After much debate on a second dive and searching for a parking spot for 20 minutes (we went kayaking between dives with friends for Karla's birthday) we finally lucked out and got a spot spitting distance from the stairs. We took this as a sign that we should go back in the water.
After another lengthy surface swim (did I mention 20 minutes, ooof), we got to the kelp forrest for the second time that day. Immediately upon dropping in I saw a 3 foot Leopard Shark. Cute little guys and a nice treat, I've seen a ton snorkeling but never one on scuba gear.
We went back in the forrest and waited and watched. We'll at about 20 minutes into the dive it paid off as we saw a Sevengill swim by us about 20 feet away. Visibility was low, maybe 10 foot clear. So all we got was the outline of it's body, but it was amazing and I felt quite fulfilled!
We surfaced about 10 minutes later, both of us being tired from the day, we decided to set our compasses back to shore, drop down and head back in under water. This is when things got awesome.
About 5 minutes into our swim back (funny enough, literally 1 minute after my video camera's battery ran out) I looked down and saw an 8ft Sevengill in touching distance. Jenni thought I was having a problem, because apparently I just looked down in shock. Jenni quickly realized there was a large shark that her fins were grazing and the shark began to swim away.
As any good diver would do if they run into a large shark, that is swimming away from them, we decided to follow it. We got to swim with this wonderful creature for about 20 seconds, before it decided it was done with us (the shark was underneath us, so we could see if it was a male or female).
This 20 second swim was on of the best moments of diving I have ever had. Such wonderful creatures right in our shallow bays, so cool!
*A little bit about Sevengills* They come to the shallows in spring/summer to give birth to litters of up to about 80. They birth live offspring, not eggs. They grow up to 10 feet living most of their lives at depths of around 450 feet. Often hunting in packs, their diet consists of fish, smaller sharks, sea lions and dolphins. They are hunted by great whites.
Dive Time: 53 minutes
Temp: 63
Depth: 35 feet
Sharks: Jenni 2, Nate 3
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Dive 76 - La Jolla Cove, San Diego, CA
This was our first attempt to go find Sevengill sharks down in La Jolla, there have been many reports recently of sightings, some divers even seeing multiple's in a single dive.
If you've ever dove the kelp forrest outside of La Jolla Cove, you know it's not messing around when it comes to surface swims. It's about a 20 minute surface swim to get to where you drop in. Couple that with long walks from your car and it can be quite a haul to get underwater.
The dive was a huge success for Jenni and a great dive for me. Jenni had the pleasure of seeing an 8ft and a 6ft Sevengill shark. I didn't see them, despite the fact that they were only a few feet away from me, if you're a diver, you realize this happens sometimes.
It was still a great dive for me, because I had the luck of seeing a HUGE Bat Ray, and I mean huge. This guy had a wingspan of 5 or 6 feet and must have weighed in around 150 to 200lbs. I've never seen a Bat Ray this big. It was quite a treat and *almost* made up for not seeing any big sharks.
This was also our longest dive ever, when you factor in dive time and surf time, we were in the water for over 2 hours. Quite nice.
Dive Time: 1 Hour, 18 Minutes
Temp: 68
Depth: 31ft
Sharks: Jenni 2, Nate 0
The dive was a huge success for Jenni and a great dive for me. Jenni had the pleasure of seeing an 8ft and a 6ft Sevengill shark. I didn't see them, despite the fact that they were only a few feet away from me, if you're a diver, you realize this happens sometimes.
It was still a great dive for me, because I had the luck of seeing a HUGE Bat Ray, and I mean huge. This guy had a wingspan of 5 or 6 feet and must have weighed in around 150 to 200lbs. I've never seen a Bat Ray this big. It was quite a treat and *almost* made up for not seeing any big sharks.
This was also our longest dive ever, when you factor in dive time and surf time, we were in the water for over 2 hours. Quite nice.
Dive Time: 1 Hour, 18 Minutes
Temp: 68
Depth: 31ft
Sharks: Jenni 2, Nate 0
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Dive 75 - Casino Point - Catalina Island, CA
50 Foot Vis still!
Sat at the far North bouy for 20 minutes watching the blue at 40 feet. We saw a ton of Rays, and a giant black sea bass.
Great day of diving.
Sat at the far North bouy for 20 minutes watching the blue at 40 feet. We saw a ton of Rays, and a giant black sea bass.
Great day of diving.
Dive 73 - Casino Point - Catalina Island, CA
AMAZING DIVE!
50 foot vis in Casino Point!!!! We saw a beautiful bat ray swimming about 20 feet above us at one point. This was also our first time at the Sue Jack wreck and we could see the whole thing end to end. Wonderful dive.
Very strong thermocline. 5 feet down was 70º, 10 feet down was 68º and 60 feet down was 55º. Crazy.
50 foot vis in Casino Point!!!! We saw a beautiful bat ray swimming about 20 feet above us at one point. This was also our first time at the Sue Jack wreck and we could see the whole thing end to end. Wonderful dive.
Very strong thermocline. 5 feet down was 70º, 10 feet down was 68º and 60 feet down was 55º. Crazy.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Dive 72 - Casino Point - Catalina Island, CA
Great visibility. Best we'd seen to date at Casino Point, a solid 30 feet.
Ran into some fun fish and a friendly Eel.
Ran into some fun fish and a friendly Eel.
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