A Very Dry Fish Finally Gets His Honeymoon

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FrankPro1

Contributor
Messages
1,316
Reaction score
130
Location
Medora, North Dakota
# of dives
200 - 499
It's been a very dry year due to my own personal pursuits, but I'm back in So Cal for a few weeks and I plan on making the best of it. Last weekend Charlie and I were skunked by what was forecasted to be great conditions. We found nothing but heavy swell and brown water on the peninsula.

The south end of the peninsula this weekend looked like another failed attempt at getting wet. From White Point to Marineland, a wind driven swell was battering the cloudy coastline. Pressing against the odds, Charlie and I continued north in search of good conditions. As we rounded the west end the wind died down, the sun came out and we were greeted with flat, blue water.

The site of choice was Honeymoon cove and we gladly tackled the steep goat trail leading to its marine wonderland. At 0700 hours there was already 4 cars parked along the roadside of Honeymoon cove. It seems that this site has become a hotspot for Spearos. Luckily for us, many of them were very inexperienced and chose to stay close to shore. Charlie and I however, took the long swim to the outer kelp bed and a compass heading towards Christmas Tree Cove. Along the 210 degree heading, Charlie and I came upon a few shallow pinnacles in the 35-40ft range. At this depth, visibility was a solid 15-20ft, with some suspended particles. As we traveled deeper, visibility closed out to 10ft or less. Much of the dive was spent in the shallows to take advantage of the better conditions. Even with the heavy pressure of Spearos, it seems that Honeymoon Cove is still bustling with an abundant variety of marine life. Black and Yellow Rockfish were especially prolific. We also encountered a few Cabezon, Scorpion fish and a very large Lingcod during our dive. With the shallow depths we easily squeezed in a 75+ minute dive. It was great to get wet again. My gills were o' so very dry. Here are some captures that came out:






 
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Love the black and yellow! I haven't seen many of them lately. One spot where they can be found is the Archery Range. Unfortunately, the hike down and usual two feet vis or less makes it a tough dive. I have had a few great dives there, though. The hardest part about diving Honeymoon Cove is the top twenty feet of the trail. I've always wanted to take a shovel and 4X4s and build steps where the big dropoff is.
 
Beautiful photos, Frank! You haven't lost your photographic touch after all spending all this time in training. I'm so glad you and Charlie got in a dive, and a good one at that.
 
Love the black and yellow! I haven't seen many of them lately.

Honeymoon has tons of them. Everywhere you look black & yellows are inhabiting the reef. They are almost as prolific as the Kelp Rockfish :wink:

Beautiful photos, Frank! You haven't lost your photographic touch after all spending all this time in training. I'm so glad you and Charlie got in a dive, and a good one at that.

We really needed it. I was going stir crazy after 4+ months of terrestrial life. I tried my hardest to pull out some decent captures. I have plans on investing in a DSLR setup that should be ready by the time I go on furlough from my position in North Dakota.
 
Ugh :( I don't think that ND diving is in my future.
 
It was great to be back in the water with my best friend. As most of you know, Honeymoon cove is a REAL shore diving experience, complete with 45 degree angle trails, loose dirt, and a decent surface swim. Truly an invigorating experience to crawl up that last section of the hill, chest heaving and equipment covered in mud... just like old times. I have to admit, it was bittersweet. I knew the entire time that this would probably be the only shore dive Frank and I will make until Fall/Winter.

Nice job on that Lincod shot man. You had to be quick to catch that one as he didn't stick around for long. Frank, you have the eye's of a hunter but the heart of a photographer. I swam right over both the cabezon and the scorpion fish only to feel tugging on my fins such intensity that I thought my dive buddy had seen Whitey. But it was my privilege to signal the highly anticipated "shark" sign. Yes, I spotted the baby horn shark.

The GoPro video I took turned out decent. Maybe I will post sometime several decades from now, along with the half finished series of Longpoint videos I took last fall.



The hardest part about diving Honeymoon Cove is the top twenty feet of the trail.

Actually, the hardest part about diving honeymoon cove (hike down + swim out + 75 minutes of dive time) is trying not to piss your drysuit on the swim back. I need to install that damn pee valve if I am going to continue to dive these coves with the drysuit.
 
The GoPro video I took turned out decent. Maybe I will post sometime several decades from now, along with the half finished series of Longpoint videos I took last fall.

Looking forward to seeing it bud.

Oh how I love diving wet :D
pee-ocean-625.jpg
 
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