OP
Soakedlontra
Contributor
Bob it's a rough ride right now. I will be going to work in the North Slope again next January.
Where did I go with my force fins?
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Bob it's a rough ride right now. I will be going to work in the North Slope again next January.
OP
Soakedlontra
Contributor
Remembering summer 2014: Freezing my butt off while snorkeling in an alpine lake
The water was crystal clear, the sun was shining and there was no wind. The lake was 5000 ft (1500 m) high and the air was warm. I wore my torso heater and the top of my Farmer John wetsuit, hood, socks and boots but not gloves. "I will be able to handle it" I thought. Then I ventured into that inviting water and Man! The cold cut through my layers of neoprene. So I swam for a little while in the attempt to warm up. Feeling more adjusted to the icy temperature I began to hang around with the local population of trout with my camera. Usually at a lower elevation lake I can snorkel dressed up like that for more than one hour, here NO WAY! After 20 minutes I had to rush to shore to avoid serious symptoms of hypothermia.
I'm still shooting with one lens, the macro 60 mm. The wide angle is supposed to be in an undisclosed location in Connecticut to be repaired. I don't even know if the lens has actually made it all the way there from Seattle. Jeez! Santa Pazienza! (This lens ordeal has been going on for months!) Anyway so with the 60 mm lens it was rather hard to get some decent shots of that restless fish. Either the trout was too far away or too close. I persevered until I couldn't stand the cold water any longer.
On the way back to my entry point I was able to collect the ever-present trash which included a portable makeup mirror.
Is that a new way to catch fish?
The water was crystal clear, the sun was shining and there was no wind. The lake was 5000 ft (1500 m) high and the air was warm. I wore my torso heater and the top of my Farmer John wetsuit, hood, socks and boots but not gloves. "I will be able to handle it" I thought. Then I ventured into that inviting water and Man! The cold cut through my layers of neoprene. So I swam for a little while in the attempt to warm up. Feeling more adjusted to the icy temperature I began to hang around with the local population of trout with my camera. Usually at a lower elevation lake I can snorkel dressed up like that for more than one hour, here NO WAY! After 20 minutes I had to rush to shore to avoid serious symptoms of hypothermia.
I'm still shooting with one lens, the macro 60 mm. The wide angle is supposed to be in an undisclosed location in Connecticut to be repaired. I don't even know if the lens has actually made it all the way there from Seattle. Jeez! Santa Pazienza! (This lens ordeal has been going on for months!) Anyway so with the 60 mm lens it was rather hard to get some decent shots of that restless fish. Either the trout was too far away or too close. I persevered until I couldn't stand the cold water any longer.
On the way back to my entry point I was able to collect the ever-present trash which included a portable makeup mirror.
Is that a new way to catch fish?
Last edited:
OP
Soakedlontra
Contributor
First dive after a two month break: The beautiful and the ugly
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When the Seattle lights are glowing in the dark and create colorful lines over the cold water of Puget Sound a giant pacific octopus (Octopus dofleini) is fast asleep and a rockfish (copper? brown?) is swallowing a freshly caught tubesnot (Aulorhynchus flavidus).
I couldn't help it but feeling sorry for the unfortunate tubesnout. There were a lot of them around. They all looked drowsy, slow moving and approachable.
I couldn't help it but feeling sorry for the unfortunate tubesnout. There were a lot of them around. They all looked drowsy, slow moving and approachable.
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OP
Soakedlontra
Contributor
Diving into Mukilteo Fish Eyes
From top left:
Speckled Sanddab (Citharichthys stigmaeus)
Rock Sole (Lepidopsetta bilineata)
Wolf-Eel (Anarrhichthys ocellatus)
Copper Rockfish (Sebastes caurinus)
Mukilteo T-Dock is a popular dive site whose main feature is a dome shaped structure made of plastic pipes. They may not be the best material for building an artificial reef but the marine creatures are so resourceful in turning whatever man-made objects they find into homes that the "dome” is teeming with life. Juvenile wolf eels live inside the pipes; the space around them is populated with copper and quillback rockfishes while the sandy bottom is covered with inquisitive flounders.
From top left:
Speckled Sanddab (Citharichthys stigmaeus)
Rock Sole (Lepidopsetta bilineata)
Wolf-Eel (Anarrhichthys ocellatus)
Copper Rockfish (Sebastes caurinus)
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OP
Soakedlontra
Contributor
First 2015 Dive!
One thing that struck all of us while diving at Keystone was noticing that the sunflower stars (Pycnopodia helianthoides) had been wiped out by the Sea Star Wasting Syndrome and that the number of green sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) had increased significantly. I wonder how this population explosion of green sea urchin will affect the growth of the kelp at Keystone next spring.
I shot the clips in the video below in HD. Next time I'll try 4K.
[video=youtube;M1wen41g1nc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1wen41g1nc[/video]
2015 has just started and my Force Fins are still going strong!
At Keystone I met another diver who has been using the same pair of Force Fins since 1985!
I wish the Force Fin team and all the scuba enthusiasts on Scubaboard and beyond a
Brilliant, Fun and Happy New Year!
January 1st was a wonderful chilly and sunny day at Keystone Underwater Park. The current was favorable and the parking lot was buzzing with divers. We didn’t make it there on time to dive with Janna Nichols and her husband Claude, but we did have a nice after-dive chat before they took off to catch the ferry to Port Townsend. Janna is the Outreach Coordinator for the Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) Pacific Office in Vancouver, WA. I met her seven years ago at a REEF fish and invertebrates identification class. She was the humorous instructor that made learning how to identify Pacific Northwest fishes and invertebrates a lot of fun. Since then I have been participating in the REEF Volunteer Fish Survey Project and submitting fish surveys online after diving.
One thing that struck all of us while diving at Keystone was noticing that the sunflower stars (Pycnopodia helianthoides) had been wiped out by the Sea Star Wasting Syndrome and that the number of green sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) had increased significantly. I wonder how this population explosion of green sea urchin will affect the growth of the kelp at Keystone next spring.
Top: Giant Pacific Octopus Den “Cerberus”(Painted Anemone, Urticina crassicornis)
Bottom: Green Sea Urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) and Giant Pacific Chiton (Cryptochiton stelleri)
During this dive I took the opportunity to test underwater my new GoPro Hero 4 Black. I used a head strap mount to secure the camera on my head to leave my hands free to take photographs with my Olympus camera. I also attached a magenta filter to the port. The visibility below 20 ft was disappointing, so the camera struggled to get some decent images. The filter was useful at depths above 20 ft so the white balance was all over the map depending on the depth and the light coming from the focus light attached to my Olympus housing. The string that secured the filter to the housing got stuck right in front of the port. Despite all these hurdles it was fun finding out how this camera performed in this challenging cold marine environment. I wish that GoPro would make a model that is specifically designed for cold water low light diving by adding a larger sensor and drop some of the features that are designed for environmental conditions on land. Well, maybe one of these days!
Bottom: Green Sea Urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) and Giant Pacific Chiton (Cryptochiton stelleri)
During this dive I took the opportunity to test underwater my new GoPro Hero 4 Black. I used a head strap mount to secure the camera on my head to leave my hands free to take photographs with my Olympus camera. I also attached a magenta filter to the port. The visibility below 20 ft was disappointing, so the camera struggled to get some decent images. The filter was useful at depths above 20 ft so the white balance was all over the map depending on the depth and the light coming from the focus light attached to my Olympus housing. The string that secured the filter to the housing got stuck right in front of the port. Despite all these hurdles it was fun finding out how this camera performed in this challenging cold marine environment. I wish that GoPro would make a model that is specifically designed for cold water low light diving by adding a larger sensor and drop some of the features that are designed for environmental conditions on land. Well, maybe one of these days!
I shot the clips in the video below in HD. Next time I'll try 4K.
[video=youtube;M1wen41g1nc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1wen41g1nc[/video]
2015 has just started and my Force Fins are still going strong!
At Keystone I met another diver who has been using the same pair of Force Fins since 1985!
I wish the Force Fin team and all the scuba enthusiasts on Scubaboard and beyond a
Brilliant, Fun and Happy New Year!
Last edited:
OP
Soakedlontra
Contributor
Scuba Quarantine
Tomorrow Sunday, January 11, I am leaving the liquid water of the Salish Sea to experience, for the third time, the solid frozen water of the Arctic Ocean in the North Slope grounded on shore and wrapped up in several layers of clothing. My fins and the other "liquid water" gear will have to put up with a six weeks quarantine.
I was hoping to squeeze in one last dive before heading to the northernmost part of Alaska but organizing the trip became a undertaking that took longer to accomplish than expected.
I want to take the opportunity to thank all the viewers that have been stopping by this thread.
I was hoping to squeeze in one last dive before heading to the northernmost part of Alaska but organizing the trip became a undertaking that took longer to accomplish than expected.
I want to take the opportunity to thank all the viewers that have been stopping by this thread.
Happy Safe and Fun Diving!
OP
Soakedlontra
Contributor
Fantasizing about scuba diving in the Arctic Ocean
From the bush plane the January Arctic Ocean looks inhospitable, dark and dangerous. It’s hard to imagine that this freezing and unforgiven waterworld is home of amazing animals like walruses, ribbon seals, beluga and bowhead whales. I bet that the few who scuba dive in such a harsh environment do it during the summer.
The photo shows the water when the plane started to descend for landing at Point Hope. When it reached the coastline the amount of water free of ice increased considerably.
The locals told me that the ice has changed. It’s thinner than it used to be.
The photo shows the water when the plane started to descend for landing at Point Hope. When it reached the coastline the amount of water free of ice increased considerably.
The locals told me that the ice has changed. It’s thinner than it used to be.
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