Moving to Cali

[jjgibo]

So ya'all seem like a fun bunch and I can't wait to dive with a lot of you guys. So here is the sitch. I am in Hawaii, soon to have my rescue card and hopefully by the time i move in august will have my dive master card. I dive at least twice a week in hawaii. anyways so I was wondering can you guys dive year round, do i need any other gear, i have my reg, bc, shorty, and all the usual equipment. lets see what other questions do i have. oh yeah is there a lot of good shore diving from, around, or near san diego. I will be in el cajon. i guess thats about it, i look forward to hearing all the replies and uhm being prepared before i move.

 

[pasley]

Welcome to SoCal. Up here in the Los Angeles Area we beach dive year around and for those with the $, boat dive too. It surprises some that the best visibility is in the winter with the colder water between the storms. In the winter beach dive vis on the mainland will run 5-30 feet or more, or less depending on the day. At the Islands off shore, you can get 100 feet vis, but normal is more like 30-40 feet. Summer time the vis drops as the photo plankton growth picks up. Of course we also get the red tide in September/October and then the vis can be 0 feet or 30 feet depending on beach and depth and the day, or even the time of day. Lots of fun with the red tide.

You will want to buy a good wet suit 7mm is common or dry suit. Hood, gloves and boots are recommended Winter water temps in Southern California are in the 54-57 range normally Summer we get water temps in the 60-66 range with some days in the low 70 at the surface and 66 or so at depth (that thermo cline is a B^%$).

I dove last night (3/15) in Laguna beach with 10-15 foot visibility and this morning (3/16) in Malibu with 5-8 foot visibility. So visibility is a function of weather, and location.

San Diego also has some excellent diving. LaJolla Cove in the summer months is quite nice. There are also some nice kelp forrest in San Diego as well as Orange and Los Angeles Counties. Water temps in San Diego may be one or two degrees warmer, but I would not bet on it.
So welcome to the mainland.

 

[Mo2vation]

So ya'all seem like a fun bunch and I can't wait to dive with a lot of you guys. Anyways so I was wondering can you guys dive year round, do i need any other gear, i have my reg, bc, shorty, and all the usual equipment.

The only maniac I know that dives a shorty year round in So Cal is our own Dr. Bill. But even he recently send that threadbare neoprene mess to the big abyss in the sky.

Its probably time for a geography lesson - but I'll break that out another time.

Welcome to Paradise - well, LoCal is as close to paradise as you can get if you're not going to actually live in So Cal!

K

 

[OCdiving Deb]

oh yeah is there a lot of good shore diving from, around, or near san diego. I will be in el cajon.

Welcome to Southern California jjgibo! You may want to begin subscribing to the San Diego Divebums listserv. You will learn a lot about the diving around La Jolla through that list. A wide variety of divers post regularly. Also, Scripps Institution of Oceanography is right there and many of the diving docs share their wisdom and wit with the list subscribers.

I enjoyed the San Diego Divebums reports and shared info so much that I strong armed John H. Moore (founder of divebums.com) into letting me start a similar list for Orange County.

To subscribe to San Diego Divebums go to the website and click on the link at the top that says email list.

Of course, we're all here for you too, but we are spread out over a greater geographic area.

Good luck with your move!

 

[OCdiving Deb]

Its probably time for a geography lesson - but I'll break that out another time.

K

It is probably killing Ken to withhold his geography lesson... You must ask him to elaborate before he implodes!

 

[drbill]

Ken- the old 7mm shortie has not been retired yet! In fact I should be breaking it out again after I get to the island. So much easier to get into than my 7mm full suits!

Dr. Bill

 

[Stingray81888]

California is a great place to dive. La Jolla shores is a good dive site. I only snorkeled there so far but it was good. You'll definetly want to get a 7mm wetsuit or a drysuit. You can dive all year round. You'll enjoy it here. Seee ya

 

[Arnaud]

Welcome to SoCal! Be prepared for a thermic shock! The water's going to feel cold, but we like it that way. It keeps plenty of people on dryland...

 

[Diver_Jan]

Welcome! You will like it here....lots and lots of great marine life in our cold waters! To learn more about our beach diving here, check this site out: http://www.scuba-superstore.com/dive/smenu.htm It gives you a description of each site, and how to get there. These locations are in Orange County, just north of where you will be moving too, approximately an hour or so away, pending traffic.

 

[Robert Phillips]

Its probably time for a geography lesson - but I'll break that out another time.

Welcome to Paradise - well, LoCal is as close to paradise as you can get if you're not going to actually live in So Cal!

K

Don't pay any attention to Ken's geography lesson. Just smile and nod! :54: He actually thinks that Long Beach is part of Los Angeles
Ken, you'll feel a lot better when you shed the Smell A pride thing! :monkeydan