RonFrank
Contributor
Just got back, and it was a very memorable trip!
First, Congratulation's to Jason on his 200th dive! :balloon:
:balloon:
The dive was memorable, but that is Jason's story to tell if he chooses to do so!
We arrived Friday evening, had some Dinner, and hooked up with Dan and his lovely wife at the Hotel. It was cold, but more badder, it was windy. We completely geared up in the hotel so that all we had to do was put on our kit, grab the mask and fins, and get in. It was maybe around 20F, but the theme for the weekend was wind, and it was windy which made it very cold.
We had a nice night dive. The water was steaming, and getting in the water felt good. None of us were wearing a hood, or gloves. Upon exit, we were outside for less than 5 minutes before stripping off the BC's, loading them in, and climbing in the car. In that short time frame, the wind was wicked, my hands were numb, my drysuit had a crystal freeze similar to frost all over it, and my hair froze solid!
Saturday we got up kinda late, and arrived at BH around 9:30am to find Kevin waiting. It was not super cold, but it was VERY windy. I would estimate gusts up to 60~70mph at times. It was so strong that the 8" steaks that we had hold down the bottom of the Billboard wrap were being pulled out of the ground on a regular basis. Had Kevin not had this material, and some experience setting up the structure around the frame of the picnic table enclosure, we would have spend the day at the hotel, and would have done our diving ala the night dive process of gearing up in the hotel.
Saturday afternoon just as we were geared up for the last dive, we had a pleasant surprise. There was Jason, and he brought home made Cookies.... Yum!
On Sunday morning we decided that getting up to dive early was pointless as it was just too damn cold, so we met around 9:30am. I did a final dive, and afterward did a nice BBQ including burgers, and brats.
One New Years resolution I have is to work on skills more during BH dives, and that is exactly what I did. It was a perfect example of how diving with more experienced divers pays off. I shot my SS on three dives, and got some pointers from Kevin. I dove doubles on the last dive, and learned a valuable weighting lesson.
REMEMBER that removing 6lbs (STA) needs to be included in the weight total. I removed 4lbs from my weight belt, and thought I was diving with 4lbs less, but it was really 10lbs, and I was at LEAST 4lbs underweight... bad... I shot my SS at 35feet, and had a difficult time not following it up!
Roakey has been diving a long time. I rode down with him, and gained some valuable knowledge (like the process of valve drills). I also got some good history on DIR/GUE, and other tech agencies while also getting to know him, and his SO which was a pleasure.
On the Blue Hole front, Stella has a new Pink Doll house! This structure is like a double wide Outhouse, or hot dog stand. Not sure how Santa Rosa expects her to do business in such a small inadequate structure. Maybe they have more than this in mind, and it is not setup, so I guess we shall see. If this is it, than IMO that tells a story, and it's none to promising!
Construction is slated for January, but they just opened the bidding, so no one is holding their breath. This IMO is a good thing, as I am fully expecting them to make diving more expense, and more of a hassle.
Stella is not going ANYWHERE at least for the next year or so, and there are no plans in her immediate future to vacate the BH for certain.
I spoke with Richard Delgato on Friday evening when we arrived. He was very cool, and after I told him of our night diving plans, he assured us we would not have issues, and he then contacted the police and some city officials. True to his word, we had no issues. The police did stop by, and spoke with Roakey's SO while we were blowing bubbles.
However there was some strange activity at the BH friday night. A white SUV was constantly going back and forth on the main road the entire time we were there. When we went to leave, that SUV immediately pulled in, drove to the barriers, and turned off their lights. I saw three other cars pull in as we were leaving (NOT DIVERS), so something is up. We also noticed that the mens bathroom window had been vandalized (Broken). I think Santa Rosa is having some issues with the locals, and this is not the first time.
We had a great time, and I'd like to thank everyone who went for making a very cold, and potentially difficult trip as enjoyable as possible. Dinner at Lake City Diner was great, and I look forward to diving again with Roakey at the Hole as he had not been there for several years, and was a great addition to the gang!
Chow, and Happy New Years to all the RMO's, and SB members reading this!
:cracker::cracker:
:cracker::cracker:
First, Congratulation's to Jason on his 200th dive! :balloon:
:balloon:The dive was memorable, but that is Jason's story to tell if he chooses to do so!
We arrived Friday evening, had some Dinner, and hooked up with Dan and his lovely wife at the Hotel. It was cold, but more badder, it was windy. We completely geared up in the hotel so that all we had to do was put on our kit, grab the mask and fins, and get in. It was maybe around 20F, but the theme for the weekend was wind, and it was windy which made it very cold.
We had a nice night dive. The water was steaming, and getting in the water felt good. None of us were wearing a hood, or gloves. Upon exit, we were outside for less than 5 minutes before stripping off the BC's, loading them in, and climbing in the car. In that short time frame, the wind was wicked, my hands were numb, my drysuit had a crystal freeze similar to frost all over it, and my hair froze solid!
Saturday we got up kinda late, and arrived at BH around 9:30am to find Kevin waiting. It was not super cold, but it was VERY windy. I would estimate gusts up to 60~70mph at times. It was so strong that the 8" steaks that we had hold down the bottom of the Billboard wrap were being pulled out of the ground on a regular basis. Had Kevin not had this material, and some experience setting up the structure around the frame of the picnic table enclosure, we would have spend the day at the hotel, and would have done our diving ala the night dive process of gearing up in the hotel.
Saturday afternoon just as we were geared up for the last dive, we had a pleasant surprise. There was Jason, and he brought home made Cookies.... Yum!
On Sunday morning we decided that getting up to dive early was pointless as it was just too damn cold, so we met around 9:30am. I did a final dive, and afterward did a nice BBQ including burgers, and brats.
One New Years resolution I have is to work on skills more during BH dives, and that is exactly what I did. It was a perfect example of how diving with more experienced divers pays off. I shot my SS on three dives, and got some pointers from Kevin. I dove doubles on the last dive, and learned a valuable weighting lesson.
REMEMBER that removing 6lbs (STA) needs to be included in the weight total. I removed 4lbs from my weight belt, and thought I was diving with 4lbs less, but it was really 10lbs, and I was at LEAST 4lbs underweight... bad... I shot my SS at 35feet, and had a difficult time not following it up!
Roakey has been diving a long time. I rode down with him, and gained some valuable knowledge (like the process of valve drills). I also got some good history on DIR/GUE, and other tech agencies while also getting to know him, and his SO which was a pleasure.
On the Blue Hole front, Stella has a new Pink Doll house! This structure is like a double wide Outhouse, or hot dog stand. Not sure how Santa Rosa expects her to do business in such a small inadequate structure. Maybe they have more than this in mind, and it is not setup, so I guess we shall see. If this is it, than IMO that tells a story, and it's none to promising!
Construction is slated for January, but they just opened the bidding, so no one is holding their breath. This IMO is a good thing, as I am fully expecting them to make diving more expense, and more of a hassle.
Stella is not going ANYWHERE at least for the next year or so, and there are no plans in her immediate future to vacate the BH for certain.
I spoke with Richard Delgato on Friday evening when we arrived. He was very cool, and after I told him of our night diving plans, he assured us we would not have issues, and he then contacted the police and some city officials. True to his word, we had no issues. The police did stop by, and spoke with Roakey's SO while we were blowing bubbles.
However there was some strange activity at the BH friday night. A white SUV was constantly going back and forth on the main road the entire time we were there. When we went to leave, that SUV immediately pulled in, drove to the barriers, and turned off their lights. I saw three other cars pull in as we were leaving (NOT DIVERS), so something is up. We also noticed that the mens bathroom window had been vandalized (Broken). I think Santa Rosa is having some issues with the locals, and this is not the first time.
We had a great time, and I'd like to thank everyone who went for making a very cold, and potentially difficult trip as enjoyable as possible. Dinner at Lake City Diner was great, and I look forward to diving again with Roakey at the Hole as he had not been there for several years, and was a great addition to the gang!
Chow, and Happy New Years to all the RMO's, and SB members reading this!
:cracker::cracker:
:cracker::cracker:
