Catalina Dive Trip - The Adventure

So we made it back!
I wasn't so sure at times. We had a bit of a rough time leaving to drive down there. Poor Alan had one of the worst nights at work ever and pulled an all-nighter to drive down to Bountiful. We took 2 separate cars and drove the 10-11 hours to San Pedro just outside of L.A. The other car ended up going a bit too fast and got a $150 ticket. We then had to go pick up one of the members of our gang at a hotel in L.A. We then got separated and lost on our way to the port. All in all I was so glad to finally make it to the port and get our stuff on the boat.

We got to the island Thursday morning and got everybody in the water. That first dive is always a bit nerve wracking. We had a lot of new ocean divers in the water and their skills ranged from competent to scary. We had one diver lose his snorkel before getting in the water. It started to sink and he decided the best way to retrieve it was to jump in after it. (Even though there were 3 other divers in the water that saw it and were getting ready to go after it.) He didn't really think about putting on his mask and making sure his other gear was in order. Well when he oh so ungracefully jumped into the water, he also lost his mask. If he wasn't going to die on his first dive, I was about sure I was going to drown him.

After everybody made it back alive after the first dive, things got a bit better. We still had a few scary divers, but they seemed to survive just fine and I stopped caring.

One of the highlights of the trip was being able to see my youngest brother, Jason. He's 17 and has been working at a scout camp on Catalina Island for the past 6 or 7 weeks. He was hoping our boat would get close enough to the camp that he could come out and see us. On Thursday, we were one cove to the north. We gave him a call and his camp director drove him out on a motor boat. We got to visit with him for about an hour. It was so cool to see him. He's grown up a lot!

This is him showing us his tan line. That white strip is where his watch has been. He also told us that he's gained 25 pound of muscle. He's been working out everyday to get ready for water polo this next year. He's already having to beat the girls off.

There was over half of his family on the boat. There was me, Judson and Michelle, and Alan on the boat. I think it meant a lot to him to see us. He's been a bit homesick. He's almost done though, only 3 more weeks to go.

We got to go out to another island besides Catalina Island. We went to Santa Barbara Island where they have lots and lots of sea lions. It was one of the coolest things to dive with these animals. They were very friendly and playful. They would come up real close to see what we were doing and then flip and swim away as if they wanted us to play.

Lots of lobster were to be found in every crack and hole. Too bad lobster season doesn't start till October.

There was a cave we were able to dive through. It was cool, but a bit eerie too.

As always, we saw a quite a few bat rays. They were pretty big. Probably 3 foot wingspan.

Below is a 19 tip star fish. I haven't every seen one like it

If you look closely you can see the angel shark hiding in the sand. This is one of the many reasons I don't ever stand on the bottom of the sea floor. Not only are there sharks hiding in the sand, but stingrays and halibut.

It was a good trip. I loved having my family there, but I am glad it's over though. It's nice to be back and to sleep in my own bed. It's also nice to not have to worry about divers being stupid. I think if I go again I will go as a regular customer and not as a dive leader assistant. That way I don't have to care who's being stupid.