lamarpaulski
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Going to SoCal, should we dive with locals?
- Thread starter AlmightyApkallu
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I think you are getting the picture. I dive Laguna most weekends. I'd be happy to show you Shaws or Divers Cove, both excellent intros to Socal diving. The key aspects of both of those sites is the navigation is very straight forward. Send me an email: darkthirtydiver@gmail.com
undrwater
Contributor
It's good that you come here and ask.
Please DO find a local group / guide as you might find yourself watching a bunch of nothing but sand. I would look for a local to dive with at your lake as I have no clue what to watch out for.
Surf / surge / waves: these are generally the things to watch for. Feel free to don your suits and feel them out without your other gear. You should get a good idea if you can handle it (your locals won't be able to tell you).
Have fun!
Please DO find a local group / guide as you might find yourself watching a bunch of nothing but sand. I would look for a local to dive with at your lake as I have no clue what to watch out for.
Surf / surge / waves: these are generally the things to watch for. Feel free to don your suits and feel them out without your other gear. You should get a good idea if you can handle it (your locals won't be able to tell you).
Have fun!
lamarpaulski
Contributor
I would call Catalina Divers Supply and clarify. I think that is price for discover diving which is for people who never dived and aren't certified. You ought to get better price but...
Honestly the Dive Park is pretty easy. Probably way safer than your murky cold deep lake. Park is Diveable 360 days.
Some of the people painting pictures of certain death have never dived there or havent dived in decades. Of course having someone local is better but check it out.
Snorkle it first..get comfortable...scout it...play with kelp...feel current or surge if there is any....then dive. Its a nice place to snorkel too.
Current is nil in the shallower water and when present runs parallel to shore and doesnt drag you out to sea. So start dive versus current, if present..end in shallower water...no problem. Dont bother to fight current... simply head to shallower water and it dies off. At the Park its obvious where shallower is too..its generally sloped.
Here is link to dive from yesterday...last 30 secs show exit/entry...if you cant do that....a bit of surge and I will caution you lower steps mossy and a little slick but you have stairs...railings...easier that a boat.
I have bad knees and back and am 59.
PS..that wreck in video is deeper and outside Park a bit..need permit...not for you yet.
As you can see shallow area by steps in shadow of Casino is nice & easy. Lots of fish. Guys running shop there pretty helpful too btw. They will give you tips and have map of park. Point you to small wrecks and sights. Giant sea bass quite close to stairs ( to the right maybe 50 yards) in 55-60 ft.
I will be there next thursday...defying death.
134969"]QUOTE="AlmightyApkallu, post: 7803251, member: 470721"]I looked up Catalina Diver Supply. It says they charge $100 per person (seems a little steep?) for a guided tour of the dive park. 2 hours, so I'm guessing it's a one tank dive in shallows and that they are including time for setup, prep and such. One good thing is it says they include the gear you need to use. I have all my own stuff but my GF does not have her own BC and Reg and we both have wetsuits but they are not 7mm's (we've been renting those) so I imagine it would save us some costs right there... I was actually looking to do the whole shabang trip for around $300-$400 if possible for my budget right now, so a boat dive might be a bit much, but when figuring in the cost of the Ferry I dunno... hmmm.[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]
Honestly the Dive Park is pretty easy. Probably way safer than your murky cold deep lake. Park is Diveable 360 days.
Some of the people painting pictures of certain death have never dived there or havent dived in decades. Of course having someone local is better but check it out.
Snorkle it first..get comfortable...scout it...play with kelp...feel current or surge if there is any....then dive. Its a nice place to snorkel too.
Current is nil in the shallower water and when present runs parallel to shore and doesnt drag you out to sea. So start dive versus current, if present..end in shallower water...no problem. Dont bother to fight current... simply head to shallower water and it dies off. At the Park its obvious where shallower is too..its generally sloped.
Here is link to dive from yesterday...last 30 secs show exit/entry...if you cant do that....a bit of surge and I will caution you lower steps mossy and a little slick but you have stairs...railings...easier that a boat.
I have bad knees and back and am 59.
PS..that wreck in video is deeper and outside Park a bit..need permit...not for you yet.
As you can see shallow area by steps in shadow of Casino is nice & easy. Lots of fish. Guys running shop there pretty helpful too btw. They will give you tips and have map of park. Point you to small wrecks and sights. Giant sea bass quite close to stairs ( to the right maybe 50 yards) in 55-60 ft.
I will be there next thursday...defying death.
134969"]QUOTE="AlmightyApkallu, post: 7803251, member: 470721"]I looked up Catalina Diver Supply. It says they charge $100 per person (seems a little steep?) for a guided tour of the dive park. 2 hours, so I'm guessing it's a one tank dive in shallows and that they are including time for setup, prep and such. One good thing is it says they include the gear you need to use. I have all my own stuff but my GF does not have her own BC and Reg and we both have wetsuits but they are not 7mm's (we've been renting those) so I imagine it would save us some costs right there... I was actually looking to do the whole shabang trip for around $300-$400 if possible for my budget right now, so a boat dive might be a bit much, but when figuring in the cost of the Ferry I dunno... hmmm.[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]
OP
AlmightyApkallu
Contributor
Thank you, Shucksun, I might just take you or some one else offering up on the offer, as long as it's okay. I would love to do Shaw's Cove, that's the main place I've been looking into diving. And yes Undrwater, anywhere diving for the first time at least in a region I agree is very imperative to go with some one who's been before. Lake Pleasant, where we dive is a gigantic lake that during the winter can get up to 400 feet deep and very quickly at that, there's also a gigantic sunken damn that tec divers go to so you can definitely get yourself in a sticky situation there.
OP
AlmightyApkallu
Contributor
Thanks for the comment, Lamar. This is kind of what I was thinking about, although I still might hit up some one who has been diving there before like the person earlier in this thread. The dive park looks like a really beginner friendly place. If we stayed in the absolute shallows and it was a calm day, perhaps? I spent many years surfing and know the Ocean is nothing to be taken lightly, but when respected she also isn't out to kill you either.
Dizzi Lizzi
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Shaw's cove has a revered place in the very short history of recreational diving ...when and if you dive there you will be diving into recreational diving history as would be if your dove Divers Cove
In your extensive research I would suspect that you would have discovered the reason Shaw's is not only popular with the classes and novice divers but also it is very historically significant.
If not, I will defer to the experts who frequently dive Shaw's and know it intimately to explain why.it is so historically significant.
It is surprising that not one poster mentioned the many underwater attractions of OC: the submerged train, the "barge" the two airplanes, one dividable from shore.
Or maybe Deadman's reef dividable from Crescent Bay---Or Miller's reef a long swim from Woods cove. A quote from Sheckler's book "Just too far for the average diver to swim."
During the genesis of recreational diving OC was the fountain head of recreational diving in California, the US and the world - It lasted only a short time and only a precious few were honored to be participants of that era'
Now those who dive (I would hesitate to refer to them as divers) for they cannot explore the unexplored, in need of a guide to dive , are poorly trained, are terrified of ankle deep surf and must have stairs with a hand rail to dive in California
In 20000 There was a huge world wide gathering of "The Fathers of Free divers and Spear fishermen" in were else but OC ? These remaining 60 or so participants were the divers that lead the way as far back as the 1930s and explored the unexplored using crude often home made equipment in an era devoid of books magazines and training . The surviving participants all of them then in their 70s, 80s and a few in their 90s came from all over Europe, and as far away as Australia and 3 from OC . It was the last great pow wow of the tribe. Now only a precious few of the "Fathers" are with us and their numbers are rapidly decreasing ....
That one event was the end of the beginning, I suspect we are now some where in the beginning of the middle
Who knows what the future will bring and when the end will arrive
SDM
In your extensive research I would suspect that you would have discovered the reason Shaw's is not only popular with the classes and novice divers but also it is very historically significant.
If not, I will defer to the experts who frequently dive Shaw's and know it intimately to explain why.it is so historically significant.
It is surprising that not one poster mentioned the many underwater attractions of OC: the submerged train, the "barge" the two airplanes, one dividable from shore.
Or maybe Deadman's reef dividable from Crescent Bay---Or Miller's reef a long swim from Woods cove. A quote from Sheckler's book "Just too far for the average diver to swim."
During the genesis of recreational diving OC was the fountain head of recreational diving in California, the US and the world - It lasted only a short time and only a precious few were honored to be participants of that era'
Now those who dive (I would hesitate to refer to them as divers) for they cannot explore the unexplored, in need of a guide to dive , are poorly trained, are terrified of ankle deep surf and must have stairs with a hand rail to dive in California
In 20000 There was a huge world wide gathering of "The Fathers of Free divers and Spear fishermen" in were else but OC ? These remaining 60 or so participants were the divers that lead the way as far back as the 1930s and explored the unexplored using crude often home made equipment in an era devoid of books magazines and training . The surviving participants all of them then in their 70s, 80s and a few in their 90s came from all over Europe, and as far away as Australia and 3 from OC . It was the last great pow wow of the tribe. Now only a precious few of the "Fathers" are with us and their numbers are rapidly decreasing ....
That one event was the end of the beginning, I suspect we are now some where in the beginning of the middle
Who knows what the future will bring and when the end will arrive
SDM
Bob DBF
Contributor
You are upfront with your skills, anyone agreeing to take you out would be looking forward to showing you their area and having a fun dive.
Bob
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Well did they ever arrive in the OC ?
Who acted as their personal underwater guide ?
Where did you dive ?
sdm
Who acted as their personal underwater guide ?
Where did you dive ?
sdm
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