Diver Don
A little about Jade diving so many years ago in California
sdm
In the early 1960s The NAA Under Seas Project office was established under the direction of Dr. Andy Rechnitzer, to design and develop a Deep diving submarine (DDS.) Andy had just completed an assignment as the project manager on the FRNS 111 "Trieste " bathysphere dive to 35000 plus feet in the Challenger deep of the Marianas Trench the deepest known unexplored spot in the ocean. Andy was also the co instructor who along with Connie Limbaugh who taught Al Tilman, Bev Morgan and Ramsey Parks the principles of SCUBA instruction which in July 1954 became the famed never equaled often copied LA County Underwater Instruction Association to teach the world to dive via the Underwater Instructors Certification Course, the UICC -which is still going strong after 65 years
I signed on as the Dive Safety Officer (DSO) and Chief Diving Officer (CDO) even at that tine we had no product or diving activity but an abundance of administrative duties
The Under Seas Project office was composed of some very interesting people with very interesting backgrounds. A few examples;
Jens Jensen had been the UW photographic officer on the Trieste. He had a wealth of information on UW photography. I was a charter member of the worlds first recently formed UW Photographic Society, aka UPS and struggling to create a leak proof camera case and attempting get an image on film-- I never made a camera case I couldn't or didn't flood.
The first DDS pilot hired was Ralph White. right out of the USMC - For some time I thought the on two phases Ralph knew was "Yes Sir and No Sir." Ralph went into the international market as a DDS pilot and had more time on the deck of the Titanic that any of the passengers.
One of the "summer hires" was a young college student Bobbie Ballard who later while working out of Woods Hole became internationally famous as Dr. Robert Ballard, the discoverer of the Titanic
Second in command of the Underseas Projects Office was Dr. Richard Terry, a noted geologist who had just completed his doctoral dissertation on the migration of California kelp beds - While employed he also wrote the book, "The case for the submersible" which some one walked off with my copy.
He also did considerable exploration of the Challenger Deep and discovered a seamount which was named in his honor Mt Terry -- the only American to have a geological formation named in ther honor in the Challenger Deep
Talk about interesting coffee break conversations!
As a geologist he was of course interested in rocks, all sorts of rock from all over the world.
Dicks home on Cave? or Cove ? Avenue in Anaheim had the entrance wall covered with a variety of rocks from all over the world he had collected or some one had presented to him. He knew the history of every rock - where it was from. how it was formed and who gave it to him
At that time I was actively diving and exploring the then unexplored Jade Cove. Jade Cove is located on the rugged Big Sur coast of central California over 250 miles north. just the right distance for a week end jaunt and some diving for jade.
Over the course of a number of years I had amassed a presentable selection of lovely green jade boulders. So many that I had lined my drive way with them, Slowly they began disappearing - I gifted them to neighbors and relatives. but I did manage to retain a 120 bound boulder which my children and now grand children affectionately call Grand Pa's green rock and several generations of my pet dogs have lifted their legs on.
One day Dick Terry hinted he didn't have a sample of California Jade on his rock wall.
I piled a selection of various shapes and sizes in to in my van and drove over to Dicks and gave him a his choice. He chose a huge wonderful green Jade Rock which he immediately got busy and cemented it to his wall of rocks.
Dick has been gone some years now... I have often wondered about that wall of rocks and the new owners of the home on Cove ? or Cave? Avenue in Anaheim California
Sam Miller, !!!
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@Diverdon
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