Logged Dive #312

Secret Locaton: 34 30 30 20 79 61 72 64 73 20 4e 6f 72 74 68 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 67 61 74 65 73 20 6f 66 20 4d 61 72, Palos Verdes

Solo Diving/ SoCal Buddy Diving

In With: 3000 psi
Out With: 300 psi
Max depth: 55 feet
Waves: Pretty damn flat!
Visibility: 15 to 25 feet – Spectacular!
Water Temperature: About 56 degrees
Total Bottom Time: About 25 minutes

After almost two weeks of taking a break from lobster hunting, I’m back in the water to look for more bugs.

The commercial trappers haven’t been having a great season and divers have been coming back with only a few – a recent boat with eight divers came back with only 12 bugs total.

Was I going to pay $60 to get skunked tonight?

The Island Diver left dock at 7 PM with Captain Alec in charge of the boat!

Captain Alec knows where to drop us once we tell him where to go, so I had a good feeling about this trip!

We anchored in 45 feet of water off of our secret location; I was the third off the boat and the first to submerge down the anchor line.

The visibility was spectacular!

At 25 feet I shined my light downwards and saw the ocean floor that rested at 45 feet; I swam to the anchor and spotted a bug!

I pinned it… it was like grabbing a beer can, so it was legal and I bagged it.

The thrill of victory!

I thought, “This is going to be easy, one bug in two minutes, I’m sure to limit!”

In the kelp, just off the anchor was another big-ass bug; I turned my light to the side so I could just see the outline of the bug, exhaled, moved my left arm back into “liberation mode” and pounced!

The lobster shot back and hit me in the nuts, on reflex action I closed my legs and pinned something… I grabbed it!

I shook my bag down and was about to open it when I realized I had caught my console instead of the lobster!

Fuck! The agony of defeat!

I continued on, actually swimming 10 feet above the floor so I could scout more territory – vis was that good.

I spotted another one that charged my light… too short, that young punk was only alive because of the legal size limit.

But, just to my left, another one… I pinned it, but for what ever reason, I grabbed the tail and it closed; one of the spikes tore through my glove and gave me my first scar of the season.

I am so macho, it didn’t even phase me.

Another lobster soon followed; I now had three in my bag!

There was a long “dry spot” towards the end of my dive when I didn’t see any lobsters.

I peaked on the surface when I was down to 1200 psi to spot the boat; it was not far.

I submerged and headed back to the boat, still hunting.

I grabbed for, but missed, maybe two more when I saw the anchor chain; I started ascending, still keeping my eye on the floor in the great vis…

I spotted a bull!

OK, with 600 psi left, I decided to just go down and pin it and bag it on the way up.

I exhaled and lunged toward the bug; I shot to pin the carapace, but only grabbed the antennae.

It wigged free and shot into some kelp, I pursued it and checked my air gauge… 400 psi.

“Forget it,” I thought; I have to make it to the surface.

Without a safety stop, I slowly ascended to the surface with my three bugs…

I posed with more lobsters than I caught in my last three trips combined!

I was the first one back on the boat, other divers soon followed as planned…

Mike C. brought up a five pound bug.

This was a great and plentiful dive; I only have four more lobsters to get before I limit for the night!

Logged SCUBA Dive #310

SECRET LOCATION: 42 65 74 77 65 65 6e 20 74 68 65 20 47 61 74 65 73 20 4f 66 20 4d 61 72 20 61 6e 64 20 74 68 65 20 6c 69 67 68 74 68 6f 75 73 65 2c 20 74 68 65 72 65 20 69 73 20 61 20 6c 6f 6e 65 20 70 61 6c 6d 20 74 72 65 65 2e, Palos Verdes, CA

Solo Diving, SoCal Buddy Diving

In With: 3000 psi
Out With: 600 psi
Max depth: 42 feet
Waves: Minor chop at the surface, slightly surgy on the ocean floor
Visibility: Five to 10 feet
Water Temperature: 62 degrees
Total Bottom Time: About 45 minutes

Once again Instructor John, Jim and me went diving off of the zodiac to hunt for bugs.

This dive was just like the last post, except Jim came with us; so if you want a detailed narrative of this dive, read my last post and pretend Jim came along.

Why we came back to this spot after the last time is a mystery to me.

The vis sucked, I only saw one lobster that was so small I didn’t even bother to pin it.

To make it very short – everyone got skunked!

Of note however, when I was getting my tanks filled at Dive N Surf, I met one hunter that swears the breakwaters at 3 AM are plentiful.

“Shortly after dark is too early, wait until 3 AM and the big ones will be out, it isn’t crowded, and the water is usually pretty flat,” he said.

Great, now I just have to figure out how to dive that early in the morning; Instructor John was not very enthusiastic.

On the way back, we also passed by a group of commercial lobster trap buoys in what was probably 60 feet.

Maybe the lobsters are deeper now?

We contemplated new spots that we may try out on the next outing.