KLJ
Registered
Hi all!
After nearly a month dry, NP251 and I headed down to BW yesterday and were greeted with fabulous conditions. We also (finally) got to use our new DR HID 1000 15w lights. Like every new toy - I wonder how I ever dived without this item. I guess my only complaint was that the vis was so fabulous that at 20 fsw - the light was washed out a bit.
We arrived around 7AM and watched the classes head out. Our first dive was along BW wall - 62 minutes, 52 degrees, max depth 55 fsw, 30-35 feet of visibility. The highlight was watching a very active (and hungry) juvenille red foot-long moray eel try to catch shrimp. The new lights let us follow him in and out between the rocks as he chased small shrimp. I am amazed at how vivid the colors of rocks, fish, kelp, everything is with the light.
After an hour-and-a-half SI during which surprisingly almost all the other dive teams and classes left, we got ready for our second dive to Metridium Fields in search of squid eggs. 55 minutes, 52 degrees, max depth 57 fsw, 20-25 feet of visibility. We found the eggs, but the highlight for me was watching 3 small flat fish fight over a poor little worm that had picked the wrong moment to take a look outside. We came back in across the kelp forest and exited near the wall. It's our version of a grand tour sans doubles and a DPV.
After another long SI (which included a pizza delivery to the beach), we got ready for our third dive. We wanted to time this dive to begin in daylight and end around dusk. I haven't done a night dive yet and we are trying to work into it slowly. We headed back out along BW wall - 67 minutes, 52 degrees, max depth 39 fsw, 20-25 feet of visibility. We found a bright yellow nurse's purse with the egg yolk clearly visible and I thought I saw two coralline sculpin fighting, but Neil has corrected me that they were actually... ahem... doing something else...
After a great full day at the BW, all I can say it is good to be back.
Neil's birthday is this Friday and we are planning a full day of diving on Sunday. We'll probably grab lunch at his favorite Monterey restaurant London Bridge Pub around 2 - so drop by and join us if you're in Monterey.
-Katie
After nearly a month dry, NP251 and I headed down to BW yesterday and were greeted with fabulous conditions. We also (finally) got to use our new DR HID 1000 15w lights. Like every new toy - I wonder how I ever dived without this item. I guess my only complaint was that the vis was so fabulous that at 20 fsw - the light was washed out a bit.
We arrived around 7AM and watched the classes head out. Our first dive was along BW wall - 62 minutes, 52 degrees, max depth 55 fsw, 30-35 feet of visibility. The highlight was watching a very active (and hungry) juvenille red foot-long moray eel try to catch shrimp. The new lights let us follow him in and out between the rocks as he chased small shrimp. I am amazed at how vivid the colors of rocks, fish, kelp, everything is with the light.
After an hour-and-a-half SI during which surprisingly almost all the other dive teams and classes left, we got ready for our second dive to Metridium Fields in search of squid eggs. 55 minutes, 52 degrees, max depth 57 fsw, 20-25 feet of visibility. We found the eggs, but the highlight for me was watching 3 small flat fish fight over a poor little worm that had picked the wrong moment to take a look outside. We came back in across the kelp forest and exited near the wall. It's our version of a grand tour sans doubles and a DPV.
After another long SI (which included a pizza delivery to the beach), we got ready for our third dive. We wanted to time this dive to begin in daylight and end around dusk. I haven't done a night dive yet and we are trying to work into it slowly. We headed back out along BW wall - 67 minutes, 52 degrees, max depth 39 fsw, 20-25 feet of visibility. We found a bright yellow nurse's purse with the egg yolk clearly visible and I thought I saw two coralline sculpin fighting, but Neil has corrected me that they were actually... ahem... doing something else...
After a great full day at the BW, all I can say it is good to be back.
Neil's birthday is this Friday and we are planning a full day of diving on Sunday. We'll probably grab lunch at his favorite Monterey restaurant London Bridge Pub around 2 - so drop by and join us if you're in Monterey.
-Katie
