Posted by Ross-O on April 20, 2003 at 15:39:22:
Maciek, Don, Lisa, Beth and I met at Malaga in Palos Verdes for an Easter Morning dive. Conditions didn't look so great on the North and Northwest facing sides of PV so we decided head down to Pt. Vicente aka "Cardiac Hill". Things looked great from the Pt. Vicente fishing access so we geared up and headed down the trail. Unlike yesterday, surf was down and entry and exit was trivial. Vis wasn't impressive in shallow but it opened up to 20 ft or so beyond the wash rocks on the south side of the cove. We saw all of the usual suspects - garibaldi, senoritas, lemon nudibranches, Spanish shawls, rubberlip surfperch, opaleye, sheephead, and all the others whose names I haven't yet learned. I caught a glimpse of a really large fish beyond one of the pinnacles but it got away before I could identify it. From the shape of the tail, I think it was an enormous sheephead. A seal was hanging out on the top of one of the washrocks. We were hoping that he would come play but we never crossed paths with him underwater. Similar to Neptune yesterday, I was hoping for more fish, but I really enjoyed the topography and the "little things" that cover the pinnacles, washrocks, and ledges that are found at Vicente. Vicente has Neptune beat when it comes to variety. We covered a sandy bottom, thick kelp, rocky bottom, and big rock formations with crevices and ledges all in one dive.
Along with the better vis came the cold. Three of us recorded 52F for most of our dive in the 30-40 fsw depth. I've come to the realization that 52F is damn cold in a wetsuit. I've recently lost about 27 lbs and I'm simply freezing to death even on my relatively short beach dives. I rarely got cold on beach dives when I was a little heavier. Now I'm wearing an additional hooded vest under my suit and I'm still getting cold. Excess body fat may be horrible from a general health and nitrogen absorption standpoint, but it does wonders for thermal protection. Time to start saving for the drysuit!
All in all, it was decent dive, an excellent workout, and the perfect way to spend Easter morning.
Craig from Sandeaters - We saw your truck at Malaga. We kept an eye out for you and Karen but you didn't surface before we left. Let us know how the dive turned out.
Cheers,
Ross-O