Upcoming urchin dives

[wnissen]

How do you feel about having a couple of noobs-who-need-coaching tag along? My son and I would love to join, but we’ve never participated in urchin removal before.

More detail: My 11yo and I recently got OW certified, and we’ve started working on building up our experience (if these rains ever let up!). My wife and my best friend love uni, so this seems like a wonderful opportunity for us to go have some fun diving while bringing back something that everyone else will love. I’m hyper aware that we’re still working on the basics, so I’m completely open to feedback on how to know we‘re ready to participate in this type of dive.

Thanks!

Hi Doc,

I'm glad to hear you are interested in the urchin dive that Eric is running. He's a great person and advocate for North Coast diving. For your information, the urchin project in Monterey requires 20 cold-water dives to participate. It is a working dive, I personally would worry that it's not deep enough, actually. 10 m / 30 ft is deep enough that even a moderate buoyancy error wouldn't send you to the surface, but 2.5 m / 8 ft is going to pop you up pretty quickly.

But crucially, as Eric says, you would be attending as an autonomous diver. I don't know your experience and risk tolerance. And of course conditions day of are unknown. Personally, if I had my kid of that age with me, I'd want to be quite dialed in with my basic diving skills before doing any kind of dive with a task. It's very easy when you are doing an urchin dive to lose track of your buddy, forget to check your air, get lost, etc. Something for you to consider.

Don't underestimate the role of shore support, either. Helping folks don and doff gear, getting hot beverages, that is all highly appreciated.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Hi Doc,

I'm glad to hear you are interested in the urchin dive that Eric is running. He's a great person and advocate for North Coast diving. For your information, the urchin project in Monterey requires 20 cold-water dives to participate. It is a working dive, I personally would worry that it's not deep enough, actually. 10 m / 30 ft is deep enough that even a moderate buoyancy error wouldn't send you to the surface, but 2.5 m / 8 ft is going to pop you up pretty quickly.

But crucially, as Eric says, you would be attending as an autonomous diver. I don't know your experience and risk tolerance. And of course conditions day of are unknown. Personally, if I had my kid of that age with me, I'd want to be quite dialed in with my basic diving skills before doing any kind of dive with a task. It's very easy when you are doing an urchin dive to lose track of your buddy, forget to check your air, get lost, etc. Something for you to consider.

Don't underestimate the role of shore support, either. Helping folks don and doff gear, getting hot beverages, that is all highly appreciated.

Yes ^^^
As an aside of all this, if you and your buddy (son) were trained in cold water as autonomous open water divers capable of planning and conducting an open water dive on your own in similar conditions to what you were trained in then by all means show up and do a basic shore dive. However like @wnissen has pointed out, it might be better to just observe at this point and provide shore support or if you really want to get wet then work on the dynamics of just basic shore diving for now. You guys might be task loaded enough just dealing with all the gear and stuff so a fun dive might be the best thing for now. And don’t worry, there will be enough uni to choke a horse so I wouldn’t be too worried about not coming home with any.

But, it’s a free world and if you guys feel you are confident enough to take a few urchins, then that’s fine too.

To be honest, I don’t know the depths yet. I have not been out there since all the weather drama this past several weeks, so I have no idea of the terrian changes, what the beach looks like, if the urchins and everything else got pounded into oblivion close in. I don’t know, we’ll see.

I was at Doran Park recently on the one day that we had a break and the beach was destroyed. The parking lot that normally is high and dry and very far in off the beach had 6” of sand and kelp all over it. The bathroom was inundated and that lot was shut down. The beach was missing about 3 or 4 feet of sand. Picnic tables were up ended and half buried in sand, so it got really ugly.

I hope Stillwater faired better.

 

[suricatasuricata]

Awesome, thanks for the links!

Could one wear the nitrile dipped over say 3mm wet gloves (i'm a medium in my 3mm gloves, so maybe an extra large would fit over)? It seems like that would get some of the insulation from the neoprene, but remain thin enough to move fingers, and get the added protection?

When I dive in so cal, I'm fine in my 3mm, but it Monterey I usually will go with the 5mm glove (which I hate, but the 3mm I have are just not enough up here). I guess if I go I'll just bring all my gloves and see which combination leaves me able to feel my fingers and dexterous enough to grab urchins.

I tried looking elsewhere for these gloves but couldn't find them in small or medium. I wear a small in 3mm, I already dislike how hard it is to manipulate double enders and such with a 3mm so I wouldn't try both.

 

[doc_hud]

Yes ^^^
As an aside of all this, if you and your buddy (son) were trained in cold water as autonomous open water divers capable of planning and conducting an open water dive on your own in similar conditions to what you were trained in then by all means show up and do a basic shore dive. However like @wnissen has pointed out, it might be better to just observe at this point and provide shore support or if you really want to get wet then work on the dynamics of just basic shore diving for now. You guys might be task loaded enough just dealing with all the gear and stuff so a fun dive might be the best thing for now. And don’t worry, there will be enough uni to choke a horse so I wouldn’t be too worried about not coming home with any.

But, it’s a free world and if you guys feel you are confident enough to take a few urchins, then that’s fine

Thank you, @Eric Sedletzky and @wnissen! Very valid flags, and we’ll make sure that we stay within our safety comfort zones. We do want to make sure we get into the water so that we can observe and learn, expanding our comfort zone, but I do not feel strongly about actively collecting on our first dive(s). We’ll dive as an autonomous buddy pair, so we can consciously have one person monitoring things while the other collects urchins whenever we reach that point. We tend to do single tank dives to make sure that the kid doesn’t get too cold, so I also imagine there’s a plenty of opportunity to dive and still play a shore support role.

We would like to eventually get involved with the Monterey project—it’s definitely closer—but it’s restricted to a bit older divers and it looks like many of the dives are on school/work days. So, we’ll just have to see when that makes sense…

To be transparent on our training: We were trained at Breakwater and have, so far, dived there and McAbee. We’ve only completed 3 post-OW dives, but will hopefully have a few more under our belts. before the next urchin dive. (If anyone is planning to hit a novice-friendly, Monterey Bay dive site this Saturday, we‘d love to connect. Otherwise, we’re planning a Breakwater dive along the wall and back.)

 

[wnissen]

Thank you, @Eric Sedletzky and @wnissen! Very valid flags, and we’ll make sure that we stay within our safety comfort zones. We do want to make sure we get into the water so that we can observe and learn, expanding our comfort zone, but I do not feel strongly about actively collecting on our first dive(s). We’ll dive as an autonomous buddy pair, so we can consciously have one person monitoring things while the other collects urchins whenever we reach that point. We tend to do single tank dives to make sure that the kid doesn’t get too cold, so I also imagine there’s a plenty of opportunity to dive and still play a shore support role.

We would like to eventually get involved with the Monterey project—it’s definitely closer—but it’s restricted to a bit older divers and it looks like many of the dives are on school/work days. So, we’ll just have to see when that makes sense…

To be transparent on our training: We were trained at Breakwater and have, so far, dived there and McAbee. We’ve only completed 3 post-OW dives, but will hopefully have a few more under our belts. before the next urchin dive. (If anyone is planning to hit a novice-friendly, Monterey Bay dive site this Saturday, we‘d love to connect. Otherwise, we’re planning a Breakwater dive along the wall and back.)

Hi, that sounds very sensible. The traffic tends to be worse coming back, but if you're interested there a dive shop is doing a fun dive at Breakwater this Sunday.

Conditions look good for this weekend! FUN DIVE Sunday, January 22nd, 8am San Carlos Beach ("Breakwater") Monterey Please note: Meet on the lawn area at 8am and look for the Dive N Trips van or sign. Make your gear reservation and pick up rental gear on Friday,January 20 or Saturday, January 21, by 5pm. Check www.DiveNTrips.com for weather conditions and possible dive site location changes. Breakwater is forcast to be the most protected dive area, but it is Mother Nature, after all, so please check back on the website for updates. Don't forget a lawn chair. Bring along a snack and enjoy a day with your favorite dive buddies. Don't forget to pay for parking. They do ticket! It is predicted to be sunny, but very chilly. Make sure to bring warm clothes to re-warm after each dive. If you'll be there, RSVP so we know to expect you. There will be a dive briefing prior to the dives. Please contact Dive N Trips at 925-462-7234, or info@diventrips.com, and let us know you will be there. Sea ya!

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Thank you, @Eric Sedletzky and @wnissen! Very valid flags, and we’ll make sure that we stay within our safety comfort zones. We do want to make sure we get into the water so that we can observe and learn, expanding our comfort zone, but I do not feel strongly about actively collecting on our first dive(s). We’ll dive as an autonomous buddy pair, so we can consciously have one person monitoring things while the other collects urchins whenever we reach that point. We tend to do single tank dives to make sure that the kid doesn’t get too cold, so I also imagine there’s a plenty of opportunity to dive and still play a shore support role.

We would like to eventually get involved with the Monterey project—it’s definitely closer—but it’s restricted to a bit older divers and it looks like many of the dives are on school/work days. So, we’ll just have to see when that makes sense…

To be transparent on our training: We were trained at Breakwater and have, so far, dived there and McAbee. We’ve only completed 3 post-OW dives, but will hopefully have a few more under our belts. before the next urchin dive. (If anyone is planning to hit a novice-friendly, Monterey Bay dive site this Saturday, we‘d love to connect. Otherwise, we’re planning a Breakwater dive along the wall and back.)

It sounds like you already know and are set up for cold water temps. Stillwater is benign enough that it’s very similar to Breakwater. Breakwater can actually have a longer period swell and be more of a tidal surge type of beach break. Stillwater in Sonoma County is about as still as it gets on a nice day.
Seal’s Watersports in Santa Rosa also does regular fun dives. You can go to their website and sign up for email notifications on upcoming dives.
Any of these urchin dives can also be fun dives for anybody that just wants to practice and have fun.
Stillwater is a lot more terrain and bouldery structure type diving that Breakwater. It gives you a good opportunity to use your compass and practice navigation. It’s also a good opportunity to meet new people and get into the California dive scene.

 

[Jeff_O]

Yes ^^^
As an aside of all this, if you and your buddy (son) were trained in cold water as autonomous open water divers capable of planning and conducting an open water dive on your own in similar conditions to what you were trained in then by all means show up and do a basic shore dive. However like @wnissen has pointed out, it might be better to just observe at this point and provide shore support or if you really want to get wet then work on the dynamics of just basic shore diving for now. You guys might be task loaded enough just dealing with all the gear and stuff so a fun dive might be the best thing for now. And don’t worry, there will be enough uni to choke a horse so I wouldn’t be too worried about not coming home with any.

But, it’s a free world and if you guys feel you are confident enough to take a few urchins, then that’s fine too.

To be honest, I don’t know the depths yet. I have not been out there since all the weather drama this past several weeks, so I have no idea of the terrian changes, what the beach looks like, if the urchins and everything else got pounded into oblivion close in. I don’t know, we’ll see.

I was at Doran Park recently on the one day that we had a break and the beach was destroyed. The parking lot that normally is high and dry and very far in off the beach had 6” of sand and kelp all over it. The bathroom was inundated and that lot was shut down. The beach was missing about 3 or 4 feet of sand. Picnic tables were up ended and half buried in sand, so it got really ugly.
View attachment 764889
I hope Stillwater faired better.

I can say the opposite of sand being pushed up the beach into parking lot was done at Cooks Beach southern Mendocino coat. The sand is basically gone to deeper water or somewhere. I have seen sand move one side to the other on the beach from seasons change, but this is way different. It is a cliff edge cove. The beach is now rocks. The low tide now seems to come up to very close to the bottom of the short stair case by the dirt trail end. I guess the missing sand just fills a gap there with the water. I'd wonder if sand would be replaced naturally, but not over millennium. I snorkel the area and surfers, I have seen them there at times. Will see if something changes and sand is back.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

It looks like Stillwater got pounded too during the king tides combined with 20’ swells.
I may make a recon trip up there just to visually see what happened, but this doesn’t look good:
I notice the picnic tables are gone and bathrooms
might be flooded and closed. I’m going to find out before I schedule any further urchin dives.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Bringing this thread up to speed.

I went and took a look at Stillwater cove and it has recovered somewhat from the major storm back in January. I saw pics on Flicker that showed the trashing that poor cove took, debris everywhere from a 7’ king tide combined with 20’ swells absolutely pounding the coast. It was bad!!
It hasn’t quite layed down enough to get in and see what happened underwater, specifically the urchin population close to shore. But seeing giant boulders laying up in the picnic area that were not there the last time I was there is an indication that the sea had some very serious power to be able to launch these boulders up into the picnic area!! Hundreds of feet away from the beach!!! Weighing half as much as my truck like they were pebbles!!!!
Amazing!!
So, hopefully things will settle down soon and I can go there and do a reconnaissance dive to see what going on. I’m hoping the rolling rocks did some self oven cleaning (term) and took care of some of the purple urchins grinding them into pulp. But I also fear for the ever so fragile abalone that were hanging onto dear life living close to the beach just to be able to have something to eat. I hope they moved out in time and found some deep cracks to hunker down in during the tempest.

Meanwhile, the Waterman’s Alliance has posted some info on Seal’s website:

They are continuing to do urchin culling dives up in Caspar. Those events are a lot of fun!

Stay tuned,
We have a great season coming up!

 

[suricatasuricata]

Bringing this thread up to speed.

I went and took a look at Stillwater cove and it has recovered somewhat from the major storm back in January. I saw pics on Flicker that showed the trashing that poor cove took, debris everywhere from a 7’ king tide combined with 20’ swells absolutely pounding the coast. It was bad!!
It hasn’t quite layed down enough to get in and see what happened underwater, specifically the urchin population close to shore. But seeing giant boulders laying up in the picnic area that were not there the last time I was there is an indication that the sea had some very serious power to be able to launch these boulders up into the picnic area!! Hundreds of feet away from the beach!!! Weighing half as much as my truck like they were pebbles!!!!
Amazing!!
So, hopefully things will settle down soon and I can go there and do a reconnaissance dive to see what going on. I’m hoping the rolling rocks did some self oven cleaning (term) and took care of some of the purple urchins grinding them into pulp. But I also fear for the ever so fragile abalone that were hanging onto dear life living close to the beach just to be able to have something to eat. I hope they moved out in time and found some deep cracks to hunker down in during the tempest.

Hi Eric,
Thanks for looking into this! So are you thinking of restarting dives sometime in say April or so? I am subscribed to Seals Watersports's email updates but haven't heard if Jennifer is doing any more dives yet.

Look forward to some urchin crushing!!