Dive Report (Va Beach): Luckenbach and Trepca (3 Dives)

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Wil

Contributor
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Location
Virginia Beach
Memorial Day brought another fantastic dive day off Virginia Beach. With three friends (Kevin, Ted, and Mike) we headed offshore early for a 3 dive day around the Triangle Reef.
Departing out of Vinings Landing Marine Center (Little Creek Inlet) we found the NOAA forecast a bit more choppy than forecast and only made 26mph outbound. I about an hour and a half we were north of the Triangle and decided to head to the Luchenbach for two dives. Seas were about 2-3ft, winds light, and little surface current. We anchored in the bow area after finding a fisherman on the stern and kept our diving to forward of the boilers. They reported 30+ft of visibility and bottom temps at 47deg. Mike & I made our dive and found plenty of Sea Bass, a few Flounder, and a couple of Lobsters. Visibility was a bit more than 30ft with the thermocline at 34ft and warm surface water at 74deg. We ended up making two dives on the Lillian Luchenbach. The second dive we had the wreck all to ourselves. The surprise spearshot came from Mike after I'd chased around a 26in Flounder with my dive knife, never getting a good clear stab on it. Mike missed seeing the Flounder until it was almost too late and quickly drew a perfect head shot from about 10ft away as the fish made a break for it.

After two dives we headed over to the Trepca and tied in amidships. We found the same conditions as the Luchenbach (not far away) but had a good time exploring another wreck. By now the winds & waves had died down to near nothing and made for a great afternoon diving.

We pulled the hook and headed back to Little Creek on smooth seas and more than 40 knots. Arriving in about an hour we cleaned the boat, the fish, and divided up the catch and were home for dinner. Another great day of diving on Freedom.

Safe Diving,
Wil
 
Glad to hear you were able to get out Will. I have been looking forward to your report since I was wondering what the conditions were like here. I am looking forward to learning about this spearfishing stuff from you and Mike this season. That sounds like it was one bigass flounder!!!
 
Randy,

Otherthan the single fishing boat, we were the only other boat out there. The weather was absolutely fantastic and the diving great. I'll head out in everything but unsafe conditions. Sometimes the sea state is somewhat rough inshore and fine offshore, you just have to put up with going slow for a few miles before getting going. The important thing is safety.

The water temps from ~34ft to the surface were amazingly warm. With very little current on the bottom and surface it made for another great day of diving. So, earlier in the week we thought we'd try something you don't get often; 3 dives in a single day. We'd hoped to hit three different dive sites but after seeing the conditions on Luckenbach we decided to spend two dives there and another elsewhere.

The Flounder are making it to the Triangle! The fish I saw ranged all sizes but you could easily find them.

Safe Diving,
Wil
 
Randy,

Spearfishing ain't that hard but knowing what you can take, the size & catch limits does matter. As a general rule; shoot only fish you want to take home, know the size limits of what you're shooting, know what you're shooting, know what's behind what you're shooting. I dislike spearfishermen who shoot undersized fish or fish out of season. The speargun gets benched for the rest of the day. It's a good idea to put some tape on your speargun to mark size limits - if the fish doesn't look considerably bigger, don't shoot at it. There's no catch & release with a speargun.

As for safety (you know how I am on my boat); Don't ever load a speargun anywhere near or on the boat, never travel up or down the descent line with a loaded speargun. Guns only get loaded on the bottom. Never sweep another diver with your speartip. Always know what's behind your target. While diving with a small group it's easy to know where 2 or 3 divers are but on larger dive parties you may not know who's downrange. If ever in doubt, hold your shot. When I travel around the wreck I keep the speartip down toward the bottom. Resist the temptation to stab a Flounder with a loaded speargun - there's enormous stored energy and it's looking for a reason to let go. It's better to release the band/bands and then stab with an unloaded gun.

Then there's practice. It may sound crazy but it's good to get familiar with your weapon before you head off on the hunt. Try shooting away from the wreck (and other divers) into the sand. Aim at something of contrast in the sand and practice shooting and reloading. When you get good at it, you'll be more comfortable, and become a better spearfisherman.

When we're out on our next dive we'll pratice with the spearguns.

Safe diving,
Wil
 
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