Diving on Scubatyme with the Red Devil Canadians

As anticipated, Gary Smith, the owner and operator of Red Devil Scuba in Chatham, Ontario, and his intrepid group of divers arrived yesterday morning. With him were David Ebare, Louie Jerome and Bryan Merchant, each of whom had enjoyed Fort Lauderdale in previous years. We had tentatively planned to make a shore dive, but conditions were not obliging and I really don't think any of the group truly appreciates the wonder of our first reef line in merely 25 feet of water. So they made themselves at home by the pool and generally unwound from their flight.  Some of them worked on gear and Bryan Merchant set up a clever suspender system for his weight belt.

In the morning, they piled in their van and followed me up Federal Highway to Sands Harbor Marina in Pompano Beach for our first dives of this trip.  I had augmented our group with five other divers:  Darryn Timm, a recent student, and his friends Teri Smith and Michael Wilson; Leo Paez, a divemaster candidate and frequent dive buddy; and Dmitry Titov, a new dive buddy and possible student of mine.  We were ten in all and eager to board Scubatyme and head to sea.

Doug Barkley (the videographer) was the divemaster for our trip, but had reserved the front of the boat for some divers who failed to show. The 10 of us got stuck on the stern, except I stowed my camera under the seats up front. Then I put my camera together and brought it to the stern.  I put the camera in the camera bucket where I thought it would be safe and heard a gurgling sound. The dome port had come off, flooding the camera and housing.  I quickly got the camera out of the bucket, dried everything off as best I could and put it in Enzo's van while we dived. Unfortunately, nothing the camera would not turn on the next day. I think I have destroyed yet another camera.  Worse, I got no pictures of the dives today and will get none of the dives scheduled for Sunday or Monday.

As we geared up on our way up the Intercoastal Waterway to the inlet, Bryan discovered that he had a short fill tank with only 2,600 psi in it.  I swapped tanks with him. Our first dive was on the Ancient Mariner, formerly the Coast Guard Cutter Nemisis, which sits in about 70 feet of water.  The water was a pleasant 84 degrees and visibility was good. I swam around the wreck, then headed off to look for the tug, the Berry Patch off to the SE. I got out of sight of the Mariner but had not yet recognized the Berry Patch and decided to head back while I still could.  Leo was to swim with and act as divemaster for Darryn, Teri, Michael and Dmitry, but mostly he swam around and took pictures. If I had a camera, I might have, too. I was the 3rd diver in the water and the last one up, but I also made a 5 minute safety stop. Cheap insurance.

On the boat, Dmitry had problems with an o-ring during his surface interval. Doug helped him out. Leo missed the whole episode. The dive was less a DM training dive and more a vacation. Dive time was only 46 minutes, but I used only 1,941 psi.  My SAC rate was 15.43 psi/minute and the RMV was 0.4 ft3/minute,  

Our second dive was a drift dive over Abbey Too reef, which runs parallel to the beach and not far from the Mariner. There is a 10 foot ledge on the West side of the reef and the depth was 55 feet to the sand and about 45 feet on top. Captain Oliver pushed us on our surface interval and I had too large a nitrogen load about 10 minutes into the dive, so I spent a lot of time at about 30 - 25 feet just so I could stay in the water for the whole dive.  Lots of fish on the reef.  Gary spotted a small baby eel about 7 inches long.  Other divers spotted a Green Sea Turtle. Nice dive and a fairly strong current.   Dive Time was 67 minutes; my SAC rate was 15.93 psi/minute and my RMV went up a hair to 0.41 ft3/minute.  

Dimitry and I dive the Clipper Jacks

Dmitry Titov came over to dive with me this morning. He needed to borrow a regulator, but had everything else.  We went to the South Beach lot, then swam on the surface out to the Jacks to descend.

I took my camera and got this shot of a small school of Bar Jacks just above the Wall of Jacks.








I also got this shot of a Blue Parrotfish.

Dimitry did well in the water, but he still wants to stand vertically rather than swim horizontally.  He also waives his arms a fair amount, suggesting that he has not really learned to breathe well.  But he was comfortable in the water and cautious.  He didn't band into the reef or the Jacks.  

I got lots of shots, including the pair of Christmas Tree Worms,

 this Initial Phase Striped Parrotfish,

this Midnight Parrotfish

this Ocean Surgeonfish,

this Redband Parrotfish,















and this Yellow Snapper.


Dimitry went through his tank fairly rapidly, but our dive time was 92 minutes, which is good for a fellow with only 15 dives in his log. I invited Dimitry to join us on Scubatyme on Saturday.

My SAC rate was 18.54 psi/minute; and my RMV was 0.48 ft3/minute.

Darryn Timm, Luis and I dive the Clipper Jacks

Chad was apparently concerned about his ears and skipped the dives today. Darryn came to the apartment a bit before 7:00 am and we headed to the beach.  We geared up and swam out to the reef, but could not find the Jacks.  So we make the Alternate Air Source, CESA and buddy breathing ascents from 27 feet of water. Darryn did well.  We spent the balance of the dive swimming North then South looking for the Jacks, but we never found them.  

Dive Tme was 80 minutes; RMV was .4 ft3/minute.

Luis was in the lot waiting for us when we got back. We took a little bit of a break, geared up and got in the water with our cameras.  We swam on the surface to the single Jack in line with the Firehouse. The Jacks were to the North a bit.  We swam long the line of the Jacks taking pictures.  Got several shots of the Hawksbill Sea Turtle above and a few of the little nurse Shark to the right.

 Got several shots of a Bicolor Damselfish,

 an Intermediate Blue Tang still showing traces of the yellow of its Juvenile state,

 a resting Spotted Goatfish being cleaned by a Neon Goby,

a Scrawled Cowfish,

 a Sharptail Eel,

a Largemouth Grunt,

and the first Tobaccofish I have ever seen anywhere.



Darryn was excited and ran through his air faster than usual.  Dive Time was 103 minutes; RMV was 0.35 ft3/minute.

Darryn Timm, Chad Scott and I dive the Algae Patch and Clipper Jacks off Tower 2

Luis was at the beach when we got there.  Leo came 10 minutes later.  We geared up and then Leo locked his keys in his car.  Spent some time trying to contact his wife to drive up from Miami with a spare set of keys.  Then we got in the water.  We did not follow blonde surfer dude's rule that divers had to swim on the surface until they were outside the buoys.  Luis and Leo continued to swim towards the Jacks, but Chad, Darryn and I dropped down in about 10 feet of water and went slowly out onto the algae patch.  Chad had some trouble equalizing, but worked through it. Darryn had good buoyancy control except when he was performing skills and would focus on the skill instead of his breathing.  Chad was not so good with his buoyancy, but he had moments when it seemed like he got it.  We swam out to the second tier of the three tiered reef and turned as Chad hit 1500 psi.  Darryn was at 1800 psi and I had 2300 psi.  Dive Time was 68 minutes.  My RMV was a sad 0.46 ft3/minute.


During the surface interval we went over the table problems and the guys took their final exams.  Pattie Conrad joined us.  Leo acted as the dive leader, gave the briefing and lead us out on the surface about as far as we swam on the first dive. Pattie was getting tired and we went down a little earlier than we might have, otherwise, but we found several single Jacks then got to sand.  I incorrectly decided to head South.  Chad had trouble getting equalized and Leo took him back to the beach.  I finally decided the Jacks were not South of where we had been and Pattie, Darryn and I headed North.


We passed two single Jacks in a line and I was having second thoughts, but we soon came to the Jacks.  We got on the South Side and headed East to the end, then came back to the Western end of the Jacks.











Along the way, we found a small school of Doctorfish on the Jack, one of whom was carrying a Cymothoid Isopod.














 Got this shot of an Ocean Surgeonfish.

A Porkfish.

A Sand Diver.















A Smooth Trunkfish.

 

and a Trumpetfish.


After touring the Jacks, we surfaced to see if we could find Leo's flag, but we could not.  In that few minutes on the surface, however, we drifted far enough North that we could no longer see the Jacks.  This time, I knew they were there and we quickly found them, but it was amazing how quickly we lost them.


We swam back in to the beach and Leo and Chad were waiting for us by the truck.  Leo's wife had not arrived with the spare key.  Pattie needed to go and I took Darryn and Chad to fill tanks.  We later met Leo at the Bridge and he worked with the guys on the snorkel skills and the regulator and mask clearing skills from the first confined water dive.

Dive Time was 96 minutes; my SAC rate was 17.66 psi/minute and my RMV was 0.46 ft3/minute.

Jack, Leo and I dive the Ledge of Turtles

Although DOT has shut down most of the parking spots North of Sunrise, there are 5 spots still available behind Tower 20. Jack and I got to the beach and there was only 1 car parked near the beach entrance.  We parked behind them.  I texted Leo regarding to let him know where we were. We started to gear up and get in the water.  Between the darkness and the poor visibility, I could not see the bottom from the surface.  We descended where I thought the Rock Pile would be, but it wasn't and we didn't find it swimming North.  I went up and saw that we were way North, and we went back down and swam South.  This time, we found the Rock Pile.  From there, we headed up the reef at 120 degrees.  I spotted the large round coral head that sits SW of Turtle Rock, and we headed up to the Large Rock and the Turtle Rock, then to the coral head and then to the Ledge.  No turtles.  Lots of fish.

Jack and I hung out on the Ledge with the fish and I took pictures.  Got this shot of a Flamefish.

 This French Grunt

 This Redband Parrotfish,

This Rock Hind

This shot of four Shortfin Sweepers

 and this shot of a Spanish Grunt.






Jack did well on his air usage, considering this was his 5th dive.  Dive time was 122 minutes; my SAC rate was 14.35 psi/minute; and my RMV was 0.37 ft3/minute.

Leo was on the beach to meet us as we got out.  He was eager to make a dive.  I would have been happy to stop at one, but Jack seemed interested, too, so we geared up and made a second dive.  I did much better at finding the Rock Pile this time and headed up the reef to the Large Rock and the Turtle Rock.  Then to the Ledge.  Leo and I spent some time taking photos, then we headed over to Shark's Rock and Shark's Rocks East where we got a few pictures, including this Grouper looking fish I can't otherwise identify.

 Also got this shot of a Yellowhead Wrasse,

and this shot of a Yellowline Arrow Crab.









Then we headed back to the Ledge.



 I went South from the Ledge and found some Caribbean Reef Squid and got some pictures, including this shot.

Then I looked up and Leo and Jack were gone.  I had the flag, so I wasn't sure how I could find them, but I headed for the Large Rock and they were there.  We went down the reef together.  Nice dive and I did a little better on air.

Dive time was 130 minutes;  my SAC rate was 13.83 psi/minute; my RMV was 0.36 ft3/minute.

Jack Holts final two open water dives on the Clipper Jacks

Luis got to the beach before Jack and I did, but we were not far behind.  We all geared up and got in the water. Surf was rougher than yesterday.  Visibility was terrible over the sand and early in the algae patch, but by the time we got to the 3-tiered reef, it was looking pretty good.  We had trouble finding the Jacks.  No single jacks in sight. We finally just went down. Jack and I swam North and Luis swam South.  The Jacks were to the North, but we were well along the line of Jacks when we found them. We continued on to 25 ft section, and then Luis held the line while Jack and I did the alternate air source ascent and a CESA.  We were a bit fast on the CESA. Anyway, we made the tour of the Jacks and then headed back to the beach.

Luis took his camera and got several good shots, including this shot a of a small school of Atlantic Spadefish.

 This shot of a small flounder of some kind.

This shot of a Hogfish.

 This shot of a Porcupinefish.

 This shot of a Spotted Trunkfish.

 This shot of a Trumpetfish.

and this shot of a Yellow Sand Ray.

You can see ore of Luis's work at Luis Monroy Photography.




Dive Time was 121 minutes; RMV of 0.32 ft3/minute and 795 psi still in the tank when I surfaced.  Not bad for Jack's 3rd open water dive.

Luis left after the first dive and Jack and I went over the Table problems, then Jack took and passed his Final Exam during our surface interval. We geared up and got in the water for his 4th and final dive. I did not take the camera as Luis made only the one dive with us.  We descended in 16 feet of water and headed out to the SE.  Got into 22 feet and turned North.  Bumped into the 3-tiered reef line, but did not see the Jacks.  headed back to the beach.  Dive Time of 94 minutes; RMV of 0.31 ft3/minute and almost 1500 psi left in the tank.  

Jack Holt's Open Water dives on the Clipper Jacks

Jack came to the apartment a little before 7:30 am and we loaded up and headed for the shop to fill tanks.  The shop wasn't open yet, so we started reviewing Chapter 4 & 5 while we waited.  Hugh came at 8:00 am and we filled tanks, then headed for the beach. Nice morning.  We geared up and got in the water.  We moved slowly through the algae patch and I stopped on the sand to go through the skills. Jack performed each skill satisfactorily, then we headed East to the reef, but did not get all the way to the Jacks.  By the time we actually got out of the water and back to the truck, it was too late to make a second dive.  Leo was meeting us on the beach with the father/daughter DSD pair, so while we waited for them, Jack and I went over the decompression tables some more, including working out the first two of the six extra problems. Dive Time was 68 minutes.  My SAC rate was 17.48 psi/minute and my RMV was 0.46 ft3/minute.

When Leo got to the lot, the DSD students were with him.  We all geared up and walked out to the beach, but it quickly turned into a disaster.  There was some surf and the daughter panicked in the water.  She had trouble getting her fins on and in fact lost a fin.  I looked for a few moments, but visibility was terrible and she was still upset, so we got out and made our way back to the truck with the help of some guys who were just on the beach. Leo stayed and actually found the fin, but gutted the father's BCD.  The father/'daughter took Leo's car back to my apartment and picked up their own car.  Leo, Jack and I swam out to and dove the Jacks.  We saw lots of fish, but nothing really exciting. Neither Leo nor I took a camera as we had students, so I have no pictures to post.  I swam behind Jack and he seldom kicked.  He seemed content to use his arms to swim. Still, he did well on air and was pretty good on his buoyancy. Dive Time was 120 minutes, but could have gone another 30 minutes easily.  My SAC rate was 12.18 psi/minute and my RMV was 0.31 ft3/minute.

Leo and I dive the Jacks

I woke up to walk the dog and re-read Leo's email.  I sent him an email saying that I would get in the water at 7:30 am at the Clipper.  Actually, I got to the beach around 7:00 am and waited to see if Leo would show up.  He did.  We geared up and made the surface swim out to the Jacks.  There were Moon Jellies in the water, like yesterday, so we descended a little early to avoid them.  We found the Jacks, nonetheless, had a pleasant dive swimming along them.

 Got a nice shot of an Atlantic Spadefish.

Got this shot of a Bluestriped Grunt.

Got a couple of nice shot of a Cero.

Gray Snapper

 Initial Phase Queen Parrotfish

Juvenile Stoplight Parrotfish.








As we turned the dive and left the Jacks, I looked for my compass and did not have it.  I couldn't remember if I had put it on.  Really.  So I followed Leo in.  Dive Time was 113 minutes;  RMV was 0.4 ft3/minute.

Leo wanted to make a second dive, so I agreed, but we would not make the surface swim to the Jacks.  We descended in the algae patch just East of the swim buoy and made our way slowly to the East.  Must have gotten set to the North because at around 75 minutes we approached the Jacks from the North.  We headed East along the Jacks and then over the sand to the beach.

Got some nice shots of a Midnight Parrotfish.

Followed a Nurse Shark along the Jacks, then he turned and came back and I got this shot.

 Queen Parrotfish

Love the decoration around the eye of this Sharpnose Puffer.

White spotted Filefish


Dive time was 140 minutes; RMV was 0.33 ft3/minute.