- Local Diving Update -
Dutch
Springs 10/23/05
Water temperature is now more even throughout the water column, being that is
the fall, the quarry was one big isothermal. It was 59°F - 61°F at the
surface all the way down to down to 51'. Air temperature wasn't bad but the
wind chill factor made it feel chilly. We did four dives that day and I could
have stayed in the water for more, my 7mm wetsuit kept me comfortable. It wasn't
until you exited the water that you felt cold because of the wind and the scattered
clouds, which intermittently blocked the sun. When the sun did break through
it was comfortably warm and welcomed. We did see big silvery rainbow trout up
in the shallows as a result of the isothermal. It was busy with students mostly,
getting in the last of their certification dives before winter set in. I think
this will be it for this diver and local diving for this season.
Dutch
Springs 8/6 & 7/05
On Saturday we did two
dives for Advanced & Master Diver certification.
We also did a night dive which went well, our group did very well considering
that it was a first for many of them. A
few stray large-mouth bass were spotted by our group on our flanks as I expected
they would be, but what I didn't know until this
night dive was that the fresh water large mouth bass that were following our
group were using the light from
our flashlight beams to hunt the unsuspecting smaller fish unaccustomed to this
nocturnal surprise, which I've seen being done countless number of times by
their salt water counterparts in the oceans.
Most
of us camped out Sat night so it was an early start Sunday morning with the
sun rising and chatty guests being the alarm clocks that woke us up sooner than
we expected or wished
to be.
Overcast, humid 98°F, it was hot! The only way we survived the day was by
spending it in water. Being
a summer weekend, there was the usual number of divers there.
All things considered it was a memorable evening and weekend
for all.
Dutch
Springs 7/24/05
Water temp was 75°F at the surface, 64°F down in the first thermocline
and 53°F down in the second thermocline, pretty much the same as last weekend.
The water vis was 30'-35', it was clearer away from the shoreline where various
classes had stirred the bottom up a bit while conducting their classes, but
that settled down after each group moved on, so the visibility was good overall.
The usual curious large-mouth bass were out mingling with divers waiting for
opportunities to grab an occasional crayfish handout...there were a few bass
that were noticeably larger than their companions. Most of the bass that we
saw were about a foot in length.
Bright and sunny 89°F, summer is in full swing here, we spent most of the
day in the water conducting our Rescue course. There were numerous groups of
divers camped out Sat night so it was an early start Sunday morning with lots
of divers milling about getting into the water etc.
All and all it was nice day to be there enjoying the water and the beautiful
day...
Dutch
Springs 6/26/05
Water temp was 62°F at the surface, 51°F down at the helicopter. The
water vis was 25'-35', it was clearer away from the shallow
sites and the shoreline below 25'.
Numerous blue gills/sunny's seemed to be "nesting" along the shore
shallows and found themselves in close company with divers. I'm not sure if
our presence is a good thing or a bad thing during their mating season.
(I sincerely hope we aren't disturbing them).
Bright and sunny 97°F, summer is definitely here, the only way to really
cool down was to spend it in the water, which we did. The divers were there
early and in masse, and why not it's summer...
Dutch
Springs 6/19/05
Water temp was 58°F at the surface, water vis was 25'-30' because of recent
rain runoff.
Cloudy, overcast and the sun came out in the afternoon right after our second
dive...
Dutch Springs 6/05/05
Water temp was 53°F at the surface, water vis was 30'+, Sunny, packed with
divers...
Stolt Wreck 5/29/05
Water temp at surface
54°F and 36°F at the bottom...
Beach 8th 9/08/02
Water temp was 68°F, vis was 3 - 10 feet, I saw juvenile queen angel at
the third cage, the usual numbers of spotfin butterfly, banded butterfly, big
horned blennies, stripers, blackfish, pipefish, seahorses, assorted crabs, spider,
blue and horseshoe...not to mention a scrawled filefish again by the first cage.
On a good day, it's great! On a bad day it's challenging, which is good for
keeping your skills sharp.
Schools of numerous dark baitfishes were being herded into the shallows by what
look like little barracudas 6"- 8" long. Their collective movements
while schooling, undulating and changing shapes and direction made them very
interesting to watch from both in the water and from the surface while standing
on the beach.
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