I just realized as I was writing this, that this is my 400th dive!

For someone who has been diving almost 10 years, I can’t say that it’s much of an accomplishment; after all, some divers have thousands of dives in only a few years.

But the point is, unlike the 85% of those who get certified – I am still diving and I am still alive!

Conditions have sucked ass lately, but with a new chick slated to join Sunday Services and my need to get wet, I had to show up today.

Sunday Services totaled five divers – Reverend Al, Air Force Chris, Mike, Holly the New Chick and myself.

It was high tide – REALLY High tide.

Holly decided to dive with Reverend Al; she must have been intimidated by my machismo, after all, I was originally introduced to her as Reverend Al’s daughter.

Going over the rocks at high tide sucked, but everyone made it out without incident.

Logged SCUBA Dive #400

Dove with Air Force Chris
Terranea Resort, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA USA

In With: 3000 psi
Out With: 1300 psi
Max depth: 46 feet
Waves: Slightly surgy, high tide, too
Visibility: Five feet of shit
Water Temperature: 56 degrees
Air Temperature: 74 degrees
Total Bottom Time: 45 minutes

We surface swam to the rocky finger off of Pigeon Shit cave and submerged.

Visibility was horrible.

I followed Air Force Chris, while watching my time, hoping he would turn around after 20 minutes.

Photography was impossible, at least with my set up, but we did see a few unique macro things – two Sun Stars in a domestic dispute and some Garibaldi making out.

It was so high tide, that where we usually hit 40 feet, we actually recorded 46 feet of depth.

We headed in after 35 minutes or so.

Instead of taking my fins off and stumbling over the rocks, I actually body surfed to shore and took my fins off after propping myself up against a boulder.

As Reverend Al put it, “It wasn’t elegant, but it worked.”

Some children treated us as celebrities, or freaks – Mike was telling them that they should get certified

There wasn’t enough divers to justify a break out of the ghetto grill, but traditional debriefing was held as always.

Holly seems to be thick skinned enough to hang out with the group, however Mike C.’s phone number is already on her cell phone – he’s working on her already.

Today’s group:

Exciting video can be viewed here:

To watch this video on YouTube, click here.

Happy New Year!

I woke up sort of late, from trying to sleep through the New Year’s gunshots in the Long Beach Ghetto.

I arrived about 8:30 AM, and instead of taking a look at the conditions myself, I relied on the judgement of the experts.

Apparently, it was a little surgy in The Cove and a little rough but “doable” at The Point.

I decided to head off The Cove with Dennis G. and go right.

Logged SCUBA Dive #399

Dove with Dennis G.
Terranea Resort, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA USA

In With: 3000 psi
Out With: 1000 psi
Max depth: 47 feet
Waves: Surgy in the surf zone
Visibility: 10 feet to shitty
Water Temperature: 54 degrees
Air Temperature: 74 degrees
Total Bottom Time: 45 minutes

The entrance was easy.

I followed Dennis, surface swimming to about half way to The Point.

I wondered why we didn’t enter off The Point, if we were going to swim all that way?

We submerged in about 20 feet of water and swam for about 15 minutes in the direction of The Point, making it down to 47 feet at the deepest.

Visibility was shit – 10 feet at the best, but I’ll take 10 feet over 5 feet, any day.

The only decent picture that turned out was of Dennis…

However, I must say, it was a nice, but green, dive!

We turned back and made an uneventful exit at The Cove.

We saw a few fisherman – they probably have no idea that this part of Palos Verdes is a fishing preserve.

I’ve been trying to find out exactly where the fishing preserve begins and ends – from what I’ve heard it’s from Point Fermin to the Light House at Palos Verdes.

I’m not an environmental nazi, but having seen the fish decline over ten years of diving here, I can’t really object to the fishing ban.

I haven’t even bothered to spear fish for the last several years here, because there’s nothing to shoot.

Making it back to the parking lot, two dry divers inquired about the conditions – they each had lost one fin upon entry, while getting pounded at The Point.

Apparently, some in the group made some pretty hairy entrances – I think Dennis had our dive plan right.

And for all the bravery that it took to enter off The Point, the reward was visibility that was worse than our dive – 8 feet was the report.

I broke in our new ghetto grill by turning the heat all the way up, to burn off the Lead based Chinese paint.

I filled the new grill with the old lava rocks from the previous ghetto grill, to keep the flavor consistent.

Beer Brats, Beer, Jello Shots and a New Year’s Champagne toast ended the debriefing.

May 2012 be a great year for everyone!

To watch this video on YouTube, click here.