Long Point, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA
(aka The Old Marineland)

Diving with John H.

In With: 2900 psi
Out With: 500 psi
Max depth: 45 feet
Waves: 1-4 feet, swooping
Visibility: 5-10 feet
Water Temperature: Cool to cold
Total Bottom Time: 45 minutes

My instrument panel on the Duster is screwed up, so I decided to go diving after realizing that replacing the instrument regulator didn’t fix anything.

I called John H to let him know that I’d be down at Long point around 8:30 AM.

I took the “long way” around Palos Verdes and was there at 8:30 AM – so was John H.

It was about high tide and the waves were rolling in, long and sweeping over the rocks.

We were about to call it off, until John H. found out that the surfing conditions sucked too.

John H said, “I’ll go if you are up for diving.”

My machismo kicked in; we went.

We tried to find the lobster trap that I’ve been keeping tabs on.

It was too soupy, 5 to 10 feet; we were close, I could tell.

I motioned to John that I would follow him.

John H shot a 15-inch Sheephead.

I followed him around, losing him once when he took “a shot at something big with fins.”

He swears it wasn’t me.

I surfaced and followed the bubbles back down to him.

He shot an even bigger sheephead afterwards.

We went to the kelp bed on the “other” side of Pigeon Shit cave.

It was too soupy, so we headed back.

We saw lobsters in deep holes.

Easy out, but a little challenging.

I crawled up behind “friendship rock.”

Malaga Cove, Palos Verdes Estates, CA
(aka The Nursery)

Solo, Night Time, Lobster Diving

In With: 2700 psi
Out With: 1200 psi
Max depth: 15 feet
Waves: 1-4 feet
Visibility: six feet
Water Temperature: Cold, but warmer than the air temperature
Total Bottom Time: 45 minutes
Lobsters Caught: 0

Neither Nick or John H could make it; so, being so macho, I went anyway.

Nobody was around Malaga Cove.

It was dark, the parking lot was pretty much deserted.

It was low tide so I went in on the sandy side of the coast.

It seemed darker than I remember it being.

I had been there earlier to check out the conditions – it was flat as a pancake, but the waves were picking up.

I had a slight problem putting my fins on.

I swam out where Rossler pool is, well, I don’t know what it’s called now.

I submerged to 15 feet.

It was a little spooky – nighttime solo diving; kelp looked like lobsters, sharks and the boogie man.

I caught three lobsters, all too small.

There’s something to say about Darwinism.

The really big lobsters that I saw fled as soon as they sensed the light.

Some really small lobsters – who I felt like screwing with, actually charged my light.

I hereby declare Malaga Cove, “fished out” of lobsters.

I had taken my main light’s strap off my hand to measure a lobster.

I forgot about this and had to dive for it when I let go of it coming onshore.

Out with little problem, other than the above.

It is very shallow for a long way in the sand.