Christmas Tree Cove

Skin Dive#:010
Thur April 28, 08
Christmas Tree Cove: boulders, gravel
Purpose: first time at spot, take advantage of good conditions
Tide: High @ 5:30 pm
Entry: cobblestone middle of cove @ 6:45 pm
Distance: 75 yds out to the right side of cove
Gear: 5/3suit, mask, snorkel, fins, socks, hood
Temp: Air 68 F/Water 58 F
Enviroment: sunny, light wind, 2 ft ankle breaks, textured surface, surge
Visibilty: 5ft near shore, mostly 15-25 ft out by boulders
Conditions Synopsis: Good
Sights: large garibaldi, surf perch, sargo, various kelp fish, large calico bass
Exit: cobblestone middle of cove @ 7:15 pm

Time to date: 6 hrs 15 min
Total time this dive: 30 min
Total time: 6 hrs 45 min

Special Notes: From the top of the steep goat trail the water looked a welcoming green and the kelp and some boulders were visible through the water. I also could see one fellow in the cove with free diving gear so I knew it must be a fine dive. Once down the dude was leaving and said it was 20 ft vis in the good areas and that he bagged a couple perch. He was right, after a short swim past the murkiness and into the middle of the cove the vis jumped to a solid 20 ft. If the sun was more above in the sky it would have illuminated the floor better. Now thinking about it, the vis was 20+ ft. I saw many fish and a couple legal sized bass. Fun place. Lots of eye candy. I used the dolphin kick to move around to try something new. It felt funny, but worked fine. I got out of the water when the sun was trying to hide behind the hill. Will come back with a friend. I also want to try the east side of the cove.


-Seaschralped-

Back At Pt. Vicente

Below: the nice walk down

Skin Dive#:009
Thur April 27, 08
Pt. Vicente Fishing Access: rocks, crevices
Purpose: first use of new wetsuit, show friend spot, rehab my calf
Tide: High @ 5 pm
Entry: rocks @ 6:30 pm
Distance: 10 - 100 yds offshore and about length of cove
Gear: 5/3suit, mask, snorkel, fins, socks, hood
Temp: Air 68 F/Water 58-60 F
Enviroment: scattered clouds, wind, 2 ft ankle breaks, choppy, strong surge
Visibilty: 5-15 ft, mostly 10 ft
Conditions Synopsis: Poor+/Fair
Sights: large garibaldi, surf perch, sargo, various kelp fish (ufo's)
Exit: rocks @ 7 pm

Time to date: 5 hrs 45 min
Total time this dive: 30 min
Total time: 6 hrs 15 min

Special Notes: Last thursday while swimming at the Y and diving to the bottom (with no fins) to play and equalize my ears I managed to get a really bad leg cramp in my left calf. It was completely paralyzing and I limped for a good day. It took about three days to actually feel normal. When I asked the lifeguard about it, he said it's from overexertion or even more likely from dehydration. I was dehydrated, and I swam for the longest and hardest ever that night. He helped me stretch it out and told me how to take care of it and stay hydrated, which I knew, but didn't practice, obviously. It's happened to him before in a swim meet so he just kept going with his good leg until that cramped up and then he was completely screwed. His soreness lasted several days, in both legs. he told me to eat a banana before swimming. So, I'm learnign to take care of my body more to prevent another leg cramp. For some reason, if it happens in the ocean, I'll be prepared for the discomfort, etc. I'll need to float on my back, stick the leg in the air, massage it with one hand and swim back to shore with the other. Pretty hard, that's where a dive buddy is a nescessity.

So this was my first skin dive since that leg cramp happened. Victor came with me and we got in the water an hour after high tide. Ideally, I'd want to be there a half hour before high tide because the currents get a bit stronger on that side of PV during tide change. The little half hour of calmness rigth before peak tide and right after would have made a slight difference in the dive. Same entry as last time, same exit. We swam out to the big rock and peered for rays in the sand. There was more fish life overall in the cove than the last time I was here. Saw many garibaldi. Fun dive. We cut it short cause my knee began to feel loose after spending days with a sore calf and then finally swimming again. Also, sun sets earlier here than Malaga due to positioning of the spot.