Wreckreational Diving

1/2/2010 - First Marineland Dive Of The Year

We've had a couple of days of seven foot high tides, so I expected a relatively easy entry at the point and great visibility. The entry wasn't bad, but vis was a murky ten to twelve feet throughout the dive. I dropped into 75 feet hoping to find some unusual animals but everyone seemed to be hiding. I made my way back up to Ted's Pinnacle where I found a zebra goby in the bucket of the statue. I managed to get a fuzzy, out of focus shot before it disappeared.
There were more Cadlina limbaughorum nudibranchs out than I'd seen before. Some of them seemed to be practicing their high wire acts, stretching from one cluster of hydroids to another.
I spent more time at the point than usual so I had just enough air to feed Abby, then make a short surface swim to the exit. The water was all the way up to Jeff's Rock, where we usually gear up. I braced myself against it while I was still in knee deep water.
Merry had to take her daughter to the Doctor's office this morning and Evil Jeff decided to sleep in, so I left the Bottomtime Buggy in the back of my truck and dived solo. It's too bad the tide wasn't about 150 feet higher. I wouldn't have walked back up the hill in my gear.

Brown cup coral, Paracyathus stearnsii

Stalked tunicate, Styela montereyensis

Yellow zoanthid, Parazoanthus lucificum

Club tipped anemones, Corynactis californica

California Scorpionfish, Scorpaena guttata

Chestnut cowries, Cypraea spadicea with mantles exposed

Brown Gorgonian, Muricea fruticosa
Red Gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis
California Golden Gorgonian, Muricea californica
Orange Gorgonian, Adelogorgia phyllosclera