Long Point, CA
(aka The Old Marineland)

Solo Diving

Holy shit!

It had been raining a few weeks ago and was very cold since.

I thought, “OK, there’s no surf alert, and the weather is warmer; I’ll go diving.”

I arrived at Long Point about 9:00 AM. I walked to see the surf — 6 foot plus waves.

The kelp beds were swishing around.

OK, I went anyway.

I saw two other divers go in before me.

It was tough getting in, the waves were large.

There was nothing to see.

Five foot visibility at best.

I also could hear the perpetual crashing of the waves on the rocks.

I swam through the first kelp bed, but didn’t see any kelp.

I wasn’t going to waste my energy.

I got out early.

As I was coming out, three other divers were going in.

I said, “If you’ve never dived off of rocks before, today is not the time to start.”

In with: 3100 psi
Out with: 2000 psi
Max depth: 30 feet??
Waves 6 feet plus??
Water temp: cold

I dove with my new regulator; I think the depth gauge is bad.

Long Point, CA
8:30 AM
(aka The Old Marineland)

Solo Diving

I got there around 8:30 AM; the gates leading to the parking lot were locked.

The divers who I met on October 18th of this year were there. They introduced themselves as Dennis, Fred and Al. My friend Nick was also there; he wanted to watch me dive.

Anyway, someone came and unlocked the gates about 8:50 AM.

The gates leading to the coast was locked. Luckily, I know the combination — 1948.

The waves looked rough but manageable.

I quickly got ready and walked down to the shore, Nick was in tow with his camera.

Perfect entry.

There was a boat nearby, close to the rocks near the entrance to the cave.

The visibility was 15 feet and soupy.

The water was fairly cool.

It was a typical Long point dive through the kelp beds.

I believe I saw an octopus, or at least an octopus’ eyeball sticking out of a hole on the bottom.

I came back up twice (surfaced) to get a bearing on where I was.

My final surfacing was close to where I had originally submerged.

The waves were rather easy getting out.

I rode two waves in, washing up on the rocks.

Nick said that I “timed that perfectly.”

I washed the ocean water out of my mouth with a cool beer.

Nick said some “gay divers” came down while I was in the water.

“How do you know they’re gay?” I asked.

“Because they hit on me while you were gone,” Nick said.

Nick is thinking about taking up diving. He put my jacket and tank on and held my weight belt.

He said, “Dude, how do you even get up?”

I replied, “You just have to be as macho as I am.”

In with 3100 psi
Out with 500 psi
Max depth 40 feet
Waves 3-4 feet
Water temperature: cool almost cold