The Ruttmeister
Contributor
Saturday morning dive along the pipe near breakwater. Almost no surge, 20-30ft visibility. Wind picking up at 12.
Monterey conditions. (let's keep it going )
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stilldivin
Contributor
The tide was out when went in and the vis was mixed. Watch and listen at the beginning for a noisy and unhappy sea lion who seems to be telling us to stay away from its pups. It caught me by surprise which is why the camera is tilted. The vis improved at the wall and so did the kelp canopy. I got some great shots of it and some colorful critters. You can hear the shrimp snapping too. The water was 57 degrees and we reached a depth of 47 feet. When we came back the long surge had picked up but the waves remained small.
Chavodel8en
Contributor
Finally saw a local GPO in the wild -- but it was dead 
At the end of the Breakwater, at 40' I hope the videos below are linked properly. Also playful sea lions.
At the end of the Breakwater, at 40' I hope the videos below are linked properly. Also playful sea lions.
elgoog
Contributor
BAUE rec charter on the Escapade on Saturday. The wave and wind forecast looked pretty good so we were all hoping to get down to Carmel for both dives. There was some thick fog as we set out and the ocean was sloppier than expected but we made it to Carmel.
Dive 1 was at the Needle which is a gorgeous pinnacle just off of the Carmel headlands. The structure is about 120ft to the sand and comes up to about 50ft and is completely covered in anemones, hydrocoral, sponges and nudibranchs. There's usually a lot of kelp too but I think the rough conditions in the last few weeks took that out - still lots of fish around and always one of my favorite boat dives. there was a little surge yesterday as well, not a lot but enough that I needed to keep a little distance from the structure. Also, cold!
-> 42min, 85ft max, 58ft avg, 49F water temp, 20-30ft viz
It had gotten rougher and windier so we used the surface interval to motor back to the bay - even the ride back was rough. My buddy was napping and got knocked completely off the bench by a large swell - surprisingly graceful landing onto the deck considering she was fast asleep the entire time.
Dive 2 was at Eric's Pinnacle. My first dive at this spot which is surprising considering how popular it is with Monterey boats. Viz wasn't great as we descended through snot but opened up to about 20-25ft. This isn't a very large or even deep site but still lots to see. The entire structure was covered in orange encrusting sponge which gave the rocks a weird hue. We found the resident treefish but no GPOs or wolf eels that are sometimes here. I had to call the dive early due to cold.
-> 38min, 46ft max, 35ft avg, 52F water temp, 20ft viz
Great to be back diving after a month long storm-created gap. Almost didn't get this video after a juvenile pelican tried to eat the camera when we surfaced after the second dive.
Dive 1 was at the Needle which is a gorgeous pinnacle just off of the Carmel headlands. The structure is about 120ft to the sand and comes up to about 50ft and is completely covered in anemones, hydrocoral, sponges and nudibranchs. There's usually a lot of kelp too but I think the rough conditions in the last few weeks took that out - still lots of fish around and always one of my favorite boat dives. there was a little surge yesterday as well, not a lot but enough that I needed to keep a little distance from the structure. Also, cold!
-> 42min, 85ft max, 58ft avg, 49F water temp, 20-30ft viz
It had gotten rougher and windier so we used the surface interval to motor back to the bay - even the ride back was rough. My buddy was napping and got knocked completely off the bench by a large swell - surprisingly graceful landing onto the deck considering she was fast asleep the entire time.
Dive 2 was at Eric's Pinnacle. My first dive at this spot which is surprising considering how popular it is with Monterey boats. Viz wasn't great as we descended through snot but opened up to about 20-25ft. This isn't a very large or even deep site but still lots to see. The entire structure was covered in orange encrusting sponge which gave the rocks a weird hue. We found the resident treefish but no GPOs or wolf eels that are sometimes here. I had to call the dive early due to cold.
-> 38min, 46ft max, 35ft avg, 52F water temp, 20ft viz
Great to be back diving after a month long storm-created gap. Almost didn't get this video after a juvenile pelican tried to eat the camera when we surfaced after the second dive.
dive1bb
Contributor
dive1bb
Contributor
@wnissen and I ventured out to Lobos for a few awesome dives today. Gorgeous weather with some seals living their best life:
Dive 1 and 2 - Middle Reef
Low tide and surface swim was great -- little to no current. Just had to make sure you didn't become a kelp monster along the way to your destination. Vis was pea soup on the descent for both dives and opened up once you hit 15-20ft to about...10ft!
First was a shallow 35 minute dive with a max depth of 38ft at a chilly 49F especially after diving in 58F+ last weekend. Tons of kelp and all the usual suspects.
Second was a 64 minute dive with a max depth of 56ft. Still 49F, but this one was easier Saw more fish on this go-around. Fairly certain I saw a tree fish or two along with rockfish. Walt spotted a gigantic starfish at one point, too! Sometimes I wish I brought a camera along. It was pretty neat!
Met a group that scooted out to Twin Peaks area and said the vis wasn't spectacular, but decent! Thought I would pass that along, as well.
Dive 1 and 2 - Middle Reef
Low tide and surface swim was great -- little to no current. Just had to make sure you didn't become a kelp monster along the way to your destination. Vis was pea soup on the descent for both dives and opened up once you hit 15-20ft to about...10ft!
First was a shallow 35 minute dive with a max depth of 38ft at a chilly 49F especially after diving in 58F+ last weekend. Tons of kelp and all the usual suspects.
Second was a 64 minute dive with a max depth of 56ft. Still 49F, but this one was easier
Saw more fish on this go-around. Fairly certain I saw a tree fish or two along with rockfish. Walt spotted a gigantic starfish at one point, too! Sometimes I wish I brought a camera along. It was pretty neat!Met a group that scooted out to Twin Peaks area and said the vis wasn't spectacular, but decent! Thought I would pass that along, as well.
wnissen
Contributor
Thanks so much for getting the permit, I had a great time! I realized I gave you a slightly wrong temperature in F, 12C is 53.6F. So a bit cooler than the normal 55. I was warmer on the second dive, for whatever reason. Maybe next time we can find the hole in the wall. I asked to turn around early because I thought there was current, but I was fooled by the offshore breeze making ripples going out. I'll pay more attention to our movement relative to the kelp.
dive1bb
Contributor
Chavodel8en
Contributor
Saturday at the Breakwater was fairly flat (since the 3 day wave model was modified, I feel like it has overstated wave height -- at least for the several days Ive gone diving). ~15' viz, greenish, got clearer at the end of the Breakwater, as the sea lions video shows. My buddy had 50 deg F, I had 52 deg F.
***
One thing I noticed - I always used to scan the sand around the big pipe for nudis, etc. On Saturday, I couldn't see any sand at all-- the whole area was covered with some kind of sea grass. I've never noticed it this thick before. Don't know if this is bad or good, but its a change.
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