Date: 7/15/08
Dive Location: Vets
Buddy(ies): Dana, Kalani and Solo
Time: 8:30 pm.
Bottom Time: 1 Hr 31 Min
Max Depth: 90 fsw
Vis: 10-15 in Shallows 15-20 at Depth
Wave height: 1-2 Feet
Temp at depth: 52 F
Surface Temp: 69F

A few of us photo nuts got together a night ago to see if we could find the allusive Cumanotus at Vets. As we were gearing up Phil, Mary and Jeff were getting out of the water. I asked them what they saw and Phil said not much. This was not a good sign….lol

Since I was the only one on air (I got to get a Nitrox Cert) I took out the BEAST HP130. The plan was to hang with Dana and Kalani till I hit my non deco limit and then adios amigos.

Getting out was a breeze so we kicked out to the end of the pier and dropped into so so visibility. As we started to make our way down the canyon, it opened up more which was great news to us. Once we were at around 80 or so we came upon a group of swimming worms. Dana has a nice video of us playing with these alien creatures. Here is the link: http://youtube.com/watch?v=2mU3cbqR_zA . The experience was cool and sort of surreal at the same time. Once we hit 90 the vis started to decline. I ended up leaving the group with just a few minutes of non deco left.

Night diving solo is an interesting experience. I have been to Vets a countless number of times but this was my first solo night dive there. I know the place like the back of my hand but this is never a reason to not be aware of your surroundings and readings.

As I moved on back up the canyon, I came across a few Maculata and a medium sized Pleurobranchaea Californica. I also came across something I have never seen before. With the help of Scott and Terry, I found out it was a Lamellaria Diegoensis. I thought it was a nudi at first but I guess I was wrong. After being alone for a while and in the shallows, I started to get a little board. I looked at my computer and saw that I was close to 90 minutes with another 45 minutes left on the beast. So, I packed up my camera and started to head towards shore

Here are some pictures from the dive. ENJOY!!

Follow Ups: