Trip Report and Photos

My Favorite Day of Summer

4th of July on the Great Escape

Story and Photos © Elaine Jobin, may not be reproduced in part or whole without advanced written permission

Summer, "officially" ends next weekend. It came and passed in the blink of an eye. In thinking about what I did with my "summer vacation" (I don't get one, that ended when I graduated the last time, but in my mind I still do) the dive trip that was most memorable was the July 4th open boat on the Great Escape.

This trip is remembered as my "favorite day of summer 2007"
for many reasons. I've read many times on this board how trips on the Great
Escape often feel like "home". Captain Tim and the crew so easily
become a kind of family, a dive community family. As a geographic orphan, I
find this to be especially true. I really enjoy spending holidays on the Great
Escape.

The first memorable sight of the day was the fireworks barge in the San Pedro harbor. This is the one that would be providing the show later in the evening at Long Beach. It was the first time that I've seen a fireworks barge up close.

A fleet of dolphins accompanied us on part of our trip across the channel. When we arrived at Catalina, it looked calm and peaceful - anything but "4th of July". What a great get away.

I met a lot of divers that day and saw some old friends too.

The 4th at Catalina was calm and peaceful, just nice. The kelp
forest and it's critters seemed like they were taking the day off too.

The most activity I saw were the occasional passing divers. The
only traffic I saw the whole day was at the swim step..

The last dive provided an old sunken sailboat to explore. It had been there so long it was covered in kelp.

We returned to Long Beach to prepare for the second part of the
holiday - a dinner cruise and fireworks in Long Beach. Some divers departed
and some new people - some of them non divers boarded for the "dinner cruise".
Passengers were welcomed to join in the "corn shucking" and Capt.
Tim started the dinner grill.

I was given one of the most important jobs on the boat. The Great Escape was low on beer. There was less than one hour to find an open store with a good supply of beer for sale. I went with crew member Steve on this important mission. Yes, we saved the day!

As darkness approached we were on our way to the Long Beach Harbor. We had one of the best locations for viewing fireworks. The evening was so nice I heard several say it was the best 4th of July they had had in years. It was the way it is "supposed" to be.

Thanks Capt. Tim, and crew, for one of the best 4th of July's I've had since I was a kid. The summer has been too short and this is one of my best memories!

• Re: Trip Report and Photos: My Favorite Trip of the Summer! I_AM 09:04:25 08/27/07 (3)
  • It felt good to do a trip report, but...... Elaine 19:43:28 08/27/07 (2)
    • Re: It felt good to do a trip report, but...... Harken Jowl 02:42:06 08/29/07 (1)
      • Your posts are a prme examle of what should be edited off,. Elaine 06:14:49 08/29/07 (0)
• It's great that you are back and had a good time... seahunt 21:10:26 08/26/07 (4)
  • Yep...the kelp forest shot says a lot Elaine 21:51:16 08/26/07 (3)
    • Re: Yep...the kelp forest shot says a lot seahunt 06:09:13 08/27/07 (2)
      • .Um....kelp doesn't grow in sand Elaine 14:36:23 08/27/07 (1)
        • It reminds me of the deep areas off Santa Rosa or La Jolla seahunt 20:17:24 08/27/07 (0)
• Welcome back!!! Max Bottomtime 20:55:34 08/26/07 (4)
  • Thanks Phil Elaine 21:18:26 08/26/07 (3)
    • Hey, I liked that swimstep...(-) Jeff Shaw 22:34:21 08/26/07 (2)
      • Re: Hey, I liked that swimstep...(-) Wiamond A. Chan 06:10:10 08/27/07 (1)
        • Re: Re: Hey, I liked that swimstep...(-) Ross-O 08:20:45 08/27/07 (0)
• The text formatting is weird Elaine 20:28:07 08/26/07 (1)
  • Welcome Back Second Fiddle 09:35:57 08/28/07 (0)