San Clemente Island
March 10, 2008

"Pyramid Cove, tranquil and inviting"

After a very smooth ride downhill from Santa Barbara Island, we turned the corner around the Eastern tip of San Clemente Island during the gray predawn twilight.  The waters in Pyramid Cove were tranquil and inviting.  The kelp laid placidly along the surface of the small cove near Petter's Rock as we positioned ourselves for our first dive.

The water was several degrees warmer than the previous days at 58 degrees, and the visibility was a marked improvement at 50 to 70 feet.  Vintage San Clemente!

The dramatic topography of walls, caverns, cracks and lush giant brown kelp reaching toward the surface was a delight for all our divers.  We caught a few lobster as well to make our hunters happy. 

We moved to a little shallower kelp bed and rocky reef for our next two dives.  The sun burned through a few scattered clouds and the day turned out downright beautiful.  Our hunters found a few more tasty crustaceans, and everyone enjoyed the scenery; sand channels, craggy rocks covered in palm kelp and giant brown kelp stalks reaching languidly up to the surface.  Large kelp bass patrolled the shallows and one diver spotted a torpedo ray over the sand. 

All too soon it was time to churn back toward San Diego.  We can't wait until the next adventure aboard the Horizon...we'll see you then.

Adios,

Captain Chris

Cortes Bank and Santa Barbara Island
March 9, 2008

"Torpedo rays, lobster, cabezon, giant kelp kish, and our friends the sea lions"

As the sun rose up from the depths of the ocean there was a slight breeze blowing over the Bank we call Cortes.  Passengers were already stirring around the boat eager to plunge into one of the most remote and exciting dive locations off the coast of California. 

The sea state had grew a little over night, but not enough to keep the divers out of the beautiful water.  After a quick site briefing I opened the gates and off they went. Some looking for lobster and others just looking for that perfect picture. 

When returning to the boat some reported a beautiful wall just off our stern while others who went down off the bow found a row of nice ridges. There weren't many lobster to be found although a few nice size ones came back on the boat. Once everyone was on board I decided to try the North West side of the Bank and see what we could find.

It took us about an hour to get repositioned on the other side of the Bank. The terrain looked similar to the last site will lots of ridges and canyons under the boat. The seas were starting to grow with an increase in the wind but that wasn't going to stop our divers from getting wet.  As the divers returned to the boat they reported forty feet of visibility with a slight current. Some showed me pictures of Torpedo Rays, Lobster, Cabazons, Giant Kelp Fish, and our friends the Sea Lions. After we accounted for everyone on board we decided to head off to Santa Barbra Island, in the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary for a night dive to try and find some more lobster. 

It's always fun to do night dives because you can see the beams of lights shining up from the depths all around the boat.  As the first divers returned to the boat I could see that they had found the lobster.  They had also found a group of Sea Lions who had followed them back to the boat!

One of the guests told me he had done thousands of night dives all over the world yet this was his favorite.  It's always makes the Captain feel good to hear statements like that.

Over all day two aboard the good ship Horizon turned out to be a great day filled with beautiful diving and great memories.

Until the sun rises in the morning,
 

Captain Spencer

Cortes Bank
March 7, 2008

"The offshore reef teamed with life--huge sheephead, rockfish, cabezon, and lobster..."

Mother nature has given us a reprieve from the winter weather today.  The hundred mile ride offshore was relatively smooth, and we arrived at the Bank just after a tasty breakfast by chef Grindley. 

We made five dives for the day, enjoying the thirty foot visibility and 56 degree water.  The offshore reef teamed with life--huge sheephead, rockfish, cabezon, and lobster hid in the caves and rubble fields.  Our bug hunters found plenty of those tasty crustaceans throughout the day and a number of people caught their limit of seven. 

The forecast looks good for tomorrow, with just a little more wind.  We'll spend the night on the bank and start diving again first thing in the morning.

adios,

Captain Chris

San Clemente Island
March 1, 2008

"The majestic garibaldi fish showing that spring is a coming!"