Posted by Chris on June 26, 2003 at 01:56:37:
Last Saturday, June 21 2003 I went to Farnsworth Bank and Italian Gardens with the Sea Divers on the Great Escape.
Since the president of Sea Divers had personal obligations to fulfill that day, I volunteered to be the charter master for the club.
We left the dock at 4:15 AM and arrived at Farnsworth at about 7:30 AM. As we passed Catalina it seemed the whole island was choked with small boats fishing. Yes, summer at Catalina has arrived!
Captain Tim nailed the high spot with the anchor.
The visibility at the top of the bank was about 30-35 feet, with a water temperature of 56 °F. Other club members told me that visibility opened up to more than 90 feet below 130 feet.
We were scheduled to make the second dive at Little Farnsworth, but since the island was crawling with boats Captain Tim & I surmised that our chances of actually getting on Little Farnsworth were slim, so I elected to stay and make the second dive at Farnsworth.
Once we headed for Italian Gardens, it was obvious that was a good choice since there were 11 party fishing boats plus about a dozen private boats sitting on Little Farnsworth fishing for barracuda.
When we got to Italian Gardens there were several small boats anchored near the best spot, so Captain Tim anchored a bit west. The water along the entire front side seemed a bit green, and it was here as well. But it did not seem much better anywhere else near there. A few Sea Divers who swam east a ways did manage to catch a glimpse of the Black Sea Bass, but most did not. Still it was a nice spot for out last two dives. Overall it was a great trip.
I just purchased a second INON D-180 strobe, so this was my first dive trip with two strobes. So I was anxious to try them out. Overall I am happy with the results. Many of the pictures I took at Farnsworth came out nice; especially considering it was my first time with dual strobes. I still have quite a bit of learning to do, but the quick feedback of a digital camera helps me make adjustments on the fly.
The low visibility at Italian Gardens made most of the pictures appear hazy. My lesson from that is to stick with macro when vis is that poor.
This was the first trip where I only took underwater pictures, none on the surface.
You can see all of the underwater photos I want to share at the following link:
Farnsworth Bank & Italian Gardens Underwater Photos