Deep-Sea Sherpa

January 22, 2011 – Doug’s 100th Dive

lol1001 — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 01:03:46 +0000

January 22, 2011 – It’s always great to be invited for a milestone dive, and 100 is the first big one for all scuba divers. Traditionally, you’re supposed to dive naked. But I really think that’s a warm water tradition. In Monterey, there’s nothing like marking your 100th dive in low viz (5′), surgy conditions, and rough shore entry.

December 18, 2010 – Sea Lion Encounter at Metridium Fields

lol1001 — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 00:57:05 +0000

December 18, 2010 – Cynthia, Ben, Brian, and I meet up at Breakwater (San Carlos Beach) for a Grand Tour scooter run. While we had hoped for stellar winter conditions, we got the standard 10′ – 15′ viz. We were blessed with a few sea lions at Metridium Fields though. Usually they don’t hang around this long, but could be curious teenagers.

Hole in the Wall Mapping Project

lol1001 — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 02:32:32 +0000

On a sunny Sunday morning, Kevin, Ted, and I gathered at Pt. Lobos to wrap up Kevin’s Hole in the Wall mapping project. Having worked through logistics with other dive teams on Friday and Saturday, we were batting clean-up – literally. We had a few stations to map, but we also had to pull all the survey lines at Lobos.

Kevin stressed that we shouldn’t be goal oriented, but we couldn’t help ourselves. In the 90 minute dive, we completed the survey and successfully retrieved all survey equipment.

Here’s a short video.

Essentials of Recreational Diving in Monterey

lol1001 — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 06:18:15 +0000

For those who are interested in what Essentials in Monterey looks like, here’s a video.

September 2010 – Mexico Cave Diving

lol1001 — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 23:40:54 +0000

Another amazing trip to Mexico. In addition to our regular cave buddy Kevin, Rob and Allison were able to join us.

Here’s some pictures from the trip:

Find more photos like this on Unified Team Diving

August 15, 2010 – Pictures from Middle Reef

Don — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 04:26:20 +0000

June 25, 2010 – Dive on E2

Don — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 05:30:22 +0000

I finally took a day off on Friday and was able to dive off of Phil’s rib.

On the way down, Kevin and I chatted about possible sites. But once we drove past Monastery, we knew that possibilities would abound. Calm flat seas meant that we had a high likelihood of rounding the point and diving further south.

At Pt. Lobos, Kevin and Phil discussed sites. Before long, we’re pushing off and heading towards E2.

Looking to sea.

Party of hermissenda crassicornis at 140′.

May 1 and 2 at Pt. Lobos

Don — Tue, 04 May 2010 06:17:28 +0000

At least once a year, our friends from SoCal drive up and spend a weekend diving at Pt. Lobos. Not only are they are a great group to dive with, they usually bring fantastic weather. The swell model and top side conditions did not look promising, but once we got below 30′, Pt. Lobos opened up.

As the result, we had two unexpectedly beautiful days. Fun diving with our friends!

Lionfish in Bonaire

Don — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 03:01:52 +0000

The first lionfish were reported in Bonaire in October 26, 2009. We are currently in Bonaire and have already spotted 3 lionfish, on three separate dive spots. Elissa spotted them at Angel City (73′) and 1000 steps (84′). I found one today at Tori’s Reef (60′).

Elissa spots this lion fish on April 5th at Angel City. He’s nicely tucked under an overhang of coral, and this shot was taken at an angle to expose him.

Elissa marks the lionfish, and we continue on our dive at Angel City.

Video of Elissa marking a lionfish at 1000 Steps.

And here’s the third lionfish on our trip, marked and ready for pick-up.

February 27, 2010 – Breakwater Grand Circuit

Don — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 06:14:40 +0000

Alas, Nils is leaving MoCal for sun limited Seattle. As a last dive, we decided to dive a site where most of us became exposed to Monterey – San Carlos Beach, “The Breakwater.”

Best of luck, Nils!