Roughwaterjohn
Contributor
La Jolla Shores (dive #1), La Jolla Cove (dive #2)
Dive #1: La Jolla Shores
Calm flat seas with little to no wave action.
0 low tide on a 1.1 knot flood.
Surface temperature was 69 degrees, dropping to 50 degrees in the canyon.
Visibility was 15+ in the shallows and 20-30 at depth.
No surge at any depth with no noticeable current.
Maximum depth was 89 fsw, with an average depth of 75 fsw.
Total bottom time was 42 minutes.
Dive #2 Alligator Head / La Jolla Cove
Calm flat seas with no waves in the Cove and minimal waves hitting Alligator Head.
3 high tide, on the same 1.1 knot flood.
Surface temperature was 68 degrees, with a bottom temperature of 62 degrees.
Visibility was 20 at the worst and 30-40 at its best.
Moderate surge near Alligator Head and in the Cove, none at deeper locations.
Maximum depth was 28 fsw, with an average depth of 22 fsw.
Total bottom time was 50 minutes.
Photos:
I didnt bring my camera, but Sean (divebuddysean) brought his. Heres a link to some of his photos;
http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=614&ppuser=&password=0
The Report: La Jolla Shores
Sean, Mickey and I met up at La Jolla Shores this morning for our first (and only planned) dive. We geared up quickly then cruised down the boardwalk so we could enter at Vallecitos St. The tide was way out, with a pretty large expanse of beach needing to be crossed before we stepped into the ocean. There were little to no waves awake and strutting their stuff this morning, so we walked straight out, lazily put our fins on, then cruised out even with but north of, the buoy. We dropped down to the bottom 20 below, which we could clearly see when we started our decent.
A quick buddy check, a short couple of kicks, and we were dropping down into the canyon. The thermocline was shallower than Friday nights dive, starting at 25 fsw and staying with us until we cruised back out of the canyon. The Purple Jellies are still abundant, as were a variety of Dorids. We saw a Yellow Spotted, a White and a couple of San Diego Dorids. The walls were crawling with Gobies from small to XXL, with a couple of Coonstripe Shrimp thrown in to mix it up.
We saw a few Sea Hares this morning, but not in the number or size as on previous dives. As we moved south along the wall, we spotted Sanddabs, Sea Pens and a variety of Tube Dwelling Anemones. Hitting turnaround pressure, we started upslope, anticipating the warmer water shimmering above the canyon. We sailed over the Sand Dollar fields again, but further south this time, where theyre not as abundant. Heading in, we saw a California Armina, a Navanax and a Swimming Crab, who surprised us by popping out of the sand as we cruised over. We didnt see much else until we hit the shallows, where the Stingrays and a couple of small Halibut scattered before us, heading off in every direction but the course we were taking. There was a very slight surge under the surf zone, but even in the shallows, we were swimming with 15 of visibility. We swam in under the surf until our respective computers told us we were in the area of 4 fsw, where we stood up, chatted up the dive, then walked to the showers, our cars and breakfast, in that order.
The Report: Alligator Head / La Jolla Cove
After breakfast, I made the mistake of telling Sean I would take him over to the Cove and show him some alternative sites for entry, and to point out a few spots that are good for exploring. It was a mistake, because I was supposed to head home afterwards and do my weekend chores.
Arriving at the Cove, we could clearly see the rocks, Eel Grass and Garibaldis from the sidewalk above. The Cove was as calm, if not more so, than the Shores. We walked over to Alligator Head and down onto the rocks to check out a few entry points. Even though this faces open ocean, and is often the victim of an aquatic WWF Smackdown with the constant pounding it can receive, it was flat and calm, with baby swells lapping against the rocks. We could easily see 10 down to the swaying Kelp and Eel Grass. After about the 10th time of me telling Sean that the conditions are so rarely like this, and you need to dive whenever you encounter them, he looked me straight in the eye, gave me that look, and repeated slowly, like he was talking to a very dull individual (feel free to infer what you will from that) sooo .. conditions are so rarely like this you need to dive whenever you encounter them right? As the 15 watt bulb slowly increased in brightness over my head I said, hey, maybe we should refill our tanks and go diving. You think?
45 minutes later, we were back, parked, suited up and heading to the water to fulfill our destiny. We climbed down onto the rocks, right to the edge of the water, tourists stopping their investigation of the tide pools to gaze in wonder at these crazy divers. We put our fins on, crammed a little air into our BCs, then gracefully plopped into the water. We kicked out only about 20 yards to a thick patch of Kelp, then dropped down and started exploring. Visibility was awesome, with 30-40 not uncommon in many areas. I was surprised though to feel a thermocline at the same 25 fsw as we encountered at the Shores. It wasn't as cold, but it was interesting to swim back and forth between 24 fsw and 25 fsw and encounter a different temperature in each direction. There was so much life and it was so clear, I would not have been surprised to come upon a huge sheet of glass blocking our path, with dry tourists standing on the carpet on the opposite side admiring the view.
We saw Garibaldi by the bazillions (thats a technical oceanographers term by the way). We saw huge amounts of Kelp Bass, Senoritas, Rock Wrasse, Blacksmiths, Surf Perch, Kelpfish, Top Smelt .etc .etc etc. Several of the caverns we checked out held three and four generations of Lobster. The sandy channels between the rocks brought forth two large Banded Guitarfish and one very large Shovelnosed Guitarfish. The Shovelnose, which was longer than my 62 came out of nowhere, hovered gracefully as it settled to the bottom directly in front of us for a minute or two, then darted off so quick I almost couldnt see which direction it went.
As we continued exploring, we found five large Sea Hares all parked nose in around a tasty stalk of kelp, like a pack of 56 Buicks pulled up to a round drive in restaurant. We looked, but didnt see any small trays hanging off their drivers side. We had planned to exit at Alligator Head, climbing up onto the rocks at the same point where we entered since conditions were so nice. With those nice conditions though, I decided it would be nice to swim the long way around the point and come in through the Cove, which is another wonderful place to explore, where conditions dont often allow it.
We startled a couple of snorkelers who were looking down as we parted the Eel Grass and came out of the depths. They choked on a little sea water, but Im sure it was good for them. We were able to swim right up to the shallows, and a forest of boney legs and ankles that appeared to grow out of the sand and stop at the surface. Once we broke that same surface, we could see the multitude of people who were attached to that forest of legs, along with about 30-40 snorkelers who were also taking advantage of the great conditions. We were able to walk straight out of the sea, Im sure to the admiring glances of the land locked beach goers, then up the stairs and to our second shower of the day. It was a perfect day to dive. I would have been kicking myself if we hadnt taken advantage of the conditions, which turned out to be one of my most memorable dives in and around the Cove.
John-Boy
Dive #1: La Jolla Shores
Calm flat seas with little to no wave action.
0 low tide on a 1.1 knot flood.
Surface temperature was 69 degrees, dropping to 50 degrees in the canyon.
Visibility was 15+ in the shallows and 20-30 at depth.
No surge at any depth with no noticeable current.
Maximum depth was 89 fsw, with an average depth of 75 fsw.
Total bottom time was 42 minutes.
Dive #2 Alligator Head / La Jolla Cove
Calm flat seas with no waves in the Cove and minimal waves hitting Alligator Head.
3 high tide, on the same 1.1 knot flood.
Surface temperature was 68 degrees, with a bottom temperature of 62 degrees.
Visibility was 20 at the worst and 30-40 at its best.
Moderate surge near Alligator Head and in the Cove, none at deeper locations.
Maximum depth was 28 fsw, with an average depth of 22 fsw.
Total bottom time was 50 minutes.
Photos:
I didnt bring my camera, but Sean (divebuddysean) brought his. Heres a link to some of his photos;
http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=614&ppuser=&password=0
The Report: La Jolla Shores
Sean, Mickey and I met up at La Jolla Shores this morning for our first (and only planned) dive. We geared up quickly then cruised down the boardwalk so we could enter at Vallecitos St. The tide was way out, with a pretty large expanse of beach needing to be crossed before we stepped into the ocean. There were little to no waves awake and strutting their stuff this morning, so we walked straight out, lazily put our fins on, then cruised out even with but north of, the buoy. We dropped down to the bottom 20 below, which we could clearly see when we started our decent.
A quick buddy check, a short couple of kicks, and we were dropping down into the canyon. The thermocline was shallower than Friday nights dive, starting at 25 fsw and staying with us until we cruised back out of the canyon. The Purple Jellies are still abundant, as were a variety of Dorids. We saw a Yellow Spotted, a White and a couple of San Diego Dorids. The walls were crawling with Gobies from small to XXL, with a couple of Coonstripe Shrimp thrown in to mix it up.
We saw a few Sea Hares this morning, but not in the number or size as on previous dives. As we moved south along the wall, we spotted Sanddabs, Sea Pens and a variety of Tube Dwelling Anemones. Hitting turnaround pressure, we started upslope, anticipating the warmer water shimmering above the canyon. We sailed over the Sand Dollar fields again, but further south this time, where theyre not as abundant. Heading in, we saw a California Armina, a Navanax and a Swimming Crab, who surprised us by popping out of the sand as we cruised over. We didnt see much else until we hit the shallows, where the Stingrays and a couple of small Halibut scattered before us, heading off in every direction but the course we were taking. There was a very slight surge under the surf zone, but even in the shallows, we were swimming with 15 of visibility. We swam in under the surf until our respective computers told us we were in the area of 4 fsw, where we stood up, chatted up the dive, then walked to the showers, our cars and breakfast, in that order.
The Report: Alligator Head / La Jolla Cove
After breakfast, I made the mistake of telling Sean I would take him over to the Cove and show him some alternative sites for entry, and to point out a few spots that are good for exploring. It was a mistake, because I was supposed to head home afterwards and do my weekend chores.
Arriving at the Cove, we could clearly see the rocks, Eel Grass and Garibaldis from the sidewalk above. The Cove was as calm, if not more so, than the Shores. We walked over to Alligator Head and down onto the rocks to check out a few entry points. Even though this faces open ocean, and is often the victim of an aquatic WWF Smackdown with the constant pounding it can receive, it was flat and calm, with baby swells lapping against the rocks. We could easily see 10 down to the swaying Kelp and Eel Grass. After about the 10th time of me telling Sean that the conditions are so rarely like this, and you need to dive whenever you encounter them, he looked me straight in the eye, gave me that look, and repeated slowly, like he was talking to a very dull individual (feel free to infer what you will from that) sooo .. conditions are so rarely like this you need to dive whenever you encounter them right? As the 15 watt bulb slowly increased in brightness over my head I said, hey, maybe we should refill our tanks and go diving. You think?
45 minutes later, we were back, parked, suited up and heading to the water to fulfill our destiny. We climbed down onto the rocks, right to the edge of the water, tourists stopping their investigation of the tide pools to gaze in wonder at these crazy divers. We put our fins on, crammed a little air into our BCs, then gracefully plopped into the water. We kicked out only about 20 yards to a thick patch of Kelp, then dropped down and started exploring. Visibility was awesome, with 30-40 not uncommon in many areas. I was surprised though to feel a thermocline at the same 25 fsw as we encountered at the Shores. It wasn't as cold, but it was interesting to swim back and forth between 24 fsw and 25 fsw and encounter a different temperature in each direction. There was so much life and it was so clear, I would not have been surprised to come upon a huge sheet of glass blocking our path, with dry tourists standing on the carpet on the opposite side admiring the view.
We saw Garibaldi by the bazillions (thats a technical oceanographers term by the way). We saw huge amounts of Kelp Bass, Senoritas, Rock Wrasse, Blacksmiths, Surf Perch, Kelpfish, Top Smelt .etc .etc etc. Several of the caverns we checked out held three and four generations of Lobster. The sandy channels between the rocks brought forth two large Banded Guitarfish and one very large Shovelnosed Guitarfish. The Shovelnose, which was longer than my 62 came out of nowhere, hovered gracefully as it settled to the bottom directly in front of us for a minute or two, then darted off so quick I almost couldnt see which direction it went.
As we continued exploring, we found five large Sea Hares all parked nose in around a tasty stalk of kelp, like a pack of 56 Buicks pulled up to a round drive in restaurant. We looked, but didnt see any small trays hanging off their drivers side. We had planned to exit at Alligator Head, climbing up onto the rocks at the same point where we entered since conditions were so nice. With those nice conditions though, I decided it would be nice to swim the long way around the point and come in through the Cove, which is another wonderful place to explore, where conditions dont often allow it.
We startled a couple of snorkelers who were looking down as we parted the Eel Grass and came out of the depths. They choked on a little sea water, but Im sure it was good for them. We were able to swim right up to the shallows, and a forest of boney legs and ankles that appeared to grow out of the sand and stop at the surface. Once we broke that same surface, we could see the multitude of people who were attached to that forest of legs, along with about 30-40 snorkelers who were also taking advantage of the great conditions. We were able to walk straight out of the sea, Im sure to the admiring glances of the land locked beach goers, then up the stairs and to our second shower of the day. It was a perfect day to dive. I would have been kicking myself if we hadnt taken advantage of the conditions, which turned out to be one of my most memorable dives in and around the Cove.
John-Boy
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