Deception Pass - Sunday, Feb. 13

[Grateful Diver]

I hope to find a way to make room for everyone who wants to go.

I'll have a plan by Monday, latest ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[ktb]

After thinking about the fact that I leave for Bonaire the following weekend and seeing that there's a ton of interest, I'll back out for now.

But keep me on the radar for next time, Bob!!!

[Grateful Diver]

OK ... I got the whole boat. Right now our crew looks like ...

- Me
- Diver_C
- H2Odoc
- citycatred
- Bric (blackwater)
- gutholmj
- Wylerbear
- ScubaK and Tim

That's nine. I'm trying to talk Phil into allowing 11, so Lynne and Peter can come. Will let you know what he says. If anybody on this list doesn't intend to go, please make sure and let me know so I can fill the spot.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[Norris]

.....

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

[Grateful Diver]

Revised list ...

- Me
- Diver_C
- NORRIS
- H2Odoc
- citycatred
- Bric (blackwater)
- gutholmj
- Wylerbear
- ScubaK and Tim

That's 10 ... boat's full ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[WylerBear]

Thanks for putting this together. Very excited to dive the Pass.

[citycatred]

Yay!!!!

[LCF]

Y'all have a great dive! Maybe we'll make the next one . . .

[Diver_C]

Woo-hoo!!!!
Thanks Bob!!!! You're The Man!!!!

[whatevah]

Y'all have a great dive! Maybe we'll make the next one . . .

If the weather's good, consider diving from your own boat - the Cornet Bay boat launch rocks and it will be all but deserted that day. Or you could walk down the path from the bridge parking lot - it's not that bad if you plan to dive shallow and light (an LP72 or similar perhaps) - maybe even leave the SCUBA gear behind and snorkel it- still heaps to see and a very cool experience.

[Scubak]

Oh MY GOODNESS!!!
I am soo happy to dive this...
Thanks Bob!!! Lets meet up soon so I can pay you for Tim and I!!
Kirsten

[bigsky]

[quote="Geek"]Well, I know which charter to NEVER use..... I vote with my pocket book.[/quote

phil is an excellent captain and runs a fantastic boat
on time, clean, affordable and fun
i am sure it was missed communication
as grateful diver did get the entire boat

if you vote with your pocketbook
vote for phil

[Grateful Diver]

Gotta agree with bigsky ... I've been out on Lu Jac's Quest several times, and will again. He runs a good boat.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[LCF]

Good idea, whatevah . . . I'll have to see if I can scare up a boat tender.

[ktb]

So as someone who has never done this dive (boat or otherwise), could you do the pass any weekend from a live boat or do you still have to pick a good time?

[whatevah]

Good idea, whatevah . . . I'll have to see if I can scare up a boat tender.

Choose someone who won't get flustered when an eddy spins the boat around in its drift and pushes it toward the wall - they might break the key off in the ignition. Ask me how I know :p Maybe I will see you there - we should all cross our fingers for good weather (though it takes a fairly direct east or west wind to disrupt a dive in there).

So as someone who has never done this dive (boat or otherwise), could you do the pass any weekend from a live boat or do you still have to pick a good time?

In general you want the high slack - the end of a flood. This is because the visibility inside the pass is generally pretty poor compared to outside in the strait - when the current reverses the visibility can go from excellent to horrid in just a couple of minutes. It's also because you tend to want to wash in towards the east and then turn and wash back out to the west (particularly if you're doing the shore dive as you need to get back to the entry point in order to make your exit). With that in mind, you generally want daylight hours (I met some ladies who walked down the trail from the bridge to do the shore dive at night but that's more dedication than I possess - mostly because I am spoiled for boating options). Those and the requirement for a weekend really narrow down the possibilities a lot. What people call "Deception Pass" is a big area. Strawberry Island and Urchin Rocks probably still fall under the "Deception Pass" area according to many. Most don't realize that there's a second pass right there - Canoe Pass, and that's an entirely different dive but many lump it in to the "Deception Pass" area. I am pretty sure most of the shore divers spend a majority of their time in the back-eddy west of the bridge stanchion - which is not really in the narrows of the pass itself. But it's a great dive - and if you are confident in dealing with some current and you're careful about staying in the back-eddy, you can probably get a short dive there on almost any slack. If you want to go well into the narrows itself and get a good dive where you can hold your camera steady etc for more than 15 or 20 minutes, you almost certainly need to be more selective about which slack you choose. It's all going to vary from diver to diver. I probably wouldn't bother doing the walk all the way down from the bridge with all the gear if the conditions weren't right for a reasonably long and enjoyable dive. Bob's chosen a good day - about 20 minutes between 1 knot flood and 1 knot ebb. I've been there when there was more like 35 to 40 minutes between 1 knot flood and 1 knot ebb, but those days are very rare - I look ahead years in the tables to find them and plan for them. Most slacks there are going to be much shorter than 20 minutes - I've been there when it was 8 minutes, and while it was good enough to jump in and grab a fish for dinner on the way back to the boat launch after a day of diving, it wouldn't really be worth it as a stand-alone dive with a drive time commitment unless your primary objective was to get "Deception Pass" in your logbook.

I guess the short answer is this: there are many diveworthy slacks there for a capable diver, but if you want to really enjoy the dive it will be well worth your while to wait patiently for the right day. I typically wind up logging three or four dives a year in the narrows of Deception Pass itself - perhaps six or seven in the wider area. Most of the time I just pass (badda-boom) it up to go out across Rosario Strait and explore somewhere different where there's more time to enjoy the dive and often better visibility too.

Hope you all enjoy your day on LuJac's Quest. Make sure you're ready - I mean really really ready - to jump when Phil says jump - if you miss the timing you will be feeling sorry for yourself. If Griffin's on board that day you should give him a hard time - tell him from me that he's a dork and he owes me a Moose Drool at the Brown.

[Blaiz]

talk about late to the party


i'd like to at least sign up for post-dive libations!

[H20doctor]

Im out.. Life gets in the way again... 1 spot open .. Sorry bob

[Grateful Diver]

New list ...

- Me
- Diver_C
- NORRIS
- citycatred
- Bric (blackwater)
- gutholmj
- Wylerbear
- ScubaK and Tim

There is one spot available, if someone wants to claim it ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[kdupreez]

Bob - Im in !!!!!!

I'd love to bring my better half if you get another cancellation.

[Grateful Diver]

New list ...

- Me
- Diver_C
- NORRIS
- citycatred
- Bric (blackwater)
- gutholmj
- Wylerbear
- Koos
- ScubaK and Tim

Boat's full (again).

Folks, since I already sent Phil a deposit, the easiest way to deal with this is for me to pay for the boat, and for you to pay me. Please contact me via PM for contact info if you don't already have it ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[Grateful Diver]

Information for those going on Sunday ...

Meet time is 8 AM at the Skyline Marina in Anacortes. You can find directions here ...

http://www.lujacsquest.com/contact.html

The boat leaves promptly at 8:30 AM ... so give yourself plenty of time to get there. If we miss the window, we miss the dive ... so if you miss the boat, we'll miss you ...

Second dive will probably be Sares Head or Strawberry Island.

See you Sunday ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

[gutholmj]

Is anyone driving from/through Olympia that would like to carpool?

-James

[Norris]

Grrr considering that I am leaving Tuesday for a 5 day dive trip, it seems my wife is requiring me to build up some one on one prior to departure. I am out and this boat will have one more. I can pay whatever if I have left you high and dry Bob, but considering the awesome dive, I assume someone can take my spot. Sigh, this after all the shenanigans with you forgetting to add me to the list ha ha.

[cofford]

Dibs on the open spot, unless it is spoken for...