The Pasley "Hurry Home" January '07 Dive Report Thread

[headhunter]

Date:
Dive Location:
Buddy(ies):
Time:
Bottom Time:
Max Depth:
Vis:
Wave height:
Temp at depth:
Surface Temp:
Tide information:
Gas mix:
Top reason Pasley should hurry home:
Comments:

 

[divekim]

Wow, I get to be first this month. Top Reason Pasley should hurry home, its a brand new year full of hope and wonder and you must share it with us.

Location: La Jolla Shores
Time: 08:36am descent
Temp: 58
Vis: 3-5 in shallow 15 feet at depth
Max Depth: 106 feet
Bottom Time: 43 mins
Buddies: Sean

So Sean and I met on V Street this morning a nice relaxing 7am, the surf was a little up 2-3 feet and we had a high tide hitting the sea wall which made it look sorta bad. Oh well, we're diving, we watched a bit and knew we could time it, we'd sort of go a little North to miss the majority of it. Ah, the best laid plans.

Plan was to see if the Gardens were still intact or not. The reports lately are ominous at best. Reports lately keep saying the storms last week have taken quite a toll on our underwater world. The surf zone has some tricks this morning, just as we thought we were out it started again, almost took me back to shore a couple times. Given the fight with the surf we agreed we would just drop sooner, maybe 25 feet.

We descended and were actually in 50 feet, the depth finder said 27......started the swim north west to hit the gardens. In about 60-65 there were these step downs, look like rock, very pitted in appearance, several deep crevices as well, then just sand. It appeared we were at the northern edge of the draw though it is really hard to tell, we hit the debris patch at the bottom of what should be the draw and turned south, oh my gosh, everything is gone.

The debris patch is now about 3 feet thick and now sits in 106 feet of water, there are very deep crevices in the sand structure, there are 10 foot walls completely made of sand, which means they will erode very quickly. They fall apart with the movement of water from fins. These walls continue south until you hit the slope that leads to Vallecitos Point. Coming up the slope you can see that everything has been covered by sand and rock debris. We finally came upon a section of the point but it is very small. Most of the area to the south of the point is clay walls with big chunks of clay scattered around where it fell apart.

I did manage to see on this dive 1 Octopus, 1 small Scorpionfish not a baby, a couple of Blue Banded Gobys, Black Eyed Gobys, Juvenile Blacksmith and Senoritas. A couple of Sea Stars, Barred Sand Bass, and baby Kelp Bass. There was an area on the slope near the point with a lot of Nudi Egg's but I could not find any Nudi's. Sean ran into 1 lonely Squid, I hope the photo turns out. I also saw a kelp frond covered with Squid Eggs giving me a little hope for the future.

This was a very stark dive in terms of life. If you like landscape this was an awesome dive and I think I was talking in my reg as much as Sean was while looking at all the changes. We tryed to swim all the way back to shore, but the surf finally forced me to pop up in 9-10 feet of water, I was being pulled back and forth by the surge and not making any ground.

So here we are, a brand new year, and a brand new shores for exploring.

Hopefully this link works to Seans photos, those of you who know and love the shores will be quite astounded at the changes.

http://www.scubapost.net/forums/Mr_Fringehead/San_Diego_Diving/NewEastWall_LJS/


Kim

 

[divekim]

Location: La Jolla Shores
Time: 06:39am descent
Temp: 58
Vis: 5-15 depending where you were
Max Depth: 83 feet
Bottom Time: 62 mins
Buddies: ChickoftheSea and Divinman

Top reason Pasley should hurry home: adventure abounds and is meant to be shared

Surf looked a little nicer this morning, not as angry as yesterday, but maybe 3-4 foot set waves, so a little bigger. The mission today was to find the North Wall and see if it had survived or had sufferred the same devastation Sean and I saw yesterday.

Was a little easier getting out this morning, only 1 surf zone to contend with. We dropped in about 25 feet, I actually forgot to look, and headed due west as was the plan. Was a little surgy even at about 40 feet. Never did hit the draw which was a pretty good indication we were actually on the peninsula, Terry made a turn to the North and low and behold a wall below us, hey wait, this is the wrong direction to be the North Wall, oh, this is the Way North Wall.

I'm happy to report that it is still intact. There are a few chunks at the top of the wall where the clay has broken off, there are a few chunks below the wall as well but they don't look like they came from the wall itself. So, lots of critters today given their home still exists. Painted Greenlings seemed to be out in force as well as baby Blacksmith, Blue Banded Gobies, Black Eyed Gobies, Ronquils, Sea Stars, Brittle Stars of which I actually saw one out and about slithering along the wall. Spanish Shawl, San Diego Dorid, Trilineata, Porostome, as well as many nudi eggs scattered about. We eventually came upon the rope that runs down the side of the Way North Wall and turned to go back, we went up the wall and on top of the peninsula and made our way east. If we had more time I think we would of made the swim to the North Wall to check on it, but not today.

On the swim in Terry found a very small One Spot Fringehead hiding in a pitted rock on the bottom, lots of Sea Pansies but no Arminas spotted. At one point we stopped, Terry was checking Jen's BPW, this Cormorant started swimming circles around us, I think I'm the only one who saw it as I appeared to be the only one laughing hysterically. Also saw a clam with its tongue out jumping across the sand, I have never seen this before and found it quite funny to watch. Terry gave me quite a look when he heard me laughing I think, but by this time it had settled in the sand.

We made it to about 10 feet before surfacing and now we have to watch the 4 foot faces of the waves as they menace us on the swim in. I'm happy to report no one was rolled this morning and no gear was lost. I think I heard the words, touch ground and run Kim.

Thanks for the dive this morning, it was a beautiful dive and a gorgeous morning to be at the beach.

Kim

 

[divinman]

Thanks for the report Kim. My pictures were sub-par today but here they are anyway.

 

[divekim]

Top Reason Pasley should hurry home: Just like last month, the dive goddesses are running out of men

Location: La Jolla Shores
Time: 06:11 am descent
Temp: 60 but my new computer must be high
Vis: 10-20 depending where you were
Max Depth: 75 feet
Bottom Time: 69 mins
Buddies: Marianne and Jen

What an incredible morning for a goddess only dive. It was awesome out there. The surf, what surf, not even knee slappers. Set waves are maybe 1 foot and the surface was almost completely glass, there was a little offshore wind this morning giving it just a little texture. But calm compared to the last 2 days. A little south running current both on the surface and below. Vis was very nice about 10 in the shallow and 15-20 at depth.

After descending we made our way west and had decided we would work our way north due to the current. At about 50 ft we started to see the devastation that has become the area. Large chunks of clay sitting about, brand new ledges, and the shear wall Sean and I had seen Monday. It starts at 58 feet and is 10 feet high, pure sand wall. You can see all the debris below as it slopes deeper. Certainly not the abyss I had imagined in the bad vis on Monday. We spent quite a bit of time in this area looking at all the new features. There are many Wart Piddocks with their shells still attached laying in the debris, they are unfortunately casualties. Lots of Razor Clams laying around and empty tube worm and tube Anenome casings as well.

Turning North we worked our way along the edges of the new structure, there are quite a few spots where the tube worm structure still exists but has been ripped to shreds for the most part. I am happy to report I saw many 2 spot Octopus that have taken up residence in some of the holes as well as Coonstripe Shrimp. Only a couple of Red Octopus this morning. A Blenny and some Ronquils. Of course the Gobys, both varieties are hanging in there. Some small Giant Kelp Fish, baby Sheephead, a couple of Wrasse I've not seen here before, a baby Scorpionfish, and Kelp Crabs.

Finally hit our turn around point and made our way due east back to shore. Very lifeless in the sand this morning, except for the Baby Horn Shark, was very nice to see him. A couple of Rays on the swim in and some Bubble and Olive Snails, but thats it for me. Came up in 5 feet of water for a very easy exit.

I think we need to dive again tonight to take advantage of the conditions before they get bad. Thanks for the dive this morning girls.

Sorry, no photos today, neither of my usual photogs brought their cameras this morning.

Kim

 

[Makin Raider]

Date: 1/3/2007
Dive Location: Veteran's Park
Buddy(ies): My Dad and John (Jmdiver)
Time: 7:24 pm
Bottom Time: 32 min
Max Depth: 88 feet
Vis: 10 feet
Wave height: Pretty Small
Temp at depth: 57 degrees
Gas mix: 32%
Top reason Pasley should hurry home: Come back to see the Squiddies
Comments:

This was my first night dive at Vet's and my first weekday dive. I have no school tomorrow, . When we were walking up to the water we saw the body of a dead Sea Lion being moved around in the surf and it was very sad to see that at the beginning. We made our entry farther south and that went well because I did not fall down:monkeydan We saw a lot of squid eggs throughout the dive. I got to hold a squid, it was neat. There were a ton of crabs, John and I had fun playing catch with one! As we moved into the shallows we saw a sheep crab, a big sea star with only four legs, John caught and released a lobster at 23 feet. We saw sand dabs, two sculpin (I think) and two what we think are thornbacked rays. It was really fun and I got to see Claudette, Scott, Penny and many other people it was packed at least 40 people. I am glad I didn't hear a Seal Bomb!!!!

Sean

 

[JMdiver]

Cool report Sean I couldn't have said better.

Happy Diving
John

 

[HBDiveGirl]

January 3, 2007
Redondo Submarine Canyon
Buddy: Possom-man Radinator
Splash time: 8:30PM
Max Depth: 90
Run time: an hour
Temp: 59F
Surf: Yes... but lulls favored us with easy entrance and exit. I had butterflies while waiting on shore, and again outside the surfzone before exiting. Ray and I slipped fortunately out on a lull between frisky sets, enjoyed a mellow hour of wandering, and walked quietly out on another lull. Nice! After each passage, I was left giggling, with now-unneeded adrenaline ripping through my system, and nothing to work against. Funny!!! All Adreno'd up... and nowhere to go!!
Best reason Melvin should hurry home: Squids are cute!!
------------------------------------------------------
Ray and I were amongst the last of a huge contingent of divers at Vets this calm winter night. The surrsuration of sibilant S'sssss was everywhere to be heard.
SSSSquid, anyone?
Drysuits, wetsuits, longhoses, jackets, mini-tanks, water-heaters, spear-guns, cameras, young and old.... There must have been over 50 divers coming and going. Wisely, not all actually dived, as there was noticeable surf. It was great to meet new friends and old, and to hear so many others doing the same.

A highlight of the night was seeing Mark and Sean coming out of the water, and hearing Sean's energetic enthusiasm over his dive: He was elated!! Bat rays, and squids to touch, and what the squid felt like, and John grabbed a lobster, and..and..and...... he was radiating joy and discovery. That is what diving is all about.
Sean, you're an inspiration, man!!!

Ray and I headed casually to the water around 8:30PM. We slid in between sets, subsided into sweet 20-foot + visibility, and set off toward the Sealion bell-buoy. The temperature was a pleasant 58-59F... (yeah, drysuits change one's personal world-view.) We enjoyed seeing a few squid here and there.. perhaps 3 dozen all told but never more than 3 at a time. I'm mesmerized by the flashing of the chromatophores. What a sight! Most were females carrying egg sacs, looking much worse for the wear of a strenuous evening of continuing the species. They really looked dishevelled as they poked about the sand, looking for anchorage. A few pairs were mating. About 2 dozen egg patches reflected our lights. And we saw a few of everything else: Hermissenda, Spanish Shawls, scorpion fish, octopuses, Dendronotus eggs, thornback rays. Rolls of Sanddollars, buckets of crabs (rock, yellow, swimming, gracilis, sheep, elbow, Hemphill, tiny spider), Whaaay too many Whelks!

It was mellow.

(Scott and Penny saw the best stuff, so his report should be excellent. Sean's report was great!)

There were many birds on the surface, but we just didn't see any significant squid action.

Beautiful night for a dive. Thanks, Ray!
Claudette

 

[scottfiji]

(Scott and Penny saw the best stuff, so his report should be excellent. Sean's report was great!)
Claudette

hey claudette, it was great seeing you and Ray, and JM diver and mark and sean and everyone else...

I just posted a squid run report with a couple photos... check them out! our dive was great, 62 minutes, 101ft max depth.

the squid were great! the small torpedo ray at 95ft was amazing, I've never had such great marine life interacting before. the little guy even shocked me! (you could barely feel it). he was 18inches long at most.

and so many midshipman out, they are so fast, zipping down into the sand, burying themselves...

I'm so glad everyone got out last night... lets all do it again soon

scott

 

[radinator]

Squid, squid. Happy, happy. Joy, joy. (I think Claudette covered the rest...)