Posted by brianc on February 15, 2005 at 09:06:30:
In Reply to: Re: We made it to Miguel posted by Eric S on February 14, 2005 at 20:27:47:
I've been lucky enough over the past few years to dive repeatedly from San Diego to Mendocino and San Clemente to San Miguel. (Of course there are still a lot of spots in between that I have yet to hit.)
San Miguel is more like CentralNorthern CA than any other SoCal spot, but I would not say that it is the same environment as the North Coast (Sonoma/Mendocino). Perhaps the one aspect that makes San Miguel seem like the North Coast is that it is more exposed to the open ocean than the other Northern Channel Islands.
I remember spending a couple of New Years' on the Conception with 1/2 of the boat from Santa Rosa and the other half from L.A. The SoCal people were commenting on how cold the water was and the roughness of the conditions. Our northern group was happy at having water 3-5 degrees warmer than any of us had been in for a year, good vis, and low surge. I must admit that I have been hit by good currents out there in Fall and Winter.
I was a bit dissapointed at the amount of marine life relative to Monterey/Carmel and the North Coast.