LA/Malibu Surf Report

[mccabejc]

Since it was such a nice day, we took a drive up the coast today thru Santa Monica and Malibu. Surf was in the 3-4 ft. range around Santa Monica, then down along Malibu Road we saw some 4-6 footers. All the way along the coast we were surprised at how brown the water was, as far as the eye could see. And it stunk, too. Not really bad, but noticeable. Very few surfers in spite of the decent waves. Made me want to swear off diving for a couple of weeks. We stopped at the Michael Landon Park across from Pepperdine, which is on the cliff right above Malibu Rd. The first photo below shows the big waves coming in to the Malibu Rd. dive spot. The second photo is a shot from down on Malibu Rd, where it meets back up with PCH.

 

[headhunter]

Jim,

You da man! Running around all over SoCal with a camera, just so that you can "show" us the conditions.

Christian

 

[dlndavid]

What mil suits do you SoCals use to dive?
Right now I only have a 3 mil and would like to start diving SoCal waters.
Should I invest in a 7 mil or maybe just rent? (like having my own gear though).

 

[headhunter]

What mil suits do you SoCals use to dive?
Right now I only have a 3 mil and would like to start diving SoCal waters.
Should I invest in a 7 mil or maybe just rent? (like having my own gear though).

I'm very comfortable in my Henderson 7mm. I've been comfortable down the the mid 50s so far. Water hasn't gotten colder for more testing below that temp this year.

Of course, it depends on your tolerance to cold.

Christian

 

[dazedone]

Just think...all that nasty brown water you saw flooding our streets this week is now in the ocean. I would not dive anywhere along the coast for a week or so. Although with rain on the way tonight and possible early next week, we may not be able to shore dive for a while. I do have a catalina express commuter book sitting here, so I may go out there if the conditions are good. I know Ken was heading out there today, so I will wait to see what he has to say about the conditions.

 

[hermosadive]

What mil suits do you SoCals use to dive?
Right now I only have a 3 mil and would like to start diving SoCal waters.
Should I invest in a 7 mil or maybe just rent? (like having my own gear though).

I'm assuming you must be in the SoCal area since you're asking (your profile says Cal. Bay Area). You might want to check out some of the specials at Dive N' Surf in Redondo Beach. I believe they have a special on all wetsuits and they are sellng some of the rental gear as well. My buddy picked up a great condition 7mm Excursion for $80. They have their annual yard sale on Feb 4th as well. You can score deals on everything, including training.

 

[dlndavid]

I'm assuming you must be in the SoCal area since you're asking (your profile says Cal. Bay Area). You might want to check out some of the specials at Dive N' Surf in Redondo Beach. I believe they have a special on all wetsuits and they are sellng some of the rental gear as well. My buddy picked up a great condition 7mm Excursion for $80. They have their annual yard sale on Feb 4th as well. You can score deals on everything, including training.

I only have experience in warm water diving but want to expand.
My wife has a new job and might not be able to do our warm water get aways. So if I want to dive, it will have to be here in CA. We have family in the LA area so it would be easy for me to drop down for some diving. It looks like I will have to invest in a 7 mil get up. Gotta dive!

 

[mccabejc]

I do have a catalina express commuter book sitting here, so I may go out there if the conditions are good. I know Ken was heading out there today, so I will wait to see what he has to say about the conditions.

Coincidentally, we were just talking about getting Catalina Express commuter books last night. Wierd. Like some kinda telepathy or something...

 

[SoCalOffshore]

Buy a 7 mil suit. I myself am getting measured up for a Diving Concepts dry suit. The 7 mil works fine, but after 3 dives at 55 degrees on the San Diego wrecks, I got a little cold. The water sucks now with all this rain, but our lakes sure need it.

 

[pasley]

What mil suits do you SoCals use to dive?
Right now I only have a 3 mil and would like to start diving SoCal waters.
Should I invest in a 7 mil or maybe just rent? (like having my own gear though).

On my last dive (12/23/04) at Malibu the water was 57 F Suunto degrees. That will eventually get to 54 or so degrees in February or March and warm up to 64 or so in the summer months. 7mm is the way to go in SoCal, or a dry suit.