God's Pocket, Post Retirement Dives 895-907, September 6-12, 2025

Last week I enjoyed five days of wonderful diving at God's Pocket, a remotely located diving resort reached by a 45 minute boat ride from Por t Hardy at the NE end of Vancouver Island, BC. This was my third visit to God's Pocket and the second time that I drove up in my Tesla. Donna joined me for the drive north and we visited friends in Oregon and then had three wonderful days and nights in Victoria on Vancouver Island then Donna flew home and I drove up the length of Vancouver Island, about 7 hours of driving, to Port Hardy. After an overnight stay there, the God's Pocket boat picked up our group for the trip to the resort. The group included Richard Salas, our leader, Guy Foster, Audry, Eric and Margi, Gloria, Mike, Peter and his daughter Monwyn, Derek, and David. As always the diving was excellent, the food even better, and a great time was had by all. Below are some photos from my dives, to see more, please go to: https://photos.app.goo.gl/fpg9tns8DjfMWkPZ7 The surface photos from this trip are from Guy Foster. Below is a drone photo of God's Pocket followed by a picture at one of our wonderful dinners there.

I was very happy to see large, healthy, Sunflower Sea Stars at God's Pocket. Sadly and disastrously, Sunflower Sea Stars are virtually extinct in California and, because they are major sea urchin predators, their annihilation by the sea star wasting disease in 2013 led to an explosion in sea urchins and decimation of most of California's magnificent kelp forests. Below:

A rockfish common at God's Pocket that I can't resist photographing is the Quillback Rockfish, here's a few of many I photographed:

Between dives we were frequently entertained by Steller Sea Lions, Northern Sea Otters, and occasionally by dolphins playing in our boat's wake, passing Humpbacks and Orcas. Below:

I was excited to see and photograph Lion's Mane, aka Hooded Nudibranchs, Melibe leonina. I need to use the new backscatter eliminator software to get rid of the suspended reflecting particles in these pictures but haven't gotten around to using the software, yet...They'd also be cool to video as they use their large expanding hoods to sweep the water for microscopic prey. Below:

The richness and density and color of the invertebrate marine life at God's Pocket is wonderful. The large tides cause massive turnover of nutrient rich water that feeds the dense marine life. Below:

A small, 3 inch, sculpin nestles among the White Sea Anemones that are nearly everywhere you turn at God's Pocket, below:

China Rockfish aren't uncommon in Monterey and Carmel where I usually dive but they're everywhere you turn at God's Pocket. Their beautiful and so I frequently photograph them. Several below including a yawner:

I was buzzed a few times by Steller Sea Lions, they are big and very fast. I managed to get a couple of photos, below:

One of the really cool things at God's Pocket is that you can be diving on a wall that runs along the edge of one of the tiny islands at the various dive sites and sometimes you can look up the wall and see trees up on the island above. Below:

Kelp Greenlings are common in Monterey and Carmel but they are even more numerous and a bit easier to photography at God's Pocket. Below:

Audry and Gloria diving on a wall. Below:

Guy using his video lights because of intermittent strobe performance, below:

Guy taking a picture of me taking a picture of Guy....below:

There's many different beautiful Sea Anemones at God's Pocket. Below:

Peter and Monwyn found a beautiful Rock Greenling which they pointed out to me. Below:

Peter and Monwy working their way up a strand of Bull Kelp to do their safety stop. Avove: I saw several beautiful Orange Peel Nudibranchs, sometimes described as the nudibranch with a petticoat, below:

A Leather Sea Star with a Black Eyed Goby, below:

A beautiful jellyfish drifted past while I was making one of my safety stops before surfacing, below:

Another wonderfull inhabitant frequently seen at God's Pocket are Basket Stars, below:

God's Pocket has many Red Irish Lord's, a large sculpin second only to Cabezon in size, and I never tire of photographing them. Below:

Our group had lot's of cameras! Below:

We always had great snacks on the boat between dives. We even had Butter Tarts for after our dive at Buttertart! Below:

Guy took lots of photos of us while out in the boat. Below: on left Gloria in front, Mike Williams, me, and Audry

Below: Peter and his daughter Mondwyn

Below: David followed by Derek

Below: the group on the boat and at God's Pocket

Mount Chetron and VT3 with Beachhopper II. Post retirement dive #893 , 894 August 16, 2024

I went out on Beachhopper II for two dives yesterday, Guy had to cancel because he needed to get his neck seal replaced on his drysuit before our September 6-12 dive trip to God's Pocket in British Columbia. The water temperature was a warmer than usual 56 degrees there was a heavy surface plankton bloom so it was very dark below. Visibility was only 15 ft. This site has excellent fish population. Several of the divers enjoyed an encounter with a Wolf Eel but I missed it....Below are some of my photos from the dive, to see more, please go to: https://photos.app.goo.gl/1yYMwTTTYyu84veJ6 A Kelp Rockfish with White Metridium (Plumrose Anemone) that are common on the site, below:

Below: Copper Rockish with a Tube Anemone

A beautiful Sand-Rose Anemone, below:

Tube Anemones, below:

Treefish, a type of rockfish, have amazing red lips. Below:

Carol pointed out a large Cabezon, my favorite local diving subject, on the ledge above the Treefish I was photographing. Below:

There were also several Lingcod and a number of Blue Rockfish on this site. Below:

My computer warned me that I was down to 4 minutes of non decompression dive (I spent most of the dive at 75-81 ft) so I headed up the anchor line for my 3 minute safety stop. Our next dive was at VT3. It's a bit shallower, around 45-50 ft, visibility was limited again, about 15 ft. Below are some photos from this dive. A few more are at: https://photos.app.goo.gl/6EhdqX8b7VNBJfiB6 Below: A Copper Rockfish face followed by a Rainbow Nudibranch

Below: A Spiny Sand Star followed by a Gopher Rockfish

Tube Anemones are the favorite prey of Rainbow Nudibranchs. Below:

Below: I saw an amorous pair of Gopher or possibly Copper, Rockfish. In the photo below the one on the left has shifted to his or her dark phase of color.

In a couple of weeks Donna and I will start our drive up to Oregon and Washington, visiting friends along the way. She'll fly home, I'll drive on to Port Hardy at the north end of Vancouver Island for6. pickup and transfer to God's Pocket on September 6, don't know if I'll get out for any more local dives before then.

Monterey Shootout, Six Dives with Beachhopper II August 1, 2 August 1-3, 2025

I made four dives on Friday, August 1 and two dives the morning of Saturday August 2 with Beachhopper, joined by Guy Foster. Below will first be the six photographs I submitted to the competition, alas, but unsurprisingly unsuccessfully. I submitted three photos in the Intermediate Traditional Macro category, no cropping, only color and other adjustments that apply to the entire photograph. I also submitted three photographs in the Intermediate Unlimited Macro category. Our dive sites on the two days included Mr Ed (and Ed Anderson was on the trip with us), Shale Island, Metridium Mountain, and the former urchin control area (the name slips my memory..). After the six photos I submitted for the contest are some other favorites from these dives, to see them all, go to: https://photos.app.goo.gl/K8sLRgESysKrud8UA Here's the three photos I entered into the Intermediate Macro Traditional category: I can never not photo a cooperative Cabezon:

The same is just about true for Lingcod as well:

Below are my three entrees to the Intermediate Macro Unlimited Category: A flatfish: flounder, sole, sand dab...

A really cool flat worm...not cool enough, evidently:

The beautiful face of a juvenile rockfish...

I had to hurridly edit and select my six photos and immediately depart for the Backscatter Social at their shop to submit, so below are some others I like nearly as well but, I don't think my outcome would have been any better. The judges really select by asking the question: "Would you like this picture blown up and mounted in your living room?" I understand the choices they made for awards, they were awesome. A beautiful small white sea anemone (I'm writing this blog at our Pacific Grove home and my sea life books are in Healdsburg). Below:

I kind of wish I'd chosen this Treefish Rockfish, maybe cropped down to just its face with those red lips, instead of submitting two lingcods...Below:

I was shooting macro, unusually for me, on all six dives. I usually shoot fish, with macro, it seems I usually shoot fish faces. Here's a Blue Rockfish face, below:

A couple of different sculpins, below:

I did photo a few nudibranchs. Below is a Monterey Dorid with a Blood Star:

Below: A San Diego Dorid (aka Leopard Nudibranch) with a Black Eyed Goby:

Last, but not least, a Kelp Rockfish unable to hide his scepticism of my choice:

I enjoyed the six dives, I ended up a tired puppy. It was fun seeing lots of the usual suspects at Backscatter's social and at the photo talks by Erin "Go Ask Erin:Artificial Intelligence for Good and Evil" and Mike Bartick of Black Water Photography fame.