Oil Rigs & Catalina 2 day trip
Channel Islands Dive Adventures has the Pacific Star chartered for a 2 day extravaganza to dive the southern oil rigs (Eureka, Elley & Ellen) and then Catalina on Saturday/Sunday, November 10th & 11th, 2012. Diving the oil rigs can be an awesome experience on any day and then being able to go to Catalina and do some day and night dives during lobster season all on the same trip only makes it better
The plan is to board at 6:00am- Saturday, November 10th (or after 8:00pm on Friday night) and depart at 7:00am for 2 dives out at the oil rigs. We will then be heading to Catalina for another day dive and 2 night dives (bugs anyone) followed up with 3 more dives the following day. This trip is great for hunters, photographers and sightseers.
Diving the oil rigsEureka, Elley and Ellen can be an awesome experience. Eureka (about 700’ deep) is the furthest out of the 3 and in most divers opinion it is the best to dive. Then you have Elley and Ellen (around 260’ deep) which are not far from Eureka and are about 8 miles out of Long Beach. Elley and Ellen are connected together by a bridge making them more into an oil rig complex. What makes an oil rig so much fun to dive is the amount of life that has called the legs and cross braces home plus you then have the schooling fish and sea lions swimming around the structure. The rigs legs and cross braces are covered with things like nudibranches, anemones ( including metridiums), lots of fish like rockfish, Cabazon and sheephead, brittle stars and more. The rigs are photographer’s dreams come true. The visibility can vary depending on conditions and depth from 20’-100’. Generally the best vis is 60’ or deeper.
Diving Catalina is always a fun adventure. Catalina Island is very large with many excellent dive sites such as; Blue Cavern Point, Ship Rock, Parson’s landing, Bird Rock, Eagle Reef, Arrow Point, Goat Harbor (giant black sea bass) and many more. Of course, we will be planning on visiting some sites that hopefully will be good for bugs. Catalina usually has excellent visibility at about 30’-40’ and on good days getting to 60’ plus. Water temperature is also usually higher at Catalina then any of the other islands.
This trip is best suited for intermediate or advanced divers that have experience in cold water conditions including; current, swell, possible limited visibility and deep water. Dive sites are to be determined by “BEST CONDITIONS” based on water visibility, tides, current, surge, swell and wind. Most importantly, good buoyancy control is needed and surface signal tubes are always recommended.
Trip Details
- Where:Pacific Star to the oil rigs (Eureka, Elley & Ellen) and Catalina
- Depart from: 22nd Street Landing, San Pedro
- When: Saturday/Sunday, November 10-11, 2012
- Time: boarding at 6:00am Saturday, November 10 (or after 8:00pm Fri. night) and departing at 7:00am.
- Cost:*$260.00 ($25.00 extra per person for a stateroom bunk)includes, 6 day dives + 2 night dives, meals, air and reserved bunks (bunk layout)
- Pay Online-click here to pay with MasterCard, Visa, Discover, PayPal, Google or call to pay by check or cash
The Pacific Star is 65’x 22’ and is a 1stclass dive boat. It is known for its fun & experienced crew, excellent service (they even carry your gear to and from the parking area), large sun deck, nice bunks with semi-staterooms and good food. Partial pressure mixed Nitrox (32%) is available for an additional charge. o2 clean tanks are required. Tank fills are to 3000 psi.
*The Pacific Star also supplies free use of their steel 72′s if needed and they can be filled with nitrox, the only thing you pay for is nitrox fills. There is no charge if you use them and use air only. If you wish to use their tanks you MUST call in advanced to reserve one.
All trips on the Pacific Star include food, snacks, drinks & air.
The Pacific Star is located at the 22nd Street Landing in San Pedro.Passengers are responsible to arrange for their own scuba equipment including weights and 1 tank and rental equipment is available if needed, including underwater -cameras, video and propulsion vehicles. Please do not forget proof of your Scuba Certification, it is required. For more information about the Pacific Star, visit their website at www.pacificstardiving.com .
