Hard to believe we're almost halfway through January already . . .
DELAYED A BIT - You may not notice this depending on when you read this but there was something going on with Constant Contact tonight that was preventing template and file access. So instead of sending this out around 7PM PST as usual, we're a bit later. This allowed me to watch the end of the Rams/Lions game but, given the final outcome, that wasn't really a bonus.
AVALON ON WEDNESDAY - We're all set for the first Avalon U/W Park day-trip of this year this Wednesday. The weather's looking good. We can add people through about 6PM Monday if you want to join us. We're leaving out of San Pedro at 8:45AM, taxi to the Park once on Catalina, we should get in three dives, wrap up around 4PM, boat back leaves Avalon at 6PM. $180 covers boat, taxi, tank/airfills, escorted dives, and all the fun you can handle. Call us at 310/652-4990 if you want to join us.
LACK OF SHARKS IN THE SEA OF CORTEZ - We LOVED our annual trip to the Sea Of Cortez leaving out of La Paz. We did them for 26 years straight, starting in 1988 and up until the Don Jose went out of business. This was the first place we saw schools of Hammerhead sharks, both at El Bajo (the famous seamount east of Los Islotes) and up at Las Animas (about 40 miles to the north). So it's with great sadness that we saw an article last month that says the fish have almost totally disappeared from both places. Most likely the cause is over-fishing which is even sadder when you realize that these sharks are considered critically-endangered. You can read more about all of this here:
LACK OF SHARKS IN BAJA.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 1st: SAVE THE DATE - You'll hear plenty more about this in the coming months but keep yourself available on May 1 as that's the date for Chamber Day & Eve 2024. Reef Seekers will again host a table at Chamber Eve and will again host a virtual table as well. Given that this year also marks the 50th anniversary of the Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber - it opened for business in 1974 - it will be a very special Chamber Day indeed.
TWO-AND-A-HALF MINUTES OF DEEP SEA WONDERS - The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) has a deep-sea submersible and they've stitched together a short video of some of the more amazing things they've seen on their dives during 36 years of ocean exploration. Here's the link if you'd like to take a peek:
DEEP-SEA CREATURES.
LOCAL CLASSES TOO - In addition to our monthly Avalon trips, which can be used as an informal refresher class or just a pleasant day of diving, we try to offer one or two "other" classes each month, covering topics we think should be important to you and which will help make you a better diver. This month, we've got Beach Diving on Saturday, January 27, and NAUI Nitrox (via Zoom) on Wednesday, January 31. The beach class is a guided experience through the challenges of beach dives and also involves a single-tank dive at Vets Park in Redondo. The NAUI Nitrox is a certification class which will not only teach you about nitrox, but you'll also earn a NAUI Nitrox c-card upon successful completion of the course. Call us at 310/652-4990 to find out more or to register.
BLUE BIOLUMINESENCE IS BACK - The phenomenon of the breaking waves glowing blue is back again at some of our local beaches. This occurs due to the presence of a specific type of plankton in the water that glows blue when stimulated. It's impossible to predict when this type of thing starts or how long it will last for. So if you're walking along a beach at night anytime soon, take a peek at the waves and see if they're breaking blue.
WILDLIFE PHOTO OF THE YEAR CONTEST - There are plenty of these each year but this one is sponsored by the Natural History Museum of London and is one of the few where the votes of the public will determine the winners. Here's the one I voted for:
NEIGHBORHOOD DISPUTE. You can view all the finalists and cast your own vote (at no charge or obligation) by clicking this link:
VOTE FOR PHOTO OF THE YEAR.
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken
