scubakat
Senior Member
What?:
Dive Octopus Hole!
When?:
Meet 8am Saturday December 22nd at
Houghton Park & Ride to
arrive 10am At Octopus Hole
Where?:
Houghton Park & Ride
7024 116th Ave NE
I-405 & NE 70th Pl
At the Park & Ride you will find me in the
Northwest corner of the lot as close to 70th
and I-405 as possible.
Octopus Hole is about a half-mile north of Hoodsport & Dive
and the Rest-a-While RV park on 101. It is marked by a
a Marine Protected Area sign and it's really no more
than a wide spot in the road. There are no facilities
at the site though at Hoodsport & Dive there is a
restroom & friendly people at the dive shop for air
fills.
For the site itself, once you walk down the short path
to the beach you will see a swim platform to your
right about 25 yards off the beach (depends on tidal
height). I usually don my gear at the car & walk down
to the water, but if the tide is out you could assemble
things on the beach. Just remember that the beach
completely disappears at high tide
.
We start out the dive by swimming to the platform and
descending down the anchor line to about 20'. Then we
swim to about 65-70' and make a turn back toward the
beach. That should put you at the base of the north
end of the wall. We usually make our way south along
the base of the wall where we have seen nesting
octopus and several wolf eels. At our turn-around
point we come back north along the top of the wall
(20-30') and do a safety stop in the shallows on the
way back to our exit.
Hazards might include boats, fishermen, and jelly
fish. Current here is not really a problem at depth,
though it can be noticeable at the surface. Sometimes
visibility here can be a challenge too, but I think
that it should be better now that winter is here.
Parking there is limited so I suggest that we share
as many rides as possible.
Drop me a private message here (& include your email
address) if you plan to attend so that I can watch for
you. On Friday I will send out an email reminder to those
who RSVP.
We hope to do two dives there & I hope to see some
new faces!
-kate
Dive Octopus Hole!
When?:
Meet 8am Saturday December 22nd at
Houghton Park & Ride to
arrive 10am At Octopus Hole
Where?:
Houghton Park & Ride
7024 116th Ave NE
I-405 & NE 70th Pl
At the Park & Ride you will find me in the
Northwest corner of the lot as close to 70th
and I-405 as possible.
Octopus Hole is about a half-mile north of Hoodsport & Dive
and the Rest-a-While RV park on 101. It is marked by a
a Marine Protected Area sign and it's really no more
than a wide spot in the road. There are no facilities
at the site though at Hoodsport & Dive there is a
restroom & friendly people at the dive shop for air
fills.
For the site itself, once you walk down the short path
to the beach you will see a swim platform to your
right about 25 yards off the beach (depends on tidal
height). I usually don my gear at the car & walk down
to the water, but if the tide is out you could assemble
things on the beach. Just remember that the beach
completely disappears at high tide
.We start out the dive by swimming to the platform and
descending down the anchor line to about 20'. Then we
swim to about 65-70' and make a turn back toward the
beach. That should put you at the base of the north
end of the wall. We usually make our way south along
the base of the wall where we have seen nesting
octopus and several wolf eels. At our turn-around
point we come back north along the top of the wall
(20-30') and do a safety stop in the shallows on the
way back to our exit.
Hazards might include boats, fishermen, and jelly
fish. Current here is not really a problem at depth,
though it can be noticeable at the surface. Sometimes
visibility here can be a challenge too, but I think
that it should be better now that winter is here.
Parking there is limited so I suggest that we share
as many rides as possible.
Drop me a private message here (& include your email
address) if you plan to attend so that I can watch for
you. On Friday I will send out an email reminder to those
who RSVP.
We hope to do two dives there & I hope to see some
new faces!
-kate
