Old dives

Mike Daily Splices Anchor Line
By Susan Carter

The moment the Ms. Christi pulled into camp to begin the 2003 annual pilgrimage to Catalina, the intrepid Alacostans on board realized that it would take more than good visibility to make this year's trip memorable. Indeed, Emerald Bay, usually so-called because of beautifully sparkling clear turquoise to emerald waters, lived up to its name only if a piece of dull, unpolished jade can be compared to shinier gemstones...Even reluctant old-timers had to admit that the vis was some of the worst ever remembered at Catalina, particularly if one doesn't count the year that the dock at White's Landing broke apart in a storm.

OK, so the vis sucked. Other than that, the dive conditions were great: seas were flat, with no surge and little current other than at Bird Rock, and were illuminated by sunny and warm topside weather, not that said illumination did any good below six inches or so.

However, in true Alacosta fashion, those present didn't let anything as insignificant as a very significant plankton bloom spoil their fun. Indeed, there were plenty of opportunities for the group to make dives to remember (or perhaps best forgotten) and to provide lots of fodder for this article. The knot-tieing-can-you-believe-two-eagle-scouts-were-present-out-of-twelve-trip-participants-and-he-wasn't-one-of-them-Champion-of-the-Year Award went to Alacosta President Mike Daily, whose skill at anchor line splicing was unequaled and will remain for years as a trip souvenir. As to why Mike was forced to splice the anchor line in the first place...well...unless you are willing to believe that a horn shark chewed through it, we suggest asking John Drake which is more important: his life, his camera, or a little ridicule in this fine publication. We believe he decided that the order of importance was indeed as listed...The good news is that, despite the poor vis, it only took John 30 minutes to find and recover the anchor itself when he went back to the location of the ``horn shark's cave'' the next day.

When compared to the (temporary) loss of an anchor, most of the other losses were minor. Mike Elliott did loose a fin on his first dive, but John Hessler and others found it floating at the surface. Of course, this recovery was after Mike's buddy Susan Carter dove back down from her safety stop to search for the fin, as Mike apparently forgot that this was not the first time he had temporarily lost said fin, and that it was buoyant the first time as well...Mike Boom didn't lose any gear of note, although he tried. He and Lynn Morton left their cameras on the Emerald Bay dock. John Drake called the harbor patrol to tell the divers in the second boat to bring the camera gear, although the boat had already decided to do so. Mike also managed to spoil his perfect record as an enthusiastic first time trip participant of not missing any dives, by forgetting his hood on the dock and having to sit one dive out. These errors of omission were enough to encourage other trip participants to pronounce Mike and Lynn as ``naturals'' at Alacosta diving who should become active club members....Mike did manage not to loose any of an impressive array of video gear, and Alacostans who have seen his equally impressive work truly look forward to a show of this year's trip...

Divers participating in various ``firsts'' also provided some amusement. Notably, the trip marked the occasion of both Mike Elliott and Susan Carter's first dives in a drysuit. Mike proved to be a natural, and even died-in-the-wool wetsuit diver Susan could be heard muttering, "what...took me so long...": that is; once she found the correct setting to keep her purge valve open and managed to actually do a dive....Fortunately, there were no real witnesses to the bouncing around and up and down that proceeded her first successful drysuit dive, since this was a more-or-less-solo venture: regular buddy John Purnell decided to reduce the possibility of ridicule by not diving until the fourth day of the trip. It is true that Kevin Dalley free dove nearby but the poor vis hid the worst of Susan's mistakes, even in only 20 feet of water. By the time she convinced John P to join her in the relatively clear water below 70 feet at Ship Rock, her technique had improved enough that Mike B was willing to shoot her for possible inclusion in his video.

Nonetheless, the true drysuit queen wasn't Susan, but Lynn Morton. Lynn is no stranger to drysuit diving, but she was doing her first dives in custom underwear she designed and sewed herself to fit under the popular Ocean Vendors model that she, Susan, Mike B and John D all wore. Lynn pronounced the new undies to be quite toasty and flexible, while the other envious divers admired both her sense of style and warmth. We predict a new business venture in the making for Lynn...

Watching Susan and the other divers soon became too much for Kevin, and he defied doctor's orders in order to make his first post-shoulder surgery dives during the trip. Other than having to re-learn how to put on gear in the water, a task Kevin apparently hasn't practiced much since being certified oh-so-many years ago, this was a successful venture. Roy Benedict and Bill McDowell also made a number of successful dives, unmarred by the sorts of amusing activities that normally warrant a mention in the post-Catalina Blurb. Non-diver Janet Carter bemusedly watched the diving fun and games from the comfort of either her kayak or her beach chair, although she was certainly willing to participate in the post dive happy hours. The happy hour spreads included an admirable variety of excellent cheeses and single malts among with the usual assortment of beer and tortilla chips...

One of those happy hours turned out to be particularly eventful when a large school of mackerel chased an even larger school of anchovies into the bay, setting off a huge fish ball that was pronounced the largest in recent memory by Ranger Brian Pierce. It was certainly among the most spectacular ever witnessed by the Alacostans. Many of the anchovies chose suicide by beaching as an alternative to being eaten by the mackerel, leopard sharks, guitarfish, halibut, and even a black bass or two that ventured to within a foot of shore. Some of the mackerel followed close enough to be caught by hand by human spectators wading in the ankle deep water. The number of fish species spotted in the bay probably exceeded the sightings for the rest of the week's worth of dives.

That evening's entertainment illustrated why we go to Catalina every year. From now on, 2003 will be known as the ``Year of the Fish Ball'', which is certainly a better alternative than being known as ``The Year the Vis Sucked''. Alacostans who missed this year's adventures should sign up now for Catalina 2004: you never know what type of excitement awaits you, and we can almost guarantee better vis!