Malaga Cove, Palos Verdes Estates, CA

Night time lobster hunting with Instructor John and student Ron T as part of an Advanced SCUBA class.

In With: 3400 psi
Out With: 2200 psi
Max depth: 15 feet
Waves: 1 foot, very calm
Visibility: 10 feet but silty
Water Temperature: Cool
Total Bottom Time: 25 minutes
Notable Event: This dive just really sucked!

We met around 6:30 PM, geared up and walked down about 7:10 PM.

I briefed Ron and John about what I knew of the area.

John took us out on the South side of the pool building; that really sucked.

It was extremely low tide and we ended up crawling over 20 yards of shallow rock before being able to sort of float.

Once we were out, we started hunting for bugs.

I was the only one to be able to submerge.

John apparently forgot his weight belt; we found it later on shore.

He wasn’t sure if he accidentally dropped it.

Ron wasn’t properly weighted for such a shallow dive.

Ron and I separated from John for a while.

I caught a few lobsters, but they were all short.

We were only under water about 20 minutes, maybe 25.

Ron and I called the dive and started going in.

John was coming in to look for his weight belt.

We crawled back up over the plain of shallow rocks.

This dive sucked.

This was a jinxed dive.

I discovered the next day that I left my fins down on the rocks!

I went back the next day, 20 hours later, and they were still there!

Phew!

Long Point, CA
(aka The Old Marineland)

Solo Diving

In With: 3000 psi
Out With: 400 psi
Max depth: 54 feet
Waves: 1-3 feet
Visibility: 10-15 feet
Water Temperature: Cold in some places
Total Bottom Time: About 45 minutes
Notable Event: Lost a fin going out.

Due to a hangover, I didn’t dive last week.

I’m taking an Advanced Diving Course from Instructor John.

Anyway, I got down to Log Point around 7:30 AM.

I met two divers, one named Mike(?); they were asking about the local dive spot and where they should go out.

I told them it was high tide and I was going out on the point; they said that they would follow.

They were two “GQ” looking guys.

The guy Mike decided to push their weight belts down using a baby carriage.

It was a funny site and I wish I had a camera.

I went off the point after putting my fins on.

I started to kick and I felt something strange; I looked down and noticed that my right fin had come off!

Shit!

I have learned looking for lost equipment is usually a waste of time, but I saw it a few feet away in 12 feet of water.

I tried free diving for it but I kept floating back up, so I tried using my regulator, but kicking down with one fin is nearly impossible.

So, I followed it around as the waves kept crashing against the rocks.

One wave lifted the fin up and I managed to grab it!

Phew!

I swam out after looking like a flailing dork and rested.

I watched the “GQ guys” go in.

I swam out to the South-East and went down.

There’s a lot more fish here than off the cove, or so it seems.

I went down to 54 feet where the reef seems to end; it was cold.

There didn’t seem to be much of a current.

The environment is very similar to that off the cove’s rocky point; kelp, sheephead, sea bass, uni, etc.

At 1500 psi I started North to beach at the cove.

It was deeper than I remembered, so I surfaced and found myself way off course!

I had been down to 30 feet.

I submerged, followed my corrected course and surfaced at 15 feet.

I almost got hit my someone casting a fishing hook from the rocks, which I think was done on purpose.

Oh well, fuck him; I be back for him and kick his ass.

With not much air left, I had a longer surface swim than I would have liked.

I exited with no problems, walking ashore and tripping only once.