Golf Ball Reef is an enigma. It is a large area of small boulders, nothing rising more than a foot or so off the bottom. There are no large structures, no walls, and nothing that divers usually talk about when they mention their best dives. A non-photographer might be bored to death on a reef like this, but for macro photography, it is a Mecca.

The reef has lots of kelp, fish, and gorgonians but doesn't resemble any kelp forest you would find at Catalina Island. Despite the fact that the reef only rises a foot or so above the surrounding sand, it does have an occasional large visitor.

Our friend Margaret Webb had a juvenile Gray whale come up to her. She found her husband Scott and took him to where the whale was still resting. Other whales have been spotted at the surface. We've also had several Giant Sea Bass approach us here.

In 2016, Merry Passage found a large orange nudibranch, Thordisa rubescens. Only a handful had ever been found, and none since 1981. The next day we found more, including tailing pairs. We returned for a third day to find mating pairs and many laying eggs. We now find them during most dives here and have found a few more at Halfway Reef. Wei Wei Gao later found some at Pt. Loma as well.

The edges of the reef have golf balls in the rocks and sand. We don't know how they got here but it would take more than Tiger Woods to hit them here from shore. Golf Ball Reef is in sixty feet of water, a half mile off Haggerty's. 33°48.495N 118°24.569W

If you can stand to look at any more photos from GBR, follow the link below.

• Golf Ball Reef

• Re: Palos Verdes Dive Site; Golf Ball Reef Kevlar 13:02:00 01/13/19 (0)