Wow. Sometimes the guests on the boat make a marginal trip
outstanding. This weeks trip was one of those. We departed Monday night under
the threat of a collapsing tropical wave, seas forecasted at 3-5 and 4-6. We
knew that Tortugas 3-5 is different than Flower Gardens 3-5's, so out we went.
The first dive was on Dante's Inferno. Seas were 2-4's, current slack to
vigorous, vis 60-80 feet, and no tar balls. the dickey fish were everywhere,
spawning, and hanging out and laying eggs. Second dive was on Bat caves, and the
Goliath were seen by a few. I saw a red grouper, and lots of divers. I completed
John's solo diver certification.
Day 2 found us on 8 fathom rock, which is poorly named, because it isn't 8
fathoms in any measurement. Still, the goliath's were there, as well as blacks,
reds, and Nassau groupers. Seas were 3-5, and current was slack to mild. The
afternoon dive was on Texas Rock. What an awesome dive site. We visited the fort
in the afternoon, and back to Texas Rock for the night dive.
Seas were forecast for 5-8's on the Vandenberg, but luckily were less than that.
What a great day to dive the Vandenberg, and what a great bunch of guests. I
look forward to the next one.
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