Dive Report: Flat Ocean, Crappy Visibility, a UFO and Lightening
July 27, 2014
I arrived at Terranea right at 8 AM.
The weather was strange – 82 degrees, humid and overcast; the weatherman forecast a 20% chance of thunderstorms.
But, the ocean was flat, and flat conditions usually mean good visibility.
I met Reverend Al walking back from a swell check.
“It’s flat, but Chipper is here, too, so that ruins the visibility,” Al said.
Yep, it’s some kind of a jinx – whenever Chipper and I both show up at the same time to dive at Terranea Resort, conditions go to shit.
It was a light diving crew today – Reverend Al, Eric, Chipper, Randy, Donna The Hot Biker Chick and me.
We all agreed to go off the Point.
Initially, there was some annoying surf pounding against the rocks, but we waited and it calmed down.
We all made easy entrances; I sat on a boulder with my fins on and rode a receding swell out.
We swam under a kelp bed and positioned ourselves over Ted’s Pinnacle.
Reverend Al was determined to take us to the statue.
We descended.
Logged SCUBA Dive #471
Dove with Reverend Al, Eric, Randy, Chipper and Donna The Hot Biker Chick
The Point off Terranea Resort
In With: 3000 psi
Out With: 400 psi
Max depth: 62 feet
Waves: Pretty flat
Visibility: 3 to 12 feet
Water Temperature: 57 degrees
Air Temperature: 81 degrees
Total Bottom Time: 51 minutes
We followed Reverend Al as he attempted to locate the statue.
Visibility, well, sucked.
He came across what looked like a fallen statue – he tried to prop it back up and then realized it was just a rock.
Where did the statue go?
We found it 10 feet away, where it has always been…
Donna and the statue.
Lobster spotted!
A crab molt?
A Starfish.
A bed of uni.
A Garibaldi.
What is left of a starfish – there is a flesh eating disease that is rotting away local starfish (Thank you for that information, Max Bottomtime).
I surfaced when I had 500 psi left; I wasn’t too far from the cove and only had a 10 minute surface swim before reaching my exit point.
Reverend Al strolls out after Eric made it to shore.
Chipper’s easy exit.
The fun part – the walk back up.
Today’s group – Reverend Al, Donna The Hot Biker Chick, Randy, Eric, Chipper and me.
Donna models Heal The Bay IPA.
Traditional debriefing ensued.
A U.F.O. is spotted!
It looked like a flying lawn chair!
Was it a North Korean reconnaissance craft?
It passed by before I could zoom in, so we may never know.
When I got home, I heard a news story that one person was killed and 13 injured by a freak lightening strike near Venice Pier.
Among the victims was a SCUBA diver (not in the picture).
What amazed me more than the lightening strike was the fact that people actually dive Venice Beach.
You can read about the lightening strike and watch the video here: One dead, 13 injured after lightning strikes at Southern California beach
Still kind of surprised the water is cold and the vis green at Terranea but as Max Bottomtime says, that is the norm for the PV area. In other areas, The surface temp is in the 70 degree range, then past 30′ it is cold, but the vis seems to be good. First white Sharks, now lightning strikes in that area, just bad luck. I would bet the diver was looking for Halibut, cant think of any other reason to SCUBA dive that area.
Comment by halibug — July 29, 2014 @ 2:14 pm
REPENT! KNOW JESUS THE LORD BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE! END OF TIMES ARE HERE!
And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. -Revelation 16:18
And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. -Matthew 28:3
Under the whole heaven He lets it loose, And His lightning to the ends of the earth. -Job 37:3
He gave over their cattle also to the hailstones And their herds to bolts of lightning. -Psalms 78:48
His lightnings lit up the world; The earth saw and trembled. -Psalms 97:4
He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; Who makes lightnings for the rain, Who brings forth the wind from His treasuries. -Psalms 135:7
Flash forth lightning and scatter them; Send out Your arrows and confuse them. -Psalms 144:6
Comment by JEREMIAH — August 5, 2014 @ 6:40 am