He offered to give us a ride into town for additional errands but we were now a tad behind our schedule.

We are on our way again.