alki cove 2 sunday aug 31 st

[H20doctor]

Fishtig and I dove cove 2 on sunday afternoon. I have never been to the I beams in the 7 years i have been diving> so joe and i planned a trip to the beams. We geared up and got in and swam out to the diver bouy> once there we dropped down and hit the deck at 50 feet. once there viz was very nice about 30+ and i followed joe down the rope. we made it to the beams after 4 mins of swimming. once on the beams I got about half way and stopped to see how my narc was going to be. at 94 feet things seemed good. I fired up the video and started to tape the dive, joe went down to the end and came back. once back i then swam down to the end with joe and saw the budda and took a shot of my guage that read 104!! ..... heading back to the rope I did feel a massive head blur vision thing, like i had just got spun fast on a merry go round and i got super dizzy???? i stoppped and took 3 slow deep controlled breaths and it went away.... next up we headed shallow to see a rumored larg octo that was supposed to be in the cove.... we arrived at spot number 2 and at 47 feet OMG !!! o my gosh diggity dang .... there was the monster GPO, and there were 2 of them. I shot some video of the beast but my camera ran out of memory , Joe and I were stoked, what a sight to see this huge large creature resting and we were able to visit and not disturb this giant of the ocean..... there were crab pieces scattered all over from prev ,meals and the dens were very obvious. I have never had such good vis at the cove 2 and we were both amazed at how spectacular this dive was...

[H20doctor]

[Phineas Gage]

Yeah, that octo is a beastie, isn't it?
My son and I did the same dive early Labor Day morning, right around sunrise. Went down the buoy chain, then followed the trail to the I-Beams, then back to the other trail to see if the octo that's tucked way back was still there. When we arrived it was....and whoa!!! There's another one, and it's BIG.

We must have hovered there for 10 minutes or so, just watching it watch us. Very cool. Everyone now and again it would snake an arm out in our direction as if it was contemplating touching us, but then changing it's mind at the last minute.

Our original plan was to do Cove 3 on a second tank, but we changed our plans and went back to visit the octo after our surface interval and get some pictures. After that visit we were just cruising around and came across another smaller octo in the open being harassed by a kelp greenling. Everytime the little (about the size of a fist) octo would jet to a new spot the greenling would dart over towards it like a guard dog.

Great dive! And to think we get to see stuff like that at a dive site that's only a 20 minute drive from our house.

[Dusty2]

Good show Doc, 103 feet and 2000 lbs left seems just about right. The dizzyness would concern me a little. I've never heard of narcing making you dizzy like that. Maybe you just weren't breathing deep enough because of the excitement or just the oppisite, hyperventilating. Were you on Nitrox?

[dsteding]

The dizzyness would concern me a little. I've never heard of narcing making you dizzy like that.

Sounds like a little CO2 buildup, and it sounds like it was handled perfectly.

GPO back in Cove 2, it has been a while since I've seen one there. Vis sounds like it was good too . . . nice report.

[H20doctor]

I dive on a LP 95 faber... And the dizzy thing has happened before prev at the muk. I don't know what it is cause my normal narc is massive anxiety and panic.. LOL ... Some people call it vertigo like your head spins inside like you got spun fast. I was breathing slow and deep , but sometimes I have a tendency to hold my breath when fooling with my camera. Other than that it was a great dive . I will post the video of the I beams later this week

[Ken G]

GPO back in Cove 2, it has been a while since I've seen one there. Vis sounds like it was good too . . . nice report.

Howard and I found two good sized GPO there about a week ago. Since I have found a few smaller ones and stubby squid as well. Cove 2 seems to be full of life lately.

[dsteding]

but sometimes I have a tendency to hold my breath when fooling with my camera. Other than that it was a great dive .

Holding your breath may be leading to CO2 not being released in your exhaled breaths-which could lead to dizziness, but I'm wondering if the good diving doctor Lynne will speak up . . .

[spatman]

sometimes I have a tendency to hold my breath when fooling with my camera.

i do that too, and at depth it causes a bit of CO2 loading. i get a little light-headed, but i mostly notice that my heart rate speeds up a bit and my breaths don't seem as satisfying. this has happened to me twice and i now know to breathe deeply until it passes. i also know to be more mindful of keeping my breathing regular in the first place.

[H20doctor]

The dizzy thing feels like someone spun ya around, like you lost equaliberium in your fluid in your ears..... Ever had that ? like vertigo.... I have had it happen to me only on another dive but i wasnt deep, i was fooling around and inverting my feet straight up and being upside down looking at my dive partner.. , its a very advanced diver move and i paid $250.00 from a dive master to learn it .. Ha Ha Ha .... i crack myself up! But if anyone has dove the cove since sunday and snapped a picture of the GPO monster please post it here ...