Northwest Dive Club

Hi,

I was just wondering what is your favorite dive location in pacific northwest and why?

Fresh water or ocean I don't care.

Also where do you dive all year long??

Thanks in advance

Ocean favorite so far would be.......hmmm...Day Island Wall, probably Salter's Point as a second... but I've only dove it twice.

Freshwater favorite would be American Lake since it's the only freshwater I've dove in the pnw and I found a sweet camera and necklace during the dive.

Diving all year long= Les Davis..... always :p

Port Townsend! Of course no one here is aware of that.
Reason, More critters than anywhere else I dive.

Is Browning Pass in the PNW?

Well, there are a lot of things that go into picking a favorite dive site.

Some sites are breathtaking, but are rarely accessible because of distance or required conditions. Waterman's Wall, Davidson Rock, Long Island Wall, and Whale Rocks are fantastic places I've dived, but I wouldn't call any of them my favorite, because I can dive them so rarely.

Other sites are nice because they are shallow and accessible, or easy to park, or have great facilities. Cove 2 at Alki, Edmonds Underwater Park and the Alki Pipeline are three that come to mind.

Some sites are just reliably rich in interesting sea life. Cove 2 at Alki and Redondo beach at night are like that.

But if I had to pick one favorite dive site, it would be Cove 2. It's easy to get to, almost always has parking, has bathrooms, a shower, and food on site. Except for very, very lows, tides don't matter, and there's never enough current there to matter. It's easy to get to the water, navigation is simple, and I've seen almost everything I have seen in the Sound at Cove 2 at some time or another. I saw my first GPO out in the open at Cove 2, and my only six gill shark. I saw a hagfish, and a ribbon worm, and a snailfish there. I've seen more octopuses than you can count, and gunnels, and Red Irish Lords . . . I mean, there isn't much you can't see at Cove 2, if you dive there enough. Yes, it's silty, and yes, the viz is sometimes low, and yes, weekends can be a zoo with classes. For almost every parameters of a dive site, you can pick someplace else that beats it . . . but nothing beats it in aggregate, I think.

Wow good info. One question comes to my mind is, what is a "wall" ? Is it some type of a barrier??

Keystone but at times langley tire reef. One rare dive I recall was with Ross when I dragged him around the jetty end, but when we arrived it was so Erie and mysterious we decided to leave.

Acquatic wrote:Wow good info. One question comes to my mind is, what is a "wall" ? Is it some type of a barrier??

Imagine a cliff only underwater

Redondo. It's less than half an hour from me, isn't current sensitive, plenty of parking (usually), easy access to the water, and there are countless ways you can dive it. But most important, Redondo delivers the critters. It's like a mini-ecosystem in its own right, and I have yet to go there and be disappointed.

I was watching some reef diving videos on u-tube and was wondering do we have any good reefs with good visibility here in pnw? I am sure it would not be that great like the tropics but still.

Acquatic wrote:I was watching some reef diving videos on u-tube and was wondering do we have any good reefs with good visibility here in pnw? I am sure it would not be that great like the tropics but still.

Carefull. Those are fightin' words. For blow you away Reefs I recomend Deception Pass & Posession Point Ferry. Both are very advanced dives though so dont just go jump in any old time. Keystone is almost always breathtaking, particularly under the pilings.
I've been to the tropics & agree is is beautifull but if I had limited vacation money & could spend 3 days diving there or 2 weeks here, I'd take the local dive happily. My personal cold record is -4 degrees ambient & was diving at keystone. The water felt like a bath after the cold air. No way I would let the weather keep me from diving. I consider the winter "priveledged beach access" for divers.
The cold vs. hot argument will go on forever but I will tell you that I can always put more on to stay warm but there is only so much I can take off. Dont even get me started on what it's like to huff the weight of the gear in hot temps(especially in a dry suit)
MJ

We've got reefs here that would put many tropical locations to shame. Let's start out by defining what we're talking about when we say PNW ... that includes Puget Sound, the Straits, Neah Bay, the San Juan and Gulf Islands, Vancouver Island, and the Sunshine coast.

Among my favorite spots would be Port Hardy ... geez, just pick a wall ... any wall. Nootka Sound ... Mozino Point is an incredible dive site, and last time up my buddies all liked Boulder Alley even better. Barkley Sound ... Renate's Reef and the wreck of the Vanlene are memorable ... and a bunch of other spots ain't shabby either. Quadra Island ... Copper Cliffs, Row and Be Damned, April Point ... these are just some of the incredible walls to visit. Sechelt Inlet ... Tzoonie Narrows is one of my favorites ... as is Dodd's Narrows in Nanaimo and Race Rocks in Victoria. San Juans ... Davidson Rocks, Strawberry Island, Sares Head, and Turn Point are outstanding sites. Neah Bay ... I have yet to make it to the premier dive site (Duncan Rock) ... but Slant Rock and Wadaah Island Fingers are some pretty outstanding places to dive. And 15 miles east, Sekiu Jetty is a fantastic place to go spend a relaxing 90 minutes poking around shallow boulders just covered in life. In the Whidbey/Anacortes area ... Keystone Jetty and Skyline are outstanding when the tides are right. And for some OMG fun, head out to Possession Pt. Ferry.

Closer to home ... Day Island Wall and Keystone never disappoint. You go there for octos and wolfies, but often the thing you remember most is finding some little lumpsucker or some other small critter that just made the dive something special.

But probably my overall favorite ... just because it's 5 minutes from my home and I practically know all the critters who live there ... would be Redondo. I spend more time there than anywhere ... it's become my new "office". Cove II also deserves recognition as the place where I've seen more "firsts" and had more special moments than just about anywhere.

How can I pick just one favorite. That's kinda like the Christmas Party lunch I had today ... 20 main dishes and 12 desserts ... how can you pick just one and say it's the one you like the best ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I'm a very fortunate woman, because I get to travel a lot and dive a lot of places. And the last couple of years, every time we've come home from a warm water vacation (that isn't cave diving), I've looked at Peter and said, "You know, when it comes down to it, I'd rather dive cold water." What people don't realize is that the cold, with its dissolved oxygen, supports an enormous amount of life. When you go to the tropics, you miss the echinoderms, the crustaceans, a lot of the molluscs, and the sessile invertebrates like the sponges and anemones that grow here in such profusion that they are sometimes growing on top of one another.

You will almost never seen 100 feet of viz in Puget Sound, although I've seen it close. For that kind of viz, you really need to get away from all the rivers that dump in here -- you will see clear water more commonly north of the Fraser river. But aside from heavy storm season in winter, and the spring/early summer algae blooms, the viz here is generally good enough to see a lot and to appreciate the density of life that comes with all the plankton.

Wow dieseldude, bob and LCF, those are a lot of interesting sites you guys described. Pls forgive my ignorance ad I am still learning

So when you say advance dives means are they deep??

Deep, current, low viz, etc...

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Deception pass is current ripper & the deeper you go the harder it pulls in general. I've pushed 100' there. Not what I call deep but some would. Very cool stuff to see above 50' but knowldege of drift diving & how to plan that sight is important. Posession point Ferry is backward from that. On the surface it will take you mask off you head & is tamer on the Ferry but the Ferry is at 80' & has some entanglement hazards & tempting penetration points that should not be entered. thrown in boat traffic & fisherman & a tendency to want to stay too long & rack up serious deco time.
Keystone done at the wrong time is just a guaranteed free ride from the coast guard or a long walk from the park across the water. At the right time it is very shallow & a little slice of heaven even for the beginner. Best to go to any of these with someone who is familiar with them.
MJ

Beginner dive sites are generally ones with easy entries and exits, little current, little boat traffic, a hard bottom, and simple navigation.

As you get away from those sites, you have to learn to time dives to current predictions (and cope with currents, when you make mistakes). You have to get better at carrying equipment longer distances, and up and down hills and rocks. You have to develop good enough buoyancy control not to chance surfacing where it is unsafe to do so, and not to lose awareness of your depth on a wall that may extend down well beyond where you want to be. You will have to learn how to relocate the anchor line, or procedures to employ if you lose it. All those things make certain sites "advanced" dives, simply because diving them safely requires skills and judgment that it takes time and experience to gain.

Redondo beach at night !
Three Tree Point, Day or Night
Sunrise,
Day Island Wall
San Juans
Tacoma Pooper Pipeline
Wow, how do you pick just one?

If I had to pick just one, it would be Three Tree N, because it is a dive anytime and has three or more specific dive profiles.
And it my favorite place to show new divers.

Keith

Neah bay... There is no other..

Great! I haven't even dived once but I can say I like flat bottoms and not too much depth may be cuz I am a newbie and I have the fear

Well, that's a great attitude! Stick to safe places and build confidence until you have some experience -- that's how to become a good, safe diver!

Acquatic wrote:Great! I haven't even dived once but I can say I like flat bottoms and not too much depth may be cuz I am a newbie and I have the fear

Then you will like Titlow, Harper's Ferry, and Edmonds Underwater Park ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I think Edmonds Underwater Park would hook anyone into scuba. Its shallow and even air hogs can log a 60 minute dive, theres nothing to worry about...except the ferrys But its simply the easiest dive to take any newbie. Let me know if you would like to hook up and check it out. I've got a lot of extra gear if you need to use it. Happy holidays everyone.

Oh ok, where is this Edmonds underwater park located? Is it the Kingston ferry port?

Yup...keep in mind that high tide is the best time to dive there. Also its my opinion the current plays a small role too so slack is suggested.

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