Mambo Dave
Contributor
Trying for a 3 PM shore dive for Thursday, Feb 29 somewhere around Commercial pier.
Hoping the wind will die down by then. Can ya make it? :huh:
Edit: Now that I have a little more time, let me go over what all the groups I've met with have been doing on these "Commercial pier" dives for those who haven't come out yet.
If we choose to dive the pier area, which is temporarily closed due to the storms (and the pier itself is technically illegal to get under), we’ll use cell phones to meet and leave vehicles in a cheaper spot, then use one vehicle to park right at the pier parking lot.
If we don’t dive there, we generally dive within a few streets of the pier. For these meets any drivers will want to bring at least 8 quarters.
I’m not too great at estimating distances, but I’d estimate we swim on top of the water for less than 100 yards before we are over the first reef. Most times I’ll want to just start there as I really suck at backwards swimming at any great speed. The second reef starts past the length of the pier, and lately this has our goal to get to as the coral structures and wildlife are a good bit better here.
From what I’ve seen the visibility can be as low as ten feet, or as high as 40. This limits the ‘freedom’ of some, but the people I’ve dove with generally like to all stay together for safety. Surfacing after a minute of getting lost seems to be the norm. We always bring a flag, so that should be easy to find if everyone doesn’t surface at the same time. If you want to err on the side of caution, bring your own flag so others can find you.
If we meet for a 3 PM dive and don’t have to shuffle vehicles, the dive itself typically ends at about 5 PM. This counts for getting geared up, beginning and ending the dive.
While there are lobsters there, they are few and far between. For example, for the last 40-minute dive we went on this weekend, I was the only one to spot a bug, and it was a bit small, so these aren’t bug dives. The dives are more to just get out there, get some pictures and/or test new equipment configs and/or gain some more experience at a low cost. One benefit I recently realized was that a ‘low vis’ boat dive is so much more enjoyable now, as the ‘low-visibility’ distances out there are generally much better than shore dives.
I've been a part of one evening-into-night dive there, but that started at about 5 PM. We only stayed around the pier and the first reef, but it was still a good time.
The water temperatures are fluctuating, but lately hang around 70 degrees I guess. We’ve seen it down to 67 I believe. For a 3mm or 3/2mm suit, a hoodie may be a good idea. Though bjpell, who is in from that frozen ice planet called ‘Michigan,’ is generally good to go with no hoodie and a 3/2 suit, booties and gloves. I’m always fine with gloves, booties and a 5/4/3 suit (no hoodie). Some people get really cold though.
We choose to head back to shore under the water once someone gets to 1000 psi.
Last minute organization can happen via cell phones. I use this beach cam: http://www.sunny.org/webcam/camapp.cfm for a view of the beach before confirming a dive. That cam is a few miles south of where we go, but it’s all about the same surf locally.
Best,
Dave
Hoping the wind will die down by then. Can ya make it? :huh:
Edit: Now that I have a little more time, let me go over what all the groups I've met with have been doing on these "Commercial pier" dives for those who haven't come out yet.
If we choose to dive the pier area, which is temporarily closed due to the storms (and the pier itself is technically illegal to get under), we’ll use cell phones to meet and leave vehicles in a cheaper spot, then use one vehicle to park right at the pier parking lot.
If we don’t dive there, we generally dive within a few streets of the pier. For these meets any drivers will want to bring at least 8 quarters.
I’m not too great at estimating distances, but I’d estimate we swim on top of the water for less than 100 yards before we are over the first reef. Most times I’ll want to just start there as I really suck at backwards swimming at any great speed. The second reef starts past the length of the pier, and lately this has our goal to get to as the coral structures and wildlife are a good bit better here.
From what I’ve seen the visibility can be as low as ten feet, or as high as 40. This limits the ‘freedom’ of some, but the people I’ve dove with generally like to all stay together for safety. Surfacing after a minute of getting lost seems to be the norm. We always bring a flag, so that should be easy to find if everyone doesn’t surface at the same time. If you want to err on the side of caution, bring your own flag so others can find you.
If we meet for a 3 PM dive and don’t have to shuffle vehicles, the dive itself typically ends at about 5 PM. This counts for getting geared up, beginning and ending the dive.
While there are lobsters there, they are few and far between. For example, for the last 40-minute dive we went on this weekend, I was the only one to spot a bug, and it was a bit small, so these aren’t bug dives. The dives are more to just get out there, get some pictures and/or test new equipment configs and/or gain some more experience at a low cost. One benefit I recently realized was that a ‘low vis’ boat dive is so much more enjoyable now, as the ‘low-visibility’ distances out there are generally much better than shore dives.
I've been a part of one evening-into-night dive there, but that started at about 5 PM. We only stayed around the pier and the first reef, but it was still a good time.
The water temperatures are fluctuating, but lately hang around 70 degrees I guess. We’ve seen it down to 67 I believe. For a 3mm or 3/2mm suit, a hoodie may be a good idea. Though bjpell, who is in from that frozen ice planet called ‘Michigan,’ is generally good to go with no hoodie and a 3/2 suit, booties and gloves. I’m always fine with gloves, booties and a 5/4/3 suit (no hoodie). Some people get really cold though.
We choose to head back to shore under the water once someone gets to 1000 psi.
Last minute organization can happen via cell phones. I use this beach cam: http://www.sunny.org/webcam/camapp.cfm for a view of the beach before confirming a dive. That cam is a few miles south of where we go, but it’s all about the same surf locally.
Best,
Dave
