Posted by PHK on February 17, 2005 at 20:39:17:
In Reply to: La Jolla Cove Diving posted by Barely Normal on February 17, 2005 at 15:12:06:
I think Seahunt was trying to send you to www.divebums.com (aka. San Diego Divebums) which has a lot of information on dives sites, line-ups, field ID, etc. Its a great place to start if you want to dive La Jolla.
The Cove, as already mentioned, can be churned up during winter/early spring months due to northerly swells. The Shores is much better suited during the winter contrary to what you may have heard there is a lot of structure if you know where to look. The North Wall is a vertical wall which goes on for about 75 yards at ~80fsw - this is located on the west side of the north wall point/peninsula (check the map on divebums.com). There is also Secret Garden (gorgonian patch) which is at about 105 fsw on a steep grade that bottoms out about and then rises sharply again on the other side - cool topography especially if the vis is good enough to see the other side. The easiest spot to dive is Vallecitos (aka, East wall, or Main wall) as these are the shortest surface swims, but there is not as much structure here until you hit Vallecito's point, although there are some small walls here and there as well as ridges. There is also a spot called the Cabezon Cruiser at 135 fsw which is just an old ski boat - mostly rockfish and some sheephead that hang out. There's a lot to see in the canyon if you know where to go - my favorite is North Wall for its nice walls and an abundance of life but its a good surface swim out for those not used to it. If you're unsure, a night dive at Vallecito's always seems to be a good dive as there are a lot of critters up and about at the Shores (canyon and sandy flats).
Sorry for the long post - check out Divebums.com, all of this should be in there.
Enjoy your dives!