WHAT a GREAT TRIP! - Page 2

Vegas · 06-20-2008, 06:31 PM

So all six of us went on this afternoon dive -- and this one did Not go
exactly as planned.

Again the surge was quite mild, as was the current. We made our plan
to drop down, head toward the island against the mild current, then, return to the boat with the current to aid us in our return. It was a good plan, and it had worked before....
but the best laid plans of mice and men ya know.....

so we enjoyed our way to the island, in and out of the bands of kelp, fish fish
everywhere! The most experienced diver on the trip found a big spiny kelp
crab and figured that he could hold it by the back of its shell so we all could
get a good look at him. Cool Crab! -- and unfortunately for our friend, also
the only double-jointed kelp-crab in the area....yup, he got a good pinch, and
decided that would be the last crab he would be picking up that day.

Ouch!

The temperature was a bit chilly and we turned to head back...we were on track with the compass,
but I felt there was a problem when I saw patches
of sea grass below us...we had not passed any sea grass on the way out.
I was not the only one concerned by this.
after a "meet and confer" on the ocean floor (only about 40' down)
we agreed to send one diver to the surface to locate the boat. -- twas a good descision...the current
had evidently shifted and we had over-shot the boat by a fair distance.
that meant a not-as-easy-as-we-would-have-liked swim back to the boat...
all of us feeling a little disoriented and turned around... but we all made it back, and surfaced - tired, but right where we wanted.

We all stripped our suits to warm up, get dry, and enjoy a marvelous dinner
cooked for us by our own Captain Lou.

Inside and dry, warm and cozy, a movie in the DVD player....the sun began to set, and one by one
we dozed off. After our swim, our experience in the current, and the big
warm meal...our excitement about doing a night dive disappeared with the daylight.

ryan · 06-20-2008, 06:50 PM

This is some great info. Adminin' this site is definitely tickling my urge to pick up diving.

Vegas · 06-20-2008, 07:42 PM

Be careful there Ryan....you know...today's "tickle" is
tomorrow's Obsession!

(I did spell that with a Capital "O" for a reason!)

Vegas · 06-20-2008, 11:43 PM

LOL!
I HAVE to get some work done today..... so watch next week for
the remaining episodes including
reports for 3 dives from day 2 --
the last dive was the most exciting! You don't want to miss it! LOL!

ryan · 06-21-2008, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vegas

Be careful there Ryan....you know...today's "tickle" is
tomorrow's Obsession!

(I did spell that with a Capital "O" for a reason!)

so true

Vegas · 06-23-2008, 06:56 PM

( I knew I should post this trip report as soon as I got back! -- now it's been over a week, and I went diving again the day before yesterday! )

Day 2 -
Dive #5 of the trip - Oh! my memory is failing me and I don't have my log book with me! drat! i think this dive was back at Anacapa, but I can't recall where....and 5 divers went in after eating a big breakfast. The water had a little more chop than the day before
(this is why only 5 out of 6 made it in this dive) but
by comparison to previous experiences, it was still pretty mild. There was still quite a bit of current so we headed out against it....and didn't get really far.
That's ok though, there was Plenty to see within just yards of the boat - Scallops that looked the size of dinner plates, lovely anenomes, and many fish. -- I made my donation to the Kraken on this dive - she got my dive watch.

tis the same one I lost once before, and by a twist of fate got back .... in a way, I suppose I owed it to her. either way, she got it).

We got back on board the same time the sun (Oh! Glorious Sunshine!) burst out of the clouds and shone in full glory! hooray!

We moved on to another site...(I believe it was back to Fish Camp again! )

Vegas · 06-23-2008, 08:37 PM

Dive #6 - (If I'm remebering right) we're back at Fish Camp (a site that's quickly becoming one of our favorites!)

A flat ocean and full sunshine brought all six divers back into the water for this dive. We dropped down on a flat sandy bottom and headed toward the kelp patches.

Sunlight streaming through kelp, dappling the bottom-dwellers and the ocean floor alike - this is truly one of the most breath-taking sights I have ever been blessed enough to behold...

Swimming into the patches of kelp, and back out again, mmmm.... some of my favorite diving! spying all the little creatures that hide there, darting in and out and camoflaging with the leaves, some little guys clinging to the bottoms of the leaves and the rocks below....just too much for only two eyes to see! (This is where I found a little sand-dollar shell for my mother, and a shiny little cowry shell - for me!)

Finally the time came and we moved back out over the sandy bottom again. I couldn't help but think, from the look of the
bottom...."there should be a ray hiding in this sand around here somewhere".
I hovered for a moment, held very still and scannd the ocean floor
...I looked hard, and slowly....Yes!
Right over there!
I tap another diver and point... one by one the rest of the party notices and follows along...

I can see it! hiding in the sand -- this one isn't a bat ray though....this one looks more like the little rays we saw shore diving near San Diego once....well, except that this one looks to be about 3 feet across and over 4 feet long! Wow! His body is FLAT and Round like a pancake! His tail is curled up to the side a little, and almost "chunky" looking compared to other rays I've seen.

I get a little closer, and notice something else....unlike the Bat Rays in the area, this Ray seems 100% relaxed, and totally unconcerned with the six divers approaching him. That makes me think very hard about just how close to this animal I want to get. It appears to be opening it's eyes...nope...wait... those are NOT eyes...two things that LOOK like nostrils - definitely not his eyes...and um....ya... I decide I'll be moving to the rear of this huge critter.

Following, each diver seems to get the hint to give this guy plenty of room.
After several minutes of study this gorgeous ray seems to decide that we are giving away his position and he might miss lunch, so he rises very slowly (again, completely unafraid - this guy acts as though he owns the ocean!) giving us all a marvelous look at black spots dotting his slightly purple-ish back, he turns (toward me - egad!) and swims slowly right at me...about a foot away he corrects his course and goes around me....and leisurely swims off into the distance.

I catch my breath....and we all head back to the anchor chain....excited to tell our tales, and enjoy our own lunch above!

Vegas · 06-23-2008, 09:13 PM

Lunch was great, and it's still a glorious day! The sun is out, with a very slight breeze dancing on the ocean.

While we eat the Captain is adjusting our position. ....it's still "Fish Camp", but a very different position. He carefully places his anchors, and comes back to give us our briefing. One diver has decided he's done...and wanders below to take a nap. Another listens in on the briefing...and decides that she's a bit too tired, and not quite ready for this dive.

The last four of us listen VERY CAREFULLY.
Captain Lou explains.....the Anchor sits in 90 feet of water, the bow chain anchor is resting at the top of a reef in 65' feet of water. He has let out the current line, and looks even more concerned than before. He gives us all the same instructions, then one by one comes to each one of us and repeats everything he's told us to make SURE we GOT it.

Our dive plan is VERY Specific....because the current has grown since he anchored...and then gotten even stronger since he began his briefing.

We've been told that this is a surface current, and though it's strong, it should completely disappear below 50'. The plan is to - VERY CAREFULLY - descend down the anchor chain...if we get below 60' and there is still current we are to Abort the dive and come back up the chain to the boat.
If - as we are all hoping - the current drops off below 50', then we can move along the bottom toward the bow. Going the correct direction we will run into a beautiful wall covered with life that rises from about 80' to just above 65'. .... enjoy the view, but (of course) keep a close eye on all guages and begin our ascent up the the bow chain with plenty of air to spare.
And though none of us needed to be told, he repeated "DO NOT LET GO OF THE CHAIN."

The first two divers are in the water now, hanging onto the chain. I'm next in, and am quickly swept to the current line where I hang on and wait for my buddy. Now he's in. With a final word - "If that current doesn't stop at 50', you ABORT the dive, and come right back up the chain."....the first two start down. We give them a couple of minutes, and the Captain pulls the line to the anchor chain so we can change our grip, and descend behind them.

Vegas · 06-23-2008, 10:00 PM

We carefully begin our descent....

The vis is awful....all I can see is a few feet of chain below me disappearing into a murky green gloom...little particles in the water rushing by me in the strong current. My buddy is a couple of feet above me, and I am FOCUSED on the tasks at hand.

The water gets colder....and Colder..."Holy Toledo It's Cold" I think....deeper...and Colder still...and then...below me....I think I can see...
clearer now...yes! It's them! First we see their bubbles, then we see them...and sure enough, they're hovering near the bottom....and like walking into the eye of a tornado we descend into completely still water. "Mother-of-Pearl It's COLD down Here!" WOW!

Below the current now, the water all around us is completely still, dark, but crystal clear -- we can see about 50' ...and scattered across the sandy ocean floor we see brittle stars by the dozens, in yellow, orange, purple, and some grey/blue.

Our friends tie their reel to the anchor (just in case), we all check our compass headings (and check them twice!) and head toward the reef we are hoping to see, and the bow chain that will be our way back through the storm above us.

We swim onward and a Gorgeous Wall COVERED with life appears before us out of the gloom. BEAUTIFUL stars of every color! a few fish darting here and there...anenomes, open and reaching, but barely swaying in the cold still water. We see the chain we're seeking immediately...and while our friends return to untie their reel line, my buddy and I move slowly back and forth along the wall, admiring the variety of life and color before us.

Half a dozen Sunflower Stars are perched, here and there, on the rocks...Each looking as though they might weigh 60 lbs or more if dragged to the surface and stuck on a scale. Amazing. We're watching our air closely, and knowing this will be short tour. So much life! In such a small area! It's unbelievable. Too much to see! Something new hiding in every crack....wow....just ..... wow......

The time comes....and we Know......Perfectly in sync, we look at each other and simultaneously gesture that it's time to go up. Our friends have returned and we let them know we will be ascending now. -- they let us know they won't be far behind....

....and we begin our slow and careful ascent.....totally uneventful at first....
quiet, slow.....a foot at a time.....
then we hit 50'.

There is NO DOUBT once we're in it that the current is stronger now than it was before...so carefully we ascend into the rushing water...watching unidentifiable particles race past us, and not letting our minds wander to where we might end up if we were to be careless in this process.

Foot by careful foot....we move up the chain. Now and then we feel the temperature get a degree warmer....and another degree warmer. The feeling is like being a wind sock at the airport...stretched out completely horitzontal in the water, concentrating on my hands on the chain....carefully....up another foot, and another. Finally the computer reads 16', and the water is lighter, but still we can't see but a few feet in any direction as we hold there for our safety stop. Involuntarily the song "....Like two sparrows in a hurricane...." starts playing in the back of my mind.

The minutes pass and the song and the safety stop are done; we continue the foot by foot ascent back to the open air.

As we break the surface and look up....everyone who stayed behind on the boat is right there on the bow looking down at us....a rope with loop is lowered down to us - this Captain is not going to take a chance at losing us now... following instructions I get myself securly attached to the rope, and finally let go of that bow chain. The current carries me, but the Captain's got me, and he walks me back to the ladder. That rope does not come off until I am completely out of the water.

First me, then my buddy, then behind him, each of our two friends, grab the rope, are pulled to the ladder, and climb up onto the boat.

Whew! Exhausted! We're done for the day! What a Dive! What A trip!
Gear is stripped...and the packing and story-telling begins....the Captain squares everything away and heads back to Ventura.

...and my friend looks at me and says - "A dive like that really let's you know you're Alive. Wow."

ya. Wow.

Thanks for letting my share my little dive-trip story with you.

**dalehall** · 06-24-2008, 03:19 PM

Wow.. Nice write ups Vegas..
Is this all from memory or notes taken during the trip?
I can't remember anything for s**t anymore, so when I go on a trip, I carry a journal (read: Spiral Notebook) with me. I write everything down the day it happens. Then I can go back later in the week or the following weekend and put it on my website/blog/myspace, whatever..