February 16, 2014

Still sore from training to be a cage fighter, I was determined to ignore the pain and get in a Sunday Services dive.

I’ve been MIA with the Sunday group for a while, so I also thought I would fire up the ghetto grill.

The waves looked flat; even the Point entry looked easy for non-macho divers.

We geared up and headed for the Point.

I don’t know what it is with me hitting the water, but as soon as I put my fins on and flopped on the calm water to swim out, the water receded, landing me stranded on a boulder, only to have a wave pick me up and slam me against another boulder.

I shook it off and swam the retreating swell out.

Visibility looked really good in the shallows.

After a swim out, we descended.

Logged SCUBA Dive #462

Dove With Mike, Reverend Al, Eric & Chipper

The Point At Terranea Resort
Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, USA

In With: 2900 psi
Out With: 100 psi
Max depth: 62 feet
Waves: Slightly choppy on entrance, flat otherwise
Visibility: 10-15 feet, but silty
Water Temperature: 62 degrees
Air Temperature: 77 degrees
Total Bottom Time: 40 minutes

It’s a phenomenon that has yet to be explained, but the fact that Chipper and I are in the same water has an affect on the conditions – the deep water was dark and silty, with 10 foot visibility at best.

Reverend Al guided us to the statue…

It is nice to see the marine life coming back.

Lobsters just stare as we swim by, knowing that they are protected.

Mike saw a shark, but other than that, this was a nice and uneventful dive.

The water was so calm getting out, I didn’t even power up my camera to catch a potential wipe out on the rocks.

Traditional debriefing ensued.

Polska Kielbasa and Beer Brats were on today’s menu.

Today’s group.

December 29, 2013

I arrived promptly at 8 AM, extremely tired from getting about three total hours of sleep.

I was hanging out with this hot chick the previous night; I wasn’t drinking since she doesn’t like drunks, so I had to endure the side affects of insomnia.

A good sized crowd showed up, along with some divers we had never seen and a few kayakers.

After changing the camera housing seals after my flood last dive, I took an empty housing on this dive to check for leaks.

We all had geared up by 9:10 – the Point looked a little rough, but the Cove was fine.

Reverend Al, Holly and I, made a perfect entrance into the nearly flat water that was disturbed only by a few rolling swells against the shore.

We waited for Ted and his buddy, submerged and went to the right, the opposite way of 120 reef.

Logged SCUBA Dive #459

Dove With Reverend Al and Holly

Terranea Resort
Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, USA

In With: 2800 psi
Out With: 1100 psi
Max depth: 40 feet
Waves: A few rollers at the shore, flat otherwise
Visibility: 10 feet, 15 feet some places
Water Temperature: 58 degrees
Air Temperature: 78 degrees
Total Bottom Time: 35 minutes

After about three minutes I checked my air – I was at 2,600 psi, but every time I took a breathe the needle would drop to 2,000.

Obviously, my air wasn’t all the way on; I must have bumped or rubbed against something on the way out.

I swam up to Reverend Al, showed him the problem and he turned the air all the way on.

There was a mild surge that made it challenging not to run into my surroundings, whether it be a reef, another diver or kelp.

Visibility wasn’t all that great, but there were some spots that reached 15 feet of visibility.

After 20 minutes, Holly signaled to me that she was getting cold.

I signaled to Reverend Al, that we were turning around, Holly seemed a little pissed.

I would rather turn around when someone is getting cold, than turn around when someone is cold.

We slowly made our way back to the cove; I helped Holly off with her hook, almost tearing her head off in the process.

My camera case was bone dry on the inside!

I want to test in at 120 feet before putting my camera inside for a dive.

The Sunday Dive Crew

I brought Polska Kielbasa since Dash had mentioned that he was bringing his barbecue.

When no grill was fired up, I asked why.

It seems that nobody brought anything to grill, and when I told them I had, the barbecue was lit.

Dash tenders the debriefing barbecue.

I was really tired, and kept the debriefing at a minimum.

And so ends another year of diving – I have slacked this year with only 30 dives.