UPDATE: AUGUST 25, 2012

A body was recovered from waters off of a Rancho Palos Verdes beach this morning, near where a woman reportedly went missing last week.

Sheriff’s find body off Rancho Palos Verdes beach

UPDATE: AUGUST 15, 2012

Missing Snorkeler is now a homicide investigation.

Thank you Max Bottomtime for pointing this article out…

By Larry Altman Staff Writer dailybreeze.com
Posted: 08/13/2012 06:53:32 AM PDT
August 13, 2012 1:59 PM GMT Updated: 08/13/2012 06:59:32 AM PDT

A dive team is searching waters off Rancho Palos Verdes for a woman who disappeared while snorkeling, deputies said today.

The divers resumed their search about 6 a.m. for the Marina del Rey woman who went missing Sunday near the Terranea Resort on Palos Verdes Drive South, deputies said.

Sheriff’s Department and lifeguard divers searched Sunday from 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. for the woman, who had snorkeled Saturday and failed to return home.

Her husband went looking for her, found her car parked near a public access area next to the resort and located her bag on the beach, deputies said.

The woman is about 50 years old.

The original article can be found here.

July 11, 2012*

After an hour drive, we arrived at our next dive destination – Sirens Bay.

It’s a shallow area that is suppose to have a cavern and an arch.

We had two small tanks that were filled with air from the super compressor we brought from Tirana.

We did just like we did with the last batch – breathe, taste and smell the air.

I didn’t get a headache or dizzy, but the air tasted like machine oil.

Idit tasted his tank.

“Yeah, it does taste oily, what do you want to do?” he asked.

“What was powering the compressor?” I asked.

“It was an electric compressor,” he said.

“Well, it tastes like shit, but it should be good.”

Again, we got the usual stares of amazement on this crowded beach.

Logged SCUBA Dive #415

Dove with Idit

Sirens Bay
Saranda, Albania

Air Source: Mini Super Compressor Brought From Tirana
In With: 2500 psi
Out With: 900 psi
Max depth: 35 feet
Waves: Flat
Visibility: Up to 40 feet
Water Temperature: 74 degrees
Air Temperature: 92 degrees
Total Bottom Time: 45 minutes or so

We entered the water and swam to the right, before submerging.

Albanian Starfish.

Rock Garden.

An Albanian scallop – I think.

Not sure what this is.

This was a shallow dive, and I wasn’t weighted properly.

Albania uses a weird system of measurement called the “Metric” system.

Before our first dive, Idit asked me how much weight I needed.

“Twenty-two pounds.”

“I need to know in kilos,” Idit replied.

I assembled my weight belt by feel – it felt like 22 pounds.

So, I’m having a hard time staying down and trying to keep up with Idit.

I grabbed a rock to hold for weight, and I was lucky enough to also grab onto the sea urchin that was behind it.

Ouch!

I signaled Idit to go up – we were only 20 feet deep.

I took my glove off and Idit was nice enough to dig the spikes out of my fingers.

We continued the dive.

We never did find the cavern, but we did swim through the arch.

My pictures of the arch didn’t really turn out – the arch was too big.

We made an uneventful exit and washed the petroleum after taste from the air away…

…with a beer and spaghetti.

A complete debriefing meal for only 450 LEK ($4.50), at a nice beach side resort.

*Due to time constraints, lack of reliable internet access outside of Tirana, power outages in Tirana and the strength of Albanian beer, posting of this article has been delayed.