30 replies to this topic

[drbill]

For those SD members who are planning to come over and dive this weekend, I thought I'd post current conditions at the Park. I did two dives to 75 feet this afternoon between 12:30 and 2:30 PM.

Water temps at that depth were 59-60 degrees. I think even Sapphire will find that comfortable (if not, we'll pour hot water down your wetsuit before you go in).

Vis was not great, about 20-25 feet. Typical combination of (1) seasonal plankton bloom, (2) seasonal particulates from decaying kelp and seaweeds and (3) sand stirred up by bat rays feeding between the swim platform and the park's very own "wreck alley."

Surface intervals nice and warm. Dive park not crowded today, but tomorrow may be another story. Hard to predict the impact of Mother's Day weekend. My guess is there will be fewer divers than usual, and most of them will dive Sat. only.

There was a wierd shifting current today. On my first dive it was heading offshore (go figure that one). Took some effort to come in from wreck alley to the steps. By the second dive it was coming from the north (Descanso Beach) and was depressing the kelp making it hard to easily get through some areas, and causing the light to diminish due to the density of the kelp.

I assume Sapphire, Wrinkles and Jaime (ladies first) will be here. Anyone else planning on joining the Casinoi Point Dive In this weekend?

Dr. B.

[triggerfish]

yeah...ME!!!
only it'll have to be in my imagination.
doc, how's the diving through , say, october?? i am frantically trying to figure out a good long weekend that i could come out and dive with you guys.....

[drbill]

TF- Diving can be very good in the fall. Water is still "warm," plankton blooms are usually over so vis is decent. I enjoy diving in the Sept-Nov period although there are fewer people diving in the park (weekends can get crowded). Diving the park is a social event for me (extended surface intervals) as well as a diving experience. Have gotten to "know" a number of divers from all over that way. I don't get to socialize much sitting in front of the computer editing!

Dr. B.

[triggerfish]

thanks, doc...sep/oct might be the best time for me. it's getting harder for me to find critter sitters when i go away (i need a live-in cuz my dogs totally self-destruct in a kennel...and then there's the cat and the orchids....)

i promise i won't show up on the island unannounced , though...i'll give you plenty of warning so you can escape to guam in time!!!

[drbill]

Since my commute back home from the Dive Park was the shortest of the SD members diving there today, I get to post MY version of the dives today. And we all know that people tend to believe what they hear first... it's very difficult to knock erroneous information out with later facts, so I'm safe!

The main contigent arrived shortly after I dragged my hand cart down to the park. It took us some time to get ready for the first dive. Ken (Mo2vation on SB) made sure all divers were properly suited up and equipment working (gee, since I usually dive solo, I rarely get to do a buddy check.

First dive we decided to go to the wreck of the Sujac at the south end of the park. The vis was lousy and I lost sight of the rest of the crew, but we regrouped. Got to the Sujac and scoped out the wreck (~90 to 60 ft depth range). On the way back I stopped to video sheephead eating black urchins that some ^&**%% morons had killed with their knives (this IS a marine reserve!). When I looked up, there was no one to be seen. I hadn't realized the kelp had wrapped itself over me as I filmed so no one could see me. I completed my 60 min dive feeling comfortable that the rest of the group was in two buddy pairs.

Lunch at the Casino Dock Cafe for our surface interval, then it was down to check out the wrecks of the Kismet and the Pisces (a boat I used to regularly party on in the early 70's since the captain was a friend of mine). I signalled to Wrinkles that I was going to head in since I've taped most of what can be seen on the wrecks.

Jaime (Jextract) was assisting a class so he was unable to dive with us, but we were able to talk and he'll be back out next weekend anyway. Sorry you missed the dives J.

The third dive was to be our shallow one. Plan was to go to the swim platform in the corner of the park at 55' depth. Strong (for the Park) current had kicked up and progress was not easy. Vis was poor. When we reached 65' I turned left to head up a bit and, you guessed it, I lost Wrinkles and Mo2vation. I had told everyone not to worry if I got separated from the group since I do most of my solo diving here anyway.

Vis was not great (20-25 max), worse than Friday. The current later in the afternoon was a little surprising. Surge increased as well. Water temp had dropped from 59-60 at depth to 53. You'll all have to ask Ana (Wrinkles) about her new hand signal for thermocline (snicker, snicker!). Of course Jennifer (Sapphire) had a seprarate one for the men.

We all spend a bit of time talking about the "goings on" on SD. Yes, ladies, some of your ears would burn. We men fared much "better."

After the last dive we all walked into town to the Catalina Cantina for a drink (strictly water for Dr. Bill, sigh). Although I felt the diving was marginal (remember, I videotape), Ana thought it was great. I think she'd enjoy diving in a bathtub or a Warin blender as long as they were filled with water. Good attitude Ana! Jennifer survived two more cold water dives (yes, they were cold).

Now I'll let the others weigh in if they so desire.

Dr. B.

[triggerfish]

(sigh)...sounds like heaven. wish i coulda been there!

i was going to ask if this is on catalina , since i'm totally unfamiliar with california. but "catalina cafe' kinda gave it away!
duh....

Edited by triggerfish, 08 May 2004 - 08:24 PM.

[Walter]

I wish I could have joined you all. I'm glad you had fun!

[Coo's Toe]

Heck, I'd dive in a bathtub or a Warin blender as long as there's water involved!!!

20 foot vis isn't that bad by my standards. Not great, but certainly not what I'd call bad. I'd love to come down and go diving with you sometime, Dr. B. I've heard a lot of good things about Avalon. Hopefully you'll be up for tour guide duty if I make it down?

[drbill]

CT- I'm an awful buddy diver (just as the other SD members who have dived with me). I'm so used to being solo that I don't have well-developed buddy skills, especially if I'm diving with my camera.

However, I'm always willinbg to give an intro to the park to fellow SD members (and the ladies too).

Cancelled my dive day after the first one today. Vis even poorer than yesterday, temp down to 52-53 F at the Sujac, surge. Had planned on three but decided to watch the Lakers game instead (and I'm no big sports fan so the day a basketball game wins out over diving is a rare event).

Dr. Bill

[sapphire]

Dr. Bill beat us to the trip report, of course

We could not have asked for a nicer day on Catalina! The weather sunny and warm, not cloudy as had been predicted. A nice, fun ride over on the high-speed ferry, a truck to haul our gear to the point, and we were on our way over there. The dive park was already crowded with lots of divers, but we found a nice spot right by the steps and Dr. Bill, who welcomed us!

I threw on a bunch of extra weight, not knowing how much I would need for my BRAND new wetsuit. Predictably, I sank like a stone, LOL ! I had a hard time as we went deeper to the Sujac staying off the bottom, even with my BC filled with air. It may have been the steel 72 I was using as well... So, I concentrated on not sinking to Davy Jones' Locker and it kept me from thinking about the cold... which was about 59-60 I think, with a notable thermacline a little after 50 feet. As Dr. Bill said, we did lose him at that point. Heading back, my buddy indicated he needed to surface, low on air but OK, so I stayed about 10 feet and followed him back to the steps. Ana and Ken lost us at that point, and were waiting out by the bouy while I was waving to them from the steps. Turned out my buddy did not have enough weight and was diving an AL80, so at the end of the dive he could not stay down.... he had plenty of air to breath, though. But the Sujac was nice even if the vis was so-so.

Lunch then second dive. I dropped 4 pounds and switched to the AL80. (side note, you can rent tanks and weights at the Dive Park on the weekend, makes it nice to not have to carry those from home or a dive shop) I was still a little heavy but much better. However, this time I was COLLLLLD from the get-go. Dr. Bill had a nice interaction with a huge sheep crab at the beginning of the dive... At 60 feet or so, water was about 53 and I was shivering and feeling like my lips were blue. Luckily, Ken took us shallower, and we had fun in the shallower surge (kind of like swinging in a hammock!) There were lots of fish, and as the day was sunny, the sun shining through the kelp was a nice touch.

I sat out the 3rd dive (wimped out) as the shadows were growing and I was still cold. During the SI a small harbor seal came and played with two boys who were snorkeling. For a while, you couldnt tell who was squealing louder, the seal or the boys! Very fun to watch the excited looks on their faces when they came back to tell their parents about their experience!

All in all, a nice leisurely day, great company, and a nice dinner back in Long Beach when we returned.

It was great to dive with you again, Dr. Bill! And fun to finally dive with Ana and Ken! Hopefully next time I won't just see Jamie going down the steps as I am coming up??

You'll all have to ask Ana (Wrinkles) about her new hand signal for thermocline (snicker, snicker!). Of course Jennifer (Sapphire) had a seprarate one for the men.

Its more of a "visual". And it was not MY signal for men, I think it was actually suggested by the MEN!

We all spend a bit of time talking about the "goings on" on SD. Yes, ladies, some of your ears would burn. We men fared much "better."

To clarify, we did talk about how the women seemed to be the instigators of some of the more risque fun flirting on SD... but that the men gladly joined in, LOL!

Although I felt the diving was marginal (remember, I videotape), Ana thought it was great. I think she'd enjoy diving in a bathtub or a Warin blender as long as they were filled with water. Good attitude Ana! Jennifer survived two more cold water dives (yes, they were cold).

Yes, I agree with Dr. Bill, Ana enjoys every dive no matter how routine (or how cold)! And I know when I have reached my limit... when I get an earache from the cold water, I know I am done

However, it was a great day and I won't say I will NEVER do it again, but I may have to experiment with the warm water, or give in and buy a drysuit!!!

OK, Ana, your turn!

Jennifer

Edited by sapphire, 09 May 2004 - 05:12 PM.

[Walter]

I sat out the 3rd dive (wimped out) as the shadows were growing and I was still cold.

Darlin',

That's not wimping out, that's using good sense. Hypothermia is dangerous. You should know when to call a dive and you were correct to do so.

[drbill]

Why, Sapphire darling, I thought the blue on your lips was a new lipstick you were using. I had no idea you were getting chilly (heck, even I did... due to the hyperstretch type wetsuit).

Oops, maybe I was the one who came up with that thermocline hand signal for men. Of course Ana's was much more amusing!

Now Sapphire... why did you have to correct my comment about burning the ears of the ladies on SD. I wanted them to feel they were there with us yesterday... in a virtual sense anyway. Maybe most of it was in my mind anyway.

Fun to dive again with you Sapphire... a bit different from our dive with Walter last year (colder but "crystal clear"). Ana was a lot of fun and of course it was fun to share the experience with the guys as well!

Dr. B.

[triggerfish]

Now Sapphire... why did you have to correct my comment about burning the ears of the ladies on SD. I wanted them to feel they were there with us yesterday... in a virtual sense anyway. Maybe most of it was in my mind anyway.
. B.

i'm glad she did. you made it sound like ana and jen were being catty about the rest of us. it was the "your ears would burn" thing...to me that means someone was talking about me...in NOT a good way!

thank you jen for clarifying something a guy wouldn't understand...even one as gracious and sweet as wildbill....

[triggerfish]

Oops, maybe I was the one who came up with that thermocline hand signal for men. Of course Ana's was much more amusing!

did it pertain to shrinkage??

[Coo's Toe]

I threw on a bunch of extra weight, not knowing how much I would need for my BRAND new wetsuit. Predictably, I sank like a stone, LOL  !

We were all busy here writing up advice for you about proper weighting while you were busy diving.

it kept me from thinking about the cold... which was about 59-60 I think

That's not cold! Try 46 degrees in a wetsuit! Brrrrrrrrr. SoCal sounds downright tropical to someone like me

or give in and buy a drysuit!!!

Mmmmmmm. Drysuits. Toasty warm. No blue lips. Dry surface intervals. What more can I say?

Its more of a "visual". And it was not MY signal for men, I think it was actually suggested by the MEN!

Would someone PLEASE clue me in??? My overactive imagination is running wild picturing all the possibilities.