Great dive today with the rebreather and the newly created P2 DPV (6 PTB). Scootered to sunken boat and found not one, but TWO octos. Then scootered to 737 wall pipeline side and swam the rubble. Found another small octo before heading back to the pipeline and home. Awesome dive!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoToday's dive featured my newly crafted P2 - I added the old (now empty) battery hull to the P1 and also included a set of two power tool batteries in series configuration. I weighed all the old battery components and then added ballast to the P2 hull to equalize the old weight. Testing in the home outside bathtub showed it dialed in nicely. With 15Ah battery (up from 10Ah) and the extra length, the P2 was an awesome performer underwater. Best of all, the long dive from Light house to 737 wall and back via pipeline didn't tax the batteries much at all, even on higher speeds. Awesome dive. Plus we saw a couple of octos as well.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoAfter the last failed open circuit dive attempt at Maple Bay, I bubble checked the manifolds on the doubles and found serious leakage. I pulled the tanks apart and replace the manifold o-rings, then re-tested to ensure they held. With the doubles again full, we headed out along the pipeline to where we normally turn off across the rocks to get to the airplane. Today we just cruised the general area on both sides of the pipeline. We also tied off my big reel and went to the surface to see where exactly we leave the pipe - it's a very, very long way from the plane. Overall a pretty good dive. Also, time change today so even better!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoThe full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus 737 VideoToday we attempted to dive Maple Bay, but my manifold had been leaking and so I only had 1500psi back gas. Worse, Meredith's tanks weren't filled by the dive shop in spite of them assuring her they were, and only had 600psi gas! We ended up going for an extended coffee break in Duncan instead.
Dove with Phil & Nancy in somewhat crappy visibility to the 737 airplane, following the pipeline. We found it and I had a nice tour of the plane, then we all headed back along the wall to find the pipeline and back to the boat ramp. Excellent dive except for the less than stellar vis. I did take my Salvo HID light again and it turned out to be the brilliant laser beam I remembered.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus 737 VideoVERY LONG DIVE (125min)! Scootered to lighthouse on island, then due N to plane wall. Meredith surfaced with reel and found buoy left about 4 min on scooter. Scootered to silver tank and then N to plane. Had fun on and in 737, then headed back to wall and S to home. Came shallow on far side of lighthouse island but was able to get back to the dock with P1 today. Awesome dive!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus 737 VideoThe full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus octo VideoA very long dive today to the 737 airplane with side trips to a sunken boat or two and other amusements. Scootered straight bearing from the lighthouse to the plane wall and found the yellow tank. Went down and eventually found the airplane and had a nice time swimming around and through it. Then a long scooter home but ended up at the far end of the beach bay where my P1 died and I had to swim back to the ramp, which took about 20 min and made the dive even longer. Still, an awesome dive!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus 737 VideoWe headed out to find the 737 airplane again in very windy and wavey conditions, and again we missed the plane. We did swim along the wall and found the octo den (no big guy) and a wolf eel. Except for the tumbling exit (big waves), it was a great dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus Octo VideoWe headed out to find the 737 airplane again, but vis was just poor enough that we never did find it. Besides, while looking we came upon a huge (150lb est) octo so spent the rest of the dive taking photos and videos of him. Awesome dive though!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus Octo VideoReally great dive at Tyee today. We came here because vis reports for Chemainus indicated horrible conditions. Here it was excellnt below 30ft and not that bad above. There was a definite thermocline at 40ft that was neat to watch. Overall a great dive, even at very low tide.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Tyee Wolf Eel VIdeo
Tyee Octo VideoExcellent swimming dive today at Tyee. It was super low tide as we went in but not too difficult thanks to all the rock moving on the path. Visiblity was awesome the whole dive except after tide change near the end, when top 30ft started to get poor. Overall another awesome dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Tyee VideoA nice long swimming dive today at Chemainus. Visiblity in the shallows was very good, and not too bad deeper. Overall a great dive!
The gopro got a short video of a ruby octo in a small den, but after I stopped the video the gopro died - the red light on front came on and stayed on, and nothing would make the camera turn on after. Even at home I had to remove the battery and reinstall it to get it to work again. For some reason the battery was almost dead at that point as well (6%) which was very odd as the battery had been fully charged before the dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoAnother great scooter dive to the sunken 737 airplane off Chemainus Kinsman's Park. Visibility wasn't as good as last week, but we still managed to make the airplane with little difficulty. After a brief tour of the plane we headed home, following the large sewage pipe back to shore. Overall a very good dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus 737 VideoFINALLY!!! After years wanting to see the 737 airplane that Chemainus is famous for, we (Phil, Nancy, Meredith and I) scootered out from the Kinsman boat ramp to the sunken 737. It was very, very low tide today so we started from the mud flats in front of the boat ramp, then headed over to the lighthouse island to take a bearing on the plane. Then off on our scooters (P1, Gavin & two Blacktips) to the very deep wall and then the airplane. It was fantastic to finally reach the airplane and see it.
We swam around the plane to get a feel for it, then swam in and through the hull. It's very accessible. Meredith and I went into the cockpit for some photos. We also swam along the wing and generally had a great time. Finally we headed back on the same bearing. At about halfway we cut left to find the giant sewer pipe and scootered along it until we got back to shore. Overall an awesome dive!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus 737 VideoGreat long swimming dive at Chemainus today. We managed to park in the shade so not so bad gearing up except for the long walk to the very choppy water due to wind. Excellent visibility most of the dive and very warm water (55 at depth, 68 on dock1 and 70 in the shallows). Overall a great long dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoVery good swimming dive today, required due to very, very low tides. Swam to dock 1, then to the far right deep wall, then back to dock 2 before following the line back to dock 1 and then home.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoDecent dive today. Visibility in the shallows was great, but not so much at depth. Scootered to dock 1, then the far right wall, then back to dock 2 and then home. Either we missed dock 2 and hit dock 3, or our line is gone from dock 2 to 1. Once back at the ramp we scootered around the shallows to the right for a while. Overall a good dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus Video A
Chemainus Video BVery very low tide today (totally off the ramp) with decent visibility in the shallows and OK visibility deeper. Scootered to dock 1, then right deep wall, then back across to left deep wall before heading back to dock 1 and on top, then home. Overall a very good long dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus Video A
Chemainus Video BAnother awesome dive today with the rebreather and scooters. Visitility in the shallows was awesome, but below 30ft it was pretty poor. We scootered to the far right wall and found the octo again, then back to the small wall and swam along the top to take advantage of the great shallow vis. We parked the scooters at the line to dock 1, and swam to the end of the wall and back before gathering the scooters and heading ot dock 1 then home. Overall a great long dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus Video h8
Chemainus Video r50Really crappy vis today (less than 2ft most of the dive) so scooters had to be stowed almost from the start. Swam to dock 1 and around it then home. Still managed to get 89 minutes! Getting out my 6in HP hose from the bailout blew - 4 bit slices and fizzing like crazy. I'll need another.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Another awesome dive today with the rebreather and scooters. Repeat of last week to the far right wall and lots of photos of octo, then quick tour of backside of the reef, then back to octo. Once done scootered the small wall back to the leaning log and there we turned for home. Raining a lot on exit.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus Video h8
Chemainus Video r50Excellent dive today; another long one with rebreather and adding scooters. Went to far right deep wall and took lots of octo photos plus some video before exploring the back side and then heading over to dock 2, then 1 and home.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus Video h8
Chemainus Video r50Busy day on land today but awesome visibility underwater at 40+ft. After some initial gear issues with the Prism we headed to dock 1, then the small wall and over to the right deep wall. Heard the ferry overhead again today. Then back to dock 2, over to 1 and on top, then back home. A really nice VERY long swim at 130min!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoGood dive today. Swam the wall and then the bottle field. Decent vis. Terrible parking with lot entry all torn up.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Cloudy and cool on land, cold underwater today. Visibility in the shallows was crummy but not impossible, and opened up below 30ft. Swam over to grandpa's den and found the two reported wolf eels - grandpa (yay!) and a female. Took lots of photos and video of the two wolfies, then headed back to the cut and over to the right side for a while. Overall an awesome dive!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Tyee VideoToday we dove Maple Bay as we'd not been here in quite a while. As a reward for the road closures and terrible traffic, we got decent surface weather and awesome underwater visibility. It was easily 30ft today - you could look up and see the entire wall at any point in the dive. Did some bottle scrounging and managed to find a large ruby octo inside one bottle. Fun and bites ensued as the bottle was emptied after the dive. Overall an awesome dive!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Maple Bay VideoAnother scooter dive with perhaps even worse visibily than last week! We made it to dock 1, then the small wall and over to the left deep wall but really not much to see. Very few photos and no video. Still nice to get wet.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Crummy visibility underwater today. Shallows were zero vis, and depth maybe 3-5ft. We managed to scooter to dock 1 and then on to the small wall, going right to the deeper wall where we swam on the rocks for a bit. Then back to dock 1, over to 2 and around before heading back to 1 and home. Tide was super-super low back at the ramp, and wind and waves made exit 'not fun'. Still a good dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Once again decent visibility underwater. Scootered to right deep wall and again surveyed using big reel. Scootered back along back side of small wall to log, then along small wall back to line, dock 1 and home. P1 died in the shallows just before the ramp with at least one suspect poor battery Still a great dive. Overall a very good dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Warm on land, good visibility underwater. Scootered to right deep wall then surveyed using big reel. Scootered back to dock 2, then 1 then home. Overall a very good dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoA good day to dive Tyee. Weather cloudy but fine. Visibility was surprisingly good. Some crud in water that affected photos and video but still could see 20+ feet for navigation. Overall a very good dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Tyee VideoDecent day on land, and looked nice in the shallows. However below 20ft it was cloudy and dark, with 3-5ft visibility everywhere. Scootered to dock 1 and the wall, then the right deep wall before returning along the small wall to the left deep wall. Then back to 1 and home. Nice to get wet.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoBright and sunny and warm on shore; vis not too bad underwater except first 20ft which was crap. Overall a great dive exploring the right deep wall and then docks 2 and 1.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoIt was nice to be back on the rebreather again today. We had a nice long dive scootering to the left deep wall and then back to the right deep wall before heading to dock 2 and then home via dock 1. Overall a great dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Horrible land weather (cold, heavy rain, some snow) and not great underwater visibility today. Scootered the small wall and all four dry docks. Still nice to get wet.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
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Chemainus VideoVery good dive today, even though my gopro case flooded again due to extruded seal. Fortunately the gopro hero 8 is waterproof to 30ft so water in the case is an irritant, not a catastrophe. Otherwise a really nice dive today. It didn't seem as cold in the water either.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
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Chemainus VideoIt was a cool cloudy day today at Chemainus. After gearing up I headed out to dock 1 then the small wall, then the deep wall. There was no octo in the den today, so I swam along the deep wall before scootering back. I missed the small wall and ended up scootering back along the deep side, eventually connecting to the small wall right at the tire to dock 2. I scootered dock 2 and 3, then the boom boat before heading to the back of dock 4 and up the crack 'o doom, around the top and back down the crack and over to 2. Then back to 1 and home. Overall a nice dive, if cold underwater.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoThe full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoAnother nice day, sunny but cold and some wind. Headed to wolfie who is still under the weather, then back to the right wall. Saw a small Puget Sound king crab. Nice dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Tyee Video
Tyee Puget Sound King Crab VideoIt was a warmer day and the projected rains held off. After gearing up we headed out for a nice long scooter dive seeing the deep wall and all four docks. My scooter died right at the end of the dive, which turned out to be one battery possibly going bad. Otherwise an excellent dive!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoA swimming dive today. Not a bad day, but wolfie looked under the weather.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Tyee VideoIt was extremely cold (-2C) today with snowfall during the past week. We scootered all four dry docks and the boom boat as well as swimming the small reef after heading off the back of dock 2. Overall a nice, if cold dive.
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Chemainus VideoIt was cold and rainy today, but the tide was high and waves acceptable. We used scooters to go see newer grandpa and then head to dolphin and saw the small octo as well as a HUGE Puget Sound King Crab! Awesome sight. Newer grandpa was skittish today with me - perhaps he doesn't like the rebreather hoses. Every time I turned my head he'd come out, and as soon as I looked back he'd slide back into his den. The king crab was easily 12" across the shell and really lovely. On the way back I was buzzed by a sleek seal who eyed me but didn't stick around. Overall an awesome first dive of 2024!
The full set of photos for my 2024 dives using the Canon R50 & Nauticam NA-R50 photos can be viewed here.
Tyee Video