Blue Heron Bridge Trolls

[mntlblok]

I took the Reef Photo Macro course last fall with Phil. it was WELL worth the money, with your interest you should go for it when you can. I am pretty experienced, but the improvement in my shots after the course was amazing to me. Definitely worth saving up for. It inspired me to upgrade my rig to an OM-D.

Would be *very* interested in knowing what, specifically, you learnt that you hadn't already known. That little "review" screen on the back of these digitals is sorta like cheating.

Although, I *did* learn last year that pointing my strobes a bit outward for longer range shots with my 60mm lens was better than just turning the strobes "off" for avoiding backscatter. I had been aware of doing that for my 10-17mm for sharks, but had somehow had no idea about it for a macro lens. Thanks to the Myers/Marker team for that one.

 

[jar546]

Was there today dialing in my drysuit. Vis was excellent, 30' and blue water. Not much sightseeing because this was more a skills dive, but a Nice school of barracuda.

Also, FOUND, two traditional lead weights for weight belt. Left on a concrete bridge pier a little to the west of the lifeguard station. let me know the size and they are yours. I will figure out how to get them to you or drop them at Force E.

---------- Post added March 29th, 2013 at 08:35 PM ----------

Jet, nice shots! That is a good rig.

I took the Reef Photo Macro course last fall with Phil. it was WELL worth the money, with your interest you should go for it when you can. I am pretty experienced, but the improvement in my shots after the course was amazing to me. Definitely worth saving up for. It inspired me to upgrade my rig to an OM-D.

With my new 7 mil, or the new (off of ebay) drysuit, NEVER will miss a winter dive, ever again, YES!

I suspect you will slowly part with your wetsuit..............................

Always looking for excuses (not that we need one) to dive dry!

 

[lindai]

Dear lindai,

Many people would not have bothered finding the owner of such a nice treasure. Your act of kindness has touched us, and we feel you should be rewarded. As a small token of our appreciation, please accept a Force-E T-shirt.

Please PM me and we'll get you hooked up.

Cheers,

I was just happy to get the light back to its owner. There were several people involved in the process to make it happen, so I appreciate the thought re the T-shirt but it is not necessary........ Just keep scheduling the night dives and I will be happy! Linda

 

[guyharrisonphoto]

I suspect you will slowly part with your wetsuit..............................

Always looking for excuses (not that we need one) to dive dry!

Hey Jeff, are those weights yours?

I did enjoy the drysuit, but I have to say I was extremely impressed with the 7 mil semi-dry and it was much easier to dive (at least, it was much more familiar). It was very warm, even hot, and surprisingly dry. Water only got up to my forearms and calves, my entire core stayed dry except for the usual condensation/sweat. Dialed it in after you left, and it needed 6 pounds less than the dry suit, on a steel hp 100. Water stayed pretty clear for almost an hour after the tide change, pretty unusual.

By the way, can't thank you enough for the assist. Hopefully will see you soon up there or on a non-working pleasure dive for you. When it calms down for the summer, let's hit the Castor.

 

[D2Diver]

LOST: INON 165 M67 diopter. Where Hmmm It was West side & somewhere south of the bridge in the area from about 15 feet west of that big "log" & then somewhere south of the log.
Viz was very good today & water temp still 72 but felt warmer.

 

[jimw]

Viz report for today at BHB?? We are probably going tomorrow and possibly Tuesday. Thanks!

 

[jet126]

Viz report for today at BHB?? We are probably going tomorrow and possibly Tuesday. Thanks!

Haven't heard anything specific. But photos I'm seeing on FB it looks as good as what I had on Thursday.

 

[ConchyJoe]

Was there today dialing in my drysuit.

???? Shut up and get in the water you wuss! Did you get M one too? Headed to Roatan Saturday, looks like I might have to take my 3/2 there as well, temp seems to be in the 78-80 degree range.

 

[fjpatrum]

Well, I did the bridge last Friday. My friend was going to do his DSD but felt uncomfortable once we got there and he couldn't deal with "water in his nose". As a result he bailed but the instructor had another student (a certified diver who'd been out of the water for 10 years) and her partner so the four of us went ahead and dove. I buddied with the partner and the student and instructor buddied (obviously).

Viz was the best I've seen at the bridge with crystal blue water (until it got silted up by all the divers) and about 30-35 feet of visibility. A little cold for me at 71 degrees Fahrenheit, but not intolerable. I wished I'd worn my hooded vest under my suit though. Max depth on my computer was 21 feet.

Mostly uneventful dive with a few good sitings... the buddy, Axle from Germany, was really good at finding critters. His buoyancy was good and other than losing a weight pouch (which he didn't notice until I grabbed it and put it back in his pocket) it was obvious that he was quite comfortable in the water. We did about 50 minutes after we got separated from the instructor (and the flag) who seemed to be swimming as fast as possible and not stopping to enjoy the ride. Maybe he had a specific destination for critter sightings but we lost them right at the bridge on the east side and went our own way. Luckily we didn't end up with a ticket for diving sans flag.

Some things that came out of this dive for me.

1) I will always enjoy the bridge. I have now dived the bridge 4 times on three separate trips to FL and each dive has been wonderful.
2) This time there was more current than normal (we got in the water right at high tide time as opposed to beforehand) and I had some issues with water in my mask as a result. Annoying, but not a real issue.
3) Diving without a wing (somehow left the wing at home instead of attached to my plate) was wonderful. I rarely use the wing until I hit 60 feet or so and diving without it was refreshingly "quiet" for lack of a better word. Simple is good.
4) No shops in the area carry Intova backup light batteries. I thought for sure I'd have no problem finding batteries but I was wrong. No lights made for poor(er) quality pictures. I'm no great photographer to begin with but I clearly need some dedicated camera lights. DIY project upcoming...
5) The bridge never ceases to impress. We saw a conch that had to be 10 inches across, a 3.5 foot barracuda, and a whole ton of other stuff including a couple of frog fish (I think). No octopus and no rays for us on this dive but a great experience none-the-less.
6) Either I have really good luck with insta-buddies or I'm just an incredibly easy-going buddy. I have yet to have a truly bad experience with an insta-buddy. This one was particularly good, I thought, but I've never had a truly bad one.

Hopefully some of my pictures will be worthy of posting here but I haven't had a chance to look at any of them yet.

 

[tibenmiami]

Viz: 30 FT - Temp: 75