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Diving and Dolphins
September 13, 2009
Story by Sharon E
Today the ADT Team assembled at the dock to go diving. The sky was overcast yet warm. Conditions were favorable, wave height 4’, 14 seconds apart. We headed to Carmel. As we passed the Point, we met a large pod of Risso dolphins. What a treat. Breana, out for her first boat dive, had never seen the dolphins before. This pod was especially active and laced with young dolphins. The larger ones would swim rapidly slapping their tails, while the younger dolphins followed behind, jumping out of the water, showing off.
Soon we were back on plane to Carmel. Jim checked out a few sites, seeking just the right spot. We anchored on Mono Lobo Wall. This was a bit tricky as the long, slow waves tossed the boat oddly and kept swinging us into shallow water. Soon Jim got a good anchorage and we were off. First over the side were Les and Chris, donned in doubles. Off the stern went Sharon and Don followed by Brandon and Breana. We sorted our way thru the surface kelp. Once near the bottom, the kelp thinned but the surge kicked in. Les and Chris tied in and headed west. This site offered long walls for easy navigation and a depth of 90’. We were along a ledge and several vertical pinnacles. We hovered at 70’ and the viz was about 10’. The surge was about 6’, so you were tossed about. Don, still a new diver and getting his buoyancy, found this a bit challenging. But he was a trooper and endured. Sharon spooled out and swam along the wall. We saw many colorful anemones, lots of stars, many crabs, a den where an octo may have resided once. We found lots of colorful sponges and soft corals. The bright reds, blues and purples were so amazing. You had to look closely as many tiny shrimps and brittle stars hiding in the cracks. After about 20 minutes, we had enough of the washer machine and started our ascent. On the anchor line, Sharon and Don did an air share drill. Great practice for Don and adding surplus to his air resources in case we had kelp issues at the surface. However all went well. Now all back on the boat, we opted to dive the second dive in Carmel too.
Next we anchored on the South Wall of Mono Lobo. The surface was carpeted in kelp. It was still overcast which made the dive like a night dive. Sharon and Les were first off, followed closely by Chris and Don. Breana, still cold from the first dive, but a trooper, and Brandon jumped in. We descended thru the kelp to about 80’. The surge lessened next to the wall. So we tied in there and headed west. Sharon made the second tie in but made the mistake of laying down the reel while she secured the rocks. Well the reel fowled. Les tried to help but it got more tangled and the surge didn’t help. Finally we cut the line to correct it. Now headed back we met Chris and Don. They stayed near the anchor due to discovery of a large debris field. They collected shells while looking for the octo that may have contributed to the pile of shells, but no luck finding him. Now it was time to ascend and get out of the surge. We all threaded thru the kelp and reached the stern. As we headed back, we met the Risso pod again. They were as playful as before. We enjoyed them as they frolicked, jumping, slapping tails and just being dolphins. Next we heard the humpbacks were by Moss Landing, so we motored over there. Sure enough, they were there. A large female with baby were hanging out. They would roll over, their backs and dorsal fins would surface. Soon they would dive down and we’d get a tail fluke. The two giant mammals moved in sequence. So if you missed the first photo shot, shot 2 was right behind it. The encounter was not surprising as on the dives, we saw many schools of minnows or similar small schooling fish.
In spite of the poor viz and surge, it was a great day to be on the ocean and diving. We won’t have an October dive as we are diving the Keys and the Vandenberg. But join us for diving on November 8!

For more pictures from the trip, check out our Photo Gallery. Do you have some pictures you would like to add to the gallery? Contact us!

Did you miss out? Our next dive trip is Sunday, Nov 07. Call us today to book your next dive!
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