With high surf advisories and the forecast for more rain later in the week, turnout for Sunday Services was low.

Amazingly, I arrived right at 8 AM with a few other divers in the lot.

I was greeted with, “Don’t even bother, break the beer out.”

Malaga Cove, Honeymoon Cove, Christmas Tree Cove and apparently Terranea was completely blown out.

Conditions at Vet’s Park were reported as, “Surf at the shoreline with five to 10 feet silty visibility.”

Not New Chris apparently has shipped off to Afghanistan – we were going to throw him a going away party, but I guess we’ll have to double our efforts on the welcome home bash.

We made our way down to the Cove, carrying our breakfast.

It was high tide, but it was obvious that the strong rains had rearranged our familiar rocks.

There were strong waves crashing against the beach; the water looked pretty muddy.

We made our way to the Point.

The regular crew stood around, trying to get someone to gear up so we would have something to watch.

Not even the most dim-witted diver would dare an entry at the Point; we were satisfied with just watching the surf pound the boulders.

And yes, the storms did quite a job rearraging the boulders here, too.

Even the pelicans stayed out of the water.

Crazy Ivan, Me and Military Bob toasted to better diving times.

In the distance, it looks as if the cliff was shortened by the rain.

Some portions of the trail are still closed – we couldn’t figure out which parts.

We debriefed in the parking lot for a bit with a new Divevets member, Chipper.

Chipper drove all the way from Hesperia to do a short dive at Vets and then debrief with us – now that’s dedication!

When we drank all of his beer in 15 minutes, and when he didn’t complain, we knew he had passed initiation.

They must offer some sort of martial arts class here at Terranea?

We will have to see what this week brings – I can’t lobster dive again until I get a new license; something that’s impossible for me to do until this Friday.

Professional Debriefer Paul documents the conditions here:

To view this video on YouTube, click here.

If assembly Bill 634 passes, SCUBA diving will be considered a “hazardous recreational activity,” which apparently grants some government entities from liability.

Out of the nine “hazardous” activities listed here, I’ve already done seven – am I macho or what?

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Calif. lawmakers move to limit liability in scuba accidents

BY CHRIS RIZO

Diane Harkey (R)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Legal Newsline)-Government entities in California would be immune from most lawsuits over scuba diving accidents, under a bill working its way through the state’s Legislature.

Assembly Bill 634 would add scuba diving to the long list of “hazardous recreational activities” for which government employees and government entities have qualified immunity under Section 831.7 of the state Government Code.

Activities on the list already include: pistol and rifle shooting, animal riding, bike racing, kayaking, surfing, waterskiing, whitewater rafting, rock climbing and hang gliding.

The bill cleared the state Assembly Tuesday and is headed now for the state Senate, where its passage is expected.

Authored by Republican state Assemblywoman Diane Harkey of Dana Point, the bill would not provide immunity in cases where the government agency or public employee was negligent or in cases where officials failed to guard or warn of a known dangerous condition.

The bill also includes an exception in cases where permission to participate in the hazardous recreational activity was granted for a specific fee except when the fee is a general purpose one such as for park admission.

The bipartisan-backed legislation was supported by the Civil Justice Association of California, the state’s tort reform lobby.

“State and local governments should not face liability for risks assumed by people who engage in hazardous activities,” the group said in a letter to Assembly lawmakers, urging them to approve the bill.

The original story is here.