large_diver
Contributor
THE DIVE:
Got out of work a little early yesterday for 1 night dive. We were planning on meeting at Back Beach for a mellow night dive, but after talking with Mary at CAD, we decided to switch to Folly Cove. Winds have been out of the east for the last few days, likely making the vis at BB poor.
Low tide was 9PM...we were going into the water around 6:45...hmmm, I can hardly wait for that trek over the boulders on the way out of the water.....
Conditions were quite calm at Folly, with a light breeze out of the east. We dove the left wall. Visibility was pretty poor, never more than about 5-8 feet, and sometimes less. I had quite a few of those moments where I couldnt see the bottom or the wall (I was carrying the flag and was away from the wall) and nothing for reference good practice for maintaining buoyancy with no reference point. Saw quite a few squid, cunner, a VERY red sea raven, and what I guess was a pipefish (according to my Andy Martinez book) about a foot long, but about as thick as a pencil, with distinctive vertical stripes. My buddy Mike (taxshark) said afterwards that he thought I was hovering looking at a piece of seaweed when I signaled to him to come over before he noticed what it was. It didnt move for the 2-3 minutes we spent shining our lights on him. Max depth was 35 feet; bottom time was about 70 minutes. Water temp was a balmy 57.
Our exit from the water was uneventful, but pretty much a PITA, since it was now about 1 hour before dead low. The initial exit is actually easier than high tide, since the bottom at the waters edge is a nice sandy beach. Crossing the slippery boulder field in the dark is never fun ..I always seem on the verge of breaking an ankle or falling over and breaking my neck. We made it out safely, stashed our gear, and headed back into Rockport to find some grub.
RESTAURANT REVIEW The Greenery:
The Greenery is located in downtown Rockport about a block from the main pier. If you drive down the street from the 5-way 127 intersection that ends at the pier, turn left (towards Back Beach) and The Greenery is down on your right about 100 yards. This restaurant has 2 sections a nicer sitdown section in the back with waitress service and a deli-style section in the front. Not knowing any better, we initially sat down in the back. The menu looked good, but a little nicer and pricier than we were looking for (entrees $15-20). It seemed to be a nice atmosphere and the dining room has a beautiful harbor view, but we were looking for simple post dive munchy food vs. a lobster dinner.
We went back to the front of the restaurant to check out the fare burgers (meat and veggie), deli sandwiches, salads, crab cake sandwiches, lobster rolls, chowdah, etc. a good selection for lunch or a light dinner. We both had chowder, which was great. Mike had a crab cake sandwich and I had a burger both good although it seems to me that almost ANYTHING tastes good after diving. The Greenery also has a nice selection of coffees and deserts carrot cake and several other choices in their display case. We did not stay for dessert. The Greenery appears to be open until 9PM most nights of the week. The staff was friendly and helpful and seemed to be content to let us and others hang out past 9PM even though they were closing.
FWIW -- I think Rockport is a dry town. Not sure how many (if any) restaurants have liquor licenses. Perhaps Xoomboy can help with more info here.
Big props to Xoomboy for the restaurant recommendations!
Got out of work a little early yesterday for 1 night dive. We were planning on meeting at Back Beach for a mellow night dive, but after talking with Mary at CAD, we decided to switch to Folly Cove. Winds have been out of the east for the last few days, likely making the vis at BB poor.
Low tide was 9PM...we were going into the water around 6:45...hmmm, I can hardly wait for that trek over the boulders on the way out of the water.....
Conditions were quite calm at Folly, with a light breeze out of the east. We dove the left wall. Visibility was pretty poor, never more than about 5-8 feet, and sometimes less. I had quite a few of those moments where I couldnt see the bottom or the wall (I was carrying the flag and was away from the wall) and nothing for reference good practice for maintaining buoyancy with no reference point. Saw quite a few squid, cunner, a VERY red sea raven, and what I guess was a pipefish (according to my Andy Martinez book) about a foot long, but about as thick as a pencil, with distinctive vertical stripes. My buddy Mike (taxshark) said afterwards that he thought I was hovering looking at a piece of seaweed when I signaled to him to come over before he noticed what it was. It didnt move for the 2-3 minutes we spent shining our lights on him. Max depth was 35 feet; bottom time was about 70 minutes. Water temp was a balmy 57.
Our exit from the water was uneventful, but pretty much a PITA, since it was now about 1 hour before dead low. The initial exit is actually easier than high tide, since the bottom at the waters edge is a nice sandy beach. Crossing the slippery boulder field in the dark is never fun ..I always seem on the verge of breaking an ankle or falling over and breaking my neck. We made it out safely, stashed our gear, and headed back into Rockport to find some grub.
RESTAURANT REVIEW The Greenery:
The Greenery is located in downtown Rockport about a block from the main pier. If you drive down the street from the 5-way 127 intersection that ends at the pier, turn left (towards Back Beach) and The Greenery is down on your right about 100 yards. This restaurant has 2 sections a nicer sitdown section in the back with waitress service and a deli-style section in the front. Not knowing any better, we initially sat down in the back. The menu looked good, but a little nicer and pricier than we were looking for (entrees $15-20). It seemed to be a nice atmosphere and the dining room has a beautiful harbor view, but we were looking for simple post dive munchy food vs. a lobster dinner.
We went back to the front of the restaurant to check out the fare burgers (meat and veggie), deli sandwiches, salads, crab cake sandwiches, lobster rolls, chowdah, etc. a good selection for lunch or a light dinner. We both had chowder, which was great. Mike had a crab cake sandwich and I had a burger both good although it seems to me that almost ANYTHING tastes good after diving. The Greenery also has a nice selection of coffees and deserts carrot cake and several other choices in their display case. We did not stay for dessert. The Greenery appears to be open until 9PM most nights of the week. The staff was friendly and helpful and seemed to be content to let us and others hang out past 9PM even though they were closing.
FWIW -- I think Rockport is a dry town. Not sure how many (if any) restaurants have liquor licenses. Perhaps Xoomboy can help with more info here.
Big props to Xoomboy for the restaurant recommendations!
