Two excellent dives at Mono-lobo with new type of nudibranch and a friendly harbor seal. July 16, 2014

Last Wednesday Greg Hoberg and I had a second day of diving with exceptionally calm seas.  We went back to Mono-lobo, a very large dive site with great canyons and huge rock structures and abundant large fish due to it being a marine preserve right next to the long protected Point Lobos Marine Preserve.  As we rounded Point Cypress into Carmel Bay we saw, as  we had the previous day, thousands of sooty shearwaters and many cormorants and pelicans and terns.  As we approached the edge of the Carmel submarine canyon we saw several groups of Humpback whales feeding on anchovies accompanied by groups of sea lions.  There was also a group of Rizzo's dolphins which feed on squid, we see them frequently in this area and we guessed that there were squid eating anchovies and then getting eaten by the Rizzo's.

The water was again quite blue and clear with visibility varying from 30 to maybe 50 ft.  The water was the warmest we've ever encountered here, 56 degrees, a full 10 degrees warmer than we'd had a month before.  We carefully (as we usually do) planned out our dive to hit a new area of the dive site.  We went down the anchor line (we like to make sure that a) the boat stays put...it didn't once last year and it wasn't that fun to catch it and b) make sure the anchor is also located so that we when try to pull it up to leave we can without having to go back down).  Then we took off on our compass course and hit a big, long, beautiful canyon which varied from about 20 to 40 ft wide with walls 20 to 40 ft high, we cruised at a depth of 50 to 70 ft.  The canyon went on and on and we realized that it was time to force a turn to follow the edge of the kelp bed back to the neighborhood of the boat.  Then I spotted a pair of nudibranchs that were a new type (for us).  We spent quite a while taking pictures of them then realize we better just retrace our dive back up the canyon because we were way past half our air.  Then we got visited by a curious harbor seal and we spent time playing with him....then it was time to go up for our safety stop.  After the safety stop - we were under a dense kelp canopy - I let Greg go up in the small opening our bubbles had created in the kelp to spot the boat.  When he started his second 360 degree spin I knew I better go up to help spot the boat.   Well we spotted it ok and it was of course right were we left it.  It would have been easier to spot if we had had binoculars and a tall ladder to stand on!  Fortunately we had enough air to swim just under the dense kelp to get to the inside edge of the kelp bed and then snorkel back to the boat.  It wasn't really that far...if you were riding a bicycle!

 Huge rock structures are a feature of Mono-lobo.  They create great hiding places for fish and octopus.

 China Rockfish

My first White-lined Dirona nudibranch, about 5 inches long.

 Greg getting a nudibranch photo.

 Curious harbor seal.

 Greg pointed out that I had a friend playing with my fins.

 Greg with a nice cabezon.

Sunlight and clear, blue(ish) water, a rarity!

After a 60 minute surface interval we made our second dive.  On this dive we did a circle route that included going near some wash rocks near shore.  We saw the usual mix of lingcod, cabezon, and rockfish and were once again drawn too far from the boat by the amazing seascapes and ended up with another long swim back to the boat....

For more pictures please go to:  https://plus.google.com/photos/110159573286645489662/albums/6037004376132135105?authkey=CIvqjrv8_-buUw