Logged SCUBA Dive #305

SECRET LOCATION: 54 68 65 20 67 61 74 65 73 20 6f 66 20 6d 61 72 2c 20 6e 65 61 72 20 74 68 65 20 74 68 72 65 65 20 63 68 69 6d 6e 65 79 73 – Palos Verdes

Solo Diving/SoCal Buddy Diving

In With: 2900 psi
Out With: 500 psi
Max depth: 35 feet
Waves: Minor chop
Visibility: 15 to 20 feet
Water Temperature: 67 degrees
Total Bottom Time: 45 minutes
Notable Event: This was my most frustrating lobster dive ever!

Half the boats that were nearby pulled anchor and left.

I asked the my two buddies, “Why would someone leave so early?”

Jim said, “They probably started early; at least we follow the rules.”

John said jokingly, “They probably all limited.”

Now, this dive was just like the last dive, just a lot more frustrating…

I got tangled in kelp on numerous occasions and I either caught shorts or couldn’t pin the legal ones.

I noticed that the puny, totally illegal bugs will actually charge my light, while the big ones – through Darwinism – flee as soon as the light hits them.

More than three times,  after spotting a good sized lobster, I thought, “OK, here comes lobster number two…” only to be frustrated by me getting stuck in kelp or missing it in the pin.

This was the most frustrating lobster dive I can remember; I should have at least four, but ended up with zero!

I surfaced with 500 psi and bitch crawled about 25 yards over kelp to the boat; I wasn’t going to risk swimming under and getting caught that low on air.

Jim and I enjoyed our post dive beers on the way back, as John turned the boat randomly to make us spill; there’s no radio on board, so that’s his entertainment.

Jim with his monster lobsters.

At the dock, the Department Of Fish And Game checked our lobsters and our lobster report cards.

After figuring out we were all legal, they decided to mess with Jim by giving him a sobriety test.

It was off to Dive N Surf for the annual “Monster Lobster Contest.”

Prizes are awarded to the top three biggest lobsters, but everyone who preregistered and brought in a legal lobster, got a free T-shirt – I got a T-shirt.

Divers posed with their stash of bugs; I soon realized how badly I did this morning.

Dive Bum Don interviewed two of the guys from a group who did really well.

“Where did you find these?” Don asked.

“The Malibu area,” one responded.

“Wait, I thought we were in Catalina?” the other asked.

The next question was, “How deep did you catch them?”

“15 feet,” was the answer.

Dog vs Lobster?

This other guy pulls up with a cooler and a bag full of HUGE bugs!

Looking at his bugs, I had the same thought as when I saw my first porno flick…”How big do those things get?”

As big as his bugs were, he couldn’t beat the 12.3 pound bug that was brought in earlier.

The guy agreed to an interview with Dive Bum Don.

Basically, he caught his bugs in the “Marina Del Rey” area in “10 feet of water.”

The bugs appear to be shallow – really shallow right now, but someone else brought in a lobster that he supposedly caught at 85 feet.

We caught our bugs in 25 feet of water.

The guy weighed his entire catch – 56 pounds of lobster!

So, totals for this morning in the group I went out with:

Me: 1
John: 4
Jim: 4

I will regain my title as Lobster Liberator Number One!

Logged SCUBA Dive #304

SECRET LOCATION: 54 68 65 20 67 61 74 65 73 20 6f 66 20 6d 61 72 2c 20 6e 65 61 72 20 74 68 65 20 74 68 72 65 65 20 63 68 69 6d 6e 65 79 73 – Palos Verdes

Solo Diving/SoCal Buddy Diving

In With: 2900 psi
Out With: 400 psi
Max depth: 35 feet
Waves: Minor chop
Visibility: 15 to 20 feet
Water Temperature: 67 degrees
Total Bottom Time: 35 minutes
Notable Event: It’s Opening Night of Lobster Season!

I met Instructor John and Jim at King Harbor around 10:30 PM.

We geared up and were off within 30 minutes for the ride to the secret location.

In the harbor, we almost got hit by some asshole who nearly ran us over.

John maneuvered to avoid a collision and yelled, “Hey! Hey! Didn’t you see us over here?”

The guy looked over and sped up, creating a wake in the “no wake” zone; I wish I could remember the name of that asshole’s boat.

Instructor John said, “We don’t dive the break wall on Opening Night because of assholes like that.”

Many boats and shore divers were off the cliffs of Palos Verdes; lights were everywhere.

We jumped in at midnight; I fumbled with my gear, putting my BCD on in the water.

I noticed that my computer was no longer on my wrist; did I even put it on?

I submerged and touched bottom, but didn’t see my computer, only a short lobster.

“OK, they’re around, I probably just left it on the boat,” I thought.

I continued my dive computerless, knowing it would be a shallow one; I would run out of air before running out of time.

This location has tons of kelp that I constantly had to cut and untangle; on this dive I probably cut more seaweed that the average sushi chef does in a year.

I spotted my first lobster, swam over and pinned… it started to flee backwards… and I grabbed his antennas.

It wiggled free, hitting me in the head as it escaped backwards; being macho I ignored the pain.

I approached another lobster shortly afterward; I pinned it, measured it and bagged it!

My first lobster of the 2008 season!

After another 5 minutes, my light waved past a huge six pound bug; I aimed my light to the side and swam forward to pounce on it….

I wasn’t moving!

Fuck! I was caught in the kelp!

The bug fled.

I backed up and freed myself and continued my dive.

I tried to pin several more; they either were too short, or they fled too quickly.

I am either rusty in my lobster pinning, or the lobsters are getting smarter.

I made it back to the zodiac after a very short surface swim; Jim was already on board with three massive bugs.

My first lobster of the season!

What a monster!

OK, where the hell is my computer?

It is not on the boat.

It must have really fallen off my arm when I put my BCD on!

Instructor John made it back to the boat and submerged to look for it; I geared back up and with 600 psi left, jumped over board.

OK, where’s my light?

I just had it!

I looked below and saw a light; is that John?

No, I had dropped it; was this a jinxed dive or what?

I dove down, and retrieved my light, as John was ascending, holding my computer.

Phew!