Christina Clemens, Jim Driggers, Mark Judson, and David Sheh before getting wet.
On Saturday 9, 2023 club members Mark Judson, David Sheh, Christina Clemens, and Jim Driggers dove at Carmel River Beach in Carmel, California. Shore support was provided by Debbie Driggers, and Jim Driggers served as point of contact. This was the first time any of the four members dove the site, but club member Oliver Edwards provided an excellent verbal and written dive briefing to Jim Driggers a few days before the dive and Jim relayed that information to the rest of the divers.
At the start of the day, the skies were overcast, but the morning fog burned off by late morning. Stairs from the street level to the beach were very helpful. Sea conditions were calm and made for easy water entries and exits. Before diving, Jim divided the foursome into two buddy teams in case visibility prevented the foursome from diving together. Underwater visibility varied from 10'-15', so the group was able to stay together. Dive lights definitely helped in locating folks underwater.
There was a decent amount of kelp, mostly bull kelp with some giant kelp (macrocystis pyrifera). The group saw sheep crab, decorator crab, lots of sea stars, purple urchins, sponges, and a few fish and anemones. The rock formations were perhaps the highlight of the dive, and all agreed they planned to return to the site with hopefully better visibility. The first dive lasted about an hour and water temperature was 55 degrees.
Christina and Jim did a second dive, but cut the dive short due to increased surge, reduced visibility of 5'-10', and difficulty getting pass the shallow reef on the right side of the beach.