THEY are the amazing photos Sydney scuba diver Peter Trayhurn thought he would never see again.

Taken in 2006, they show Mr Trayhurn and diving mate Geoff Tosio lost at sea, stranded 8km off the NSW Mid-North Coast after their dive boat's anchor line snapped.

Four years later the long-lost camera used to take the photos has turned up on a beach, still in its waterproof housing and with the memory card - and subsequent images - intact.

The remarkable story began on December 23, 2006, when the pair launched from a boat off the coast of Wooli to dive at an isolated underwater site known as Pimpernel Rock.



Rising to the surface after the dive, Mr Trayhurn discovered the boat's anchor line had snapped, leaving them alone and stranded with no help in sight.

The two spent more than four hours clinging together, caught in a current and fearing they would not be found.

"I thought 'This is a pretty interesting experience, I should take a few photos'," Mr Trayhurn said yesterday.

Despite the rough seas, they were spotted by a tanker, plucked from the water by a police launch and returned to the apparent safety of their dive boat. But the drama didn't end there.

The boat capsized as they returned to port across the treacherous Wooli bar, tossing the pair into the ocean and putting their lives in jeopardy once again.

Again, they made it to safety and eventually managed to salvage the boat, but Mr Trayhurn's underwater camera was lost.

That is, until Lismore plumber Steve Campbell took his dog for a walk several weeks ago on One Tree Beach, a couple of kilometres north of the Wooli bar.

"It was sort of sticking out of the sand and as soon as I saw it I got a feeling that it was the camera from that boat," Mr Campbell said.

"I was dying to open it but I got in touch with Peter first just to ask permission to take the camera out and get copies of the photos."

That he did, and for the first time since they were taken four years ago, the prints saw the light of day.

Mr Trayhurn, 44, said he was overjoyed. "I didn't really care about the camera or the housing but getting those photos was special."

Mr Trayhurn's tales of survival have continued since his diving mishap. Earlier this year, the father-of-two walked away unscathed after his car rolled in South Australia.

And three weeks ago he underwent major surgery for bowel cancer.

The retired property investor is a campaigner for Bowel Cancer Australia, urging people to get regular bowel scans.

"I don't talk about living and dying, I talk about winning and losing.

"If I lose now I'll know I've done everything I can to win," he said.