Alacosta Blurb
December 2004
Alacosta Blurb
December 2004
Maintaining an icy distance between abalone and diver for over 40 years
Editor's Corner
Season's greetings Divers! This newsletter stuff was easy this month thanks to two articles by Simon Kish and John Kelly - thanks guys. I'm still getting used to the format so bear with me; also I have to watch the 120K file size so Webmaster Kevin doesn't bounce it back (Kevin, how `bout increasing that filesize to 400K, so I can insert some of my award winning photos...just a thought.) This time of year the year the winter storms usually slow down the diving, but not entirely, a few brave souls (Charlie) tried to brave the North Coast sub-zero dive conditions. Last month's General Meeting at Round Table Pizza in Moraga was a first for many of us, but it turned out OK, cold pizza for dinner the next night always hit's the spot.
?Ciao divers. John Diola H(510) 523-5986 cell (510) 432-5477
Alacosta Divers Club General Meetings are held the first Monday of every month from 8-10 PM at the Orinda Library “Garden Room.
Executive board meetings are generally held on the third Monday of the month at 8 p.m.at various locations and are usually preceded by a potluck at 6:30 pm. All Alacosta members are welcome to attend EBoard meetings. The December EBoard meeting has been canceled.
~ November General Meeting Minutes ~
The Alacosta Divers General Meeting was held at a different location this month because the Orinda Library was charging for the room, so the meeting took place for the first time at the Round Table Pizza place in Moraga.
The meeting was called to order at 8 PM by President Susan Carter.
Twenty One members present.
One guest present, Sarah Raube who lives in San Francisco and is interested in doing local diving.
The meeting room at Round Table was big enough and it had a door so it was fairly quiet, and there were electrical outlets for the audio visual equipment. Most people arrived early and ordered Pizza before the meeting and it worked out ok, especially the beer selection.
Dive reports: Mike Daily talked about his recent warm water trip to Cozumel with his daughter Alisha, he said the diving was great drift diving, 100+ foot water visibility and 85 degree water.
Meeting Entertainment: The incomparable Susan Carter and John Purnell showed an excellent digital multi-media slide show from two recent dive trips in Alaska and Baja on the liveaboard dive boat “Undersea Explorer.”
Refreshments: Pizza and Beer courtesy of Round Table Pizza.
New Business: The dates for the 2005 Catalina trip was decided for September 3-11, 2005, Labor Day holiday weekend - get your deposits in now to assure your spot as the last trip was one of the best ever.
The December EBoard meeting was canceled due to the holiday party. The January Eboard meeting was tentatively set for January 24, location TBD.
An article submitted by Simon Kisch:
FROM YOUR MEMBERSHIP COORDINATOR
ENTERTAINMENT
It's going to be a good year! To start us off our own President, Susan Carter is going to show us some of her very best slides from her recent trips. Come and be amazed.
In December, Jim Steele is going to show us what is really inside those $300 second stages (it turns out not very much) and why you should cut those pesky dust caps off them. Jim will be giving his very informative talk on SCUBA equipment, “What it is and how to fix it.” Even if have taken all your equipment apart, well perhaps especially if you have taken all of you equipment apart and its still in pieces, come and learn how to put it back together. Bring your gear and your questions answered and your equipment serviced right there.
In January, our own Mike Boom is going to show us some of his outstanding Videos and describe some techniques that will make you a much better photographer.
In the following months we are going to see films from some amazing photographers and videographers, including Neil Benjamin's films on Cozumel and Bonaire, and pictures from our own Kevin Dalley and John Beland. I am also hoping to have several internationally know photographers speak to the club, but those appearances have not yet been definitely confirmed.
We are also going to have a talk on Emergency SCUBA medicine from Chris Dutra. Come and learn why you really shouldn't touch those pretty cone shells and why urinating on your buddy after he has been stung by a jellyfish might be good payback but is not good medicine. We are also going to have a talk on the latest recommendations for safe ascents. There have been some quite dramatic changes in this area and if you haven't been keeping up with the latest dive literature, this talk might keep you out of Cozumel's very impressive new chamber (room for 7, television included, but a lot more expensive than a night out at Signore Frogs).
MEETING LOCATION AND FORMAT
As you can see, there is going to be a lot going on at the meetings. So please come and support the speakers and our club. Part of being a club is the keeping up with other members. A vibrant meeting will encourage new members to stay, and if they don't stay, they won't learn what a really nice bunch of people Alacostans are dive with. To try to make the meetings more fun, we are going to try a few new things. First we are going to have the entertainment at the beginning of the meeting. So if there is someone you want to hear, don't come late. We are also going to try new places to meet. There was some discussion of this prior to our eviction from the Orinda Library, but that sudden and unexpected occurrence has rather forced our hand. As you know, the first new site is the Pizza Parlor in Moraga. However, this is not necessarily our permanent new home. If you know of a place where we can meet, preferably with food and a private room, please let me know. We also need to know what you need to know. If there is some topic that you would like to hear about at a meeting, please let me know. It does not have to be a topic that will fill an entertainment bill by itself. We can always slip in a short topic somewhere.
TO MEMBERS WHO DON'T USUALLY COME TO MEETINGS
We have a lot of members who rarely, if ever, come to meetings. Would you please let me know why you don't come to the meetings? Is it that they are too far away, the wrong time, too boring, you just don't like meetings, or you just don't like the club? We need to know. You can e-mail me at skisch.pklaw@prodigy.net. And, if you don't e-mail, please don't be offended when I call you. If we are going to make the meetings better, I need to hear from you.
An article submitted by John Kelly:
Australia Trip 11/2 to 11/19/2004
By John T. Kelly
Last month my son, Kevin, came down to my house and said “Dad, I have vacation days that I have to take. Will you come to Australia with me?” What dad wouldn't say “Yes!” in a heartbeat. We flew out of SFO the night of the election. When we landed in Sydney we were greeted with the good news of President Bush's victory. Rented a 4 dr. sedan from Thrifty Car Rental at the airport and drove to downtown Sydney where we rented a room in the Hotel Ibiz , overlooking Circular Quay, on West Waterfront by the Rocks district. Stayed in Sydney 4 days. Took a bay cruise, bought ticket to ride the Red Bus all over Sydney. It is a bus that has pickup stops, with on/off privileges, situated all over town, with 20 minute waits. Saw everything from the Sydney Opera House to Bondi Beach. Then after stopping at Hunter Valley wine country. We sampled wine from two vintners, out of the hundred or so tasting rooms. A lot like our Napa-Sonoma wine country, we headed north along the Bruce highway to Port Macquarie, Brisbane, Bundaberg, Rockhampton, Mackay and Airlie Beach.
Arriving in Airlie Beach we immediately booked a 3 day/night, 10 dive trip out past the Whitsunday Islands to the Great Barrier Reef. However, it did not leave until Thursday. So, we booked a sailing experience on one of the 12 metre boats that raced in the Americas Cup in 1997. We were in the Wednesday afternoon race with about 15 other boats with officals, horns and whistles, for over 3 hours. Came in third. Very tense and exciting. Swam in Airlie Beach Lagoon. This is a huge swimming lagoon on the inside of the shore. Beautifully landscaped with sandy beaches and gardens, shade pavilions and barbecue areas. On all the beaches in Australia bathing tops are optional for ladies. This swimming pool area is about 450 yds wide and 50 yds deep. Max depth of water was 6ft. This was the place to meet in the daytime. Lots of people, families, backpackers swimming, sunbathing, in this beautiful wide open “park” just a stroll from the main street and carpark area.
The next day, after motoring all night, we dove Black Reef, located 65 Km NE of Airlie Beach. I dove 7 dives, Kevin did 6. We each dove one of the two night dives. Divers had green cylums and guides had red cylums. Everything in Australia is metric. Kevin and I brought our own dive gear, so when we were asked how many millibars of air we had we showed them our pressure gauges which read 2,900 psi. I did not think we were getting a full tank, at first. But then after diving to maximum depths of 58 feet and coming back after 45 minutes with 900+psi, I decided that we had more than enough air. Most of the reef diving was between 20 t o 50 feet. Visibility at Black Reef was roughly 50'+/-. Water temp 78*.
Up to 10 divers at a time were transported in an inflatable to the dive site. After the dive, as many as four divers grabbed onto a knotted rope, that was trailing behind the inflatable, and were pulled back to the live-aboard.
We saw a myriad of hard and soft corals, of course. All kinds of reef fish. The clown fish is not “Nemo” but the Great Barrier Reef clown fish. Amphiprion Akinoynos. Difference is: not quite as orange but more orangey-brown in colour.
Airlie Beach is a great fun town with the best open air pubs, beer is A$4.50 jug. Popular brands are Hahn, XXXX, VB (Victoria Bitters) and Tooheys. After coming in from 3 days at sea, it was nice to celebrate at “Beaches Backpackers Pub”
Petrol averaged $1.06 in New South Wales and .97 per litre in Queensland. Roughly US$4 gallon. Rate of exchange was A$.78 to US$1.00. In each of the above mentioned towns we spent time going around sightseeing. We only drove in the daytime, therefore did not see many kangaroos, as they are nocturnal. We did see a few dead ones along the road. One evening, returning from Port Douglas to Cairns, we saw several out in a paddock. The roads were fantastic. Compare them to the best highways we have here in California. Speed limit is 110-120 kph (65-70mph).
Distance between Sydney and Cairns is 2,700 kilometers (1,678 miles). We clocked over 3,300 Km. in all of our driving. We flew back to Sydney from Cairns (US$206) on 11/18. It is the Bruce highway to Cairns. From there north it is known as the James Cook highway.
Time is running out and 625 Km to Cairns. After stopping in Townsville we arrived in Cairns. Booked a 1 day/3 dive trip on the Quicksmart a modern 125 ft. dive boat for Wednesday Morning.
As this was Tuesday we decided to drive to Tjapukai, an Australian Aboriginal theme park, 17 Km north of Cairns. We actually learned how to throw a boomerang.
At 6:45am next morning, we were picked up at our hotel in Cairns and bused north 68 Km to Port Douglas, where we boarded the Quicksmart. This was a tourist dive/snorkel boat. About 65 passengers on this beautiful and fast boat. Our first dive, at 10:30am, was on Phil's Reef about 25 Km off the coast from Port Douglas. Second dive was the worst dive of my career. The dive guide was trying to see all of the Great Barrier Reef in one dive. We were swimming, non stop, for 42 minutes. Initially dropped down to 40' and from there we were mostly swimming at around 25'. I actually was going into “deco” from my first dive. The bars were going down on my dive computer. This was a first. I complained loudly with Kevin, after the dive, which I knew the dive guide was hearing, and he apologized by saying that this was not a live-aboard and these people were out to see as much of the reef as possible. He could tell we were experienced divers. The third dive was on a bommie similar to “Ship Rock”, although not quite as big nor deep. Only 45 feet. This was a slow dive and took about 15 minutes to swim around. We could leisurely swim around it 3 times. Lots and lots of fish. Several different thick schools of fish. Soft corals, eels, etc. This qualified as the best dive of the trip. It compared to diving off of Bali. The water is much better in the northern parts of the GBR. Visibility was great 75'+ Water temp. 79*. From the worst dive to the best dive in 2 hours. This is the Great Barrier Reef. Looking forward to October 2005.
A few thoughts. Vegemite is good on toast with a little butter in the morning. Bundaberg ginger beer is a soft drink. Bundaberg rum is stronger than Bacardi. If you buy a pie it will be a meat pie. Fish & Chips; the fish is big and thick and the chips are French fries. Don't drive at night unless you have big protective bumpers on your vehicle. The sun will burn your skin if you are not covered. Aussies drink lots of beer. Most of the 20 million people in Australia live on the East coast. They think that we have an accent. 20% of the news on television is about the USA.
JOHN
UPCOMING DIVES:
Point Lobos, Traditional New Year's Day Dive, January 1, 2005: Susan Carter will be leading the traditional Club inflatable dive to Point Lobos. Divers interested in going should mark Monday, November 1, 2004 as the day to log onto http://pt-lobos.parks.state.ca.us/ to make their reservations to join us on this great dive! Spots traditionally go quickly, so we recommend that hard core Alacostans stay up until mid-night the night before to log on and get their spot.
A tentative Point Lobos dive is scheduled for December 19 pending how many reservations are available to club members, Susan Carter is the Chair (415)647-9036.
Cozumel 2005: Simon Kisch will be leading a club dive to Cozumel in April 2005. Details to follow in an upcoming Blurb…
Catalina 2005: Based upon responses to the survey, the Catalina 2005 trip dates will be September 4 - 11, 2005 Labor Day Weekend. Catalina Co-Chairs for 2005 are Bill McDowell and Susan Carter.
Australia: Susan Carter is leading a dive trip of a lifetime to Oz in October of 2005. This will be a nine day special expedition trip to dive the very far northern reefs of Australia. Our liveaboard for this trip will be the Undersea Explorer, a dive boat that also conducts marine research. More information about the trip is available on the Alacosta website at www.alacosta.org. Currently, the trip is full, but Susan is taking names for the waiting list in the event of cancellations.
ALACOSTA CALENDAR:
December 19, Point Lobos dive, Susan Carter is Chair (415)647-9036.
January 1, 2005: Inflatable boat Dive at Point Lobos State Reserve, Susan Carter is Chair (415)647-9036.
February 19, 2005: Charter Boat dive in Monterey, Chris Fryer is Chair.
April, 2005; Cozumel, Simon Kisch is Chair (510)841-5900.
September 4 - 11, 2005; Catalina Trip, Emerald Bay
October 24 - November 2, 2005; Far Northern Great Barrier Reef, Australia
The Blurb
Alacosta Divers, Inc.
Editor: John Diola jdiola@pacbell.net (510) 523-5986
Alacosta Divers Inc.
1252 Broadway
Alameda CA 94501
2
LATE BREAKING NEWS: GENERAL MEETING PLACE for the Alacosta Dive Club -the December General Meeting will be at the old spot - Orinda Library “Garden Room, ” Monday, December 6, 2004 at 8 p.m
Alacosta Divers General Meeting the first Monday of the month
Treasurer's Report (as of August, 2004) John Beland
Checking account: $6062.85
Cash account: $85.03
Total: $6147.88
General fund: $3492.98
Boat fund: $2654.90
Catalina fund: $0000.00
Alacosta Divers Officers and Executive Board Members:
Officers: Susan Carter: President; Kevin Dalley: Vice President; John Beland: Treasurer; Mike Elliot: Secretary, Simon Kisch: Membership Coordinator; John Diola: Blurb Editor. Mike Dailey: Immediate Past President.
Executive Board Members: Mike Elliott, Simon Kisch, Bill McDowell, John Purnell, Gary Schleimer, Rob Vermuelen , Jack Cash, Lynn Morton, Mike Dixon, Tom Whitaker