Scallop diving on an oil rig in California
Written by
Charlotte van Weeghel
In the waters
between the Channel Islands and the California mainland from Ventura
to Santa Barbara, you will find quite a number of oil rigs. They
light up at night and make for a beautiful view. Like Christmas
trees in the distance. But there is more to them below the surface.
Artificial reefs have formed on the structure that keeps them afloat.
Under normal circumstances you are not allowed to come close to
these rigs as they are still operational and considered dangerous
environments. You are certainly not able to dive on them. But that
is exactly what we did one beatifully sunny Saturday. During the
"Channel Islands Council of Divers" Chamber Days we enjoyed
the unique experience of diving for scallops on oil rig "Grace."
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Oil rig Grace, our dive site of the day |
Once a year, the CICD obtains special permission to dive an oil rig off
the coast of Southern California and all proceeds support the Catalina
Hyperbaric Chamber and the CICD's Uninsured Divers' Fund. The chamber
located on Catalina Island (across from Long Beach, CA) is devoted solely
to the treatment of diving accidents, and depends heavily on donations
and volunteers to remain in operation. Not only were we in for a lot of
fun, it was for a good cause as well.
Channel Islands Council of Divers (CICD) usually holds three annual Channel
Islands Chamber Days a year. Channel Islands Chamber Days are supplemental
to the Greater Los Angeles Council of Divers' (GLACD) "Catalina Chamber
Day". Participating boats are the Peace, Truth, and Liberty. These
dive operators generously donate their time and equipment so that all
income from the dives may be used for the good cause. Dive trips cost
around $65 or $70, depending on the selected boat.
A group of friends of mine had been talking about this trip for quite
a while now so I was really exited to be able to come along. The fact
that I was going on my very first scallop dive certainly made me curious!
The trips had sold out quickly and I was lucky to get a last minute spot.
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The boat left from Santa Barbara Harbor at 5am for the two hour
trip to Grace. Most people had been wise and come aboard the night
before to sleep in one of the bunks on offer instead of waking
up ridiculously early in the morning to make the trip, like I
had... Everybody but the crew was still sleeping when I came on
board but people started to wake up once the sun slowly came up
and the boat started moving. I'm sure the smell of coffee and
breakfast permeating from the galley helped as well.
Everybody that intends to go scallop diving has to obtain a fishing
liscense and is allowed ten scallops per diver. There are strict
rules in place on where, when and how many scallops you can dive
for in California and fines are steep when caught breaking this
law.
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Going in, one small group at the time |
This is important as there has been quite a lot of overfishing in the
past.
The trip out to "Grace" took around two hours in very calm water.
Once there, I was quite impressed by the way the captain handled the boat
around the rig. Anchoring is not allowed anywhere and the boat is therefor
constantly moving.
We were divided in two groups to keep the amount of divers descending
on the rig limited. The waves were quite high and we had to make our entries
at crucial intervals in order not to get stuck between the boat and the
rig. Rig dives are usually considered difficult dives due to open sea
currents, "no bottom" conditions, and the need to dive from
and return to a boat that is "under power", rather than at anchor.
Only experienced divers are encouraged to participate.
Once I got used to the cold water (always a "shock" for me in
California. Too bad it's so nice and warm on land but the water cold!),
I found the underwater scenery around the rig very impressive. The rig's
structure makes for a very interesting man made "reef" with
lots of growth and plenty of marine life to enjoy. The first few feet
the visibility wasn't great but once I got down to 65ft. and lower it
became crystal clear. I lost my budy almost immediately as she took off
on her own scallop hunt so I decided to do the same. Easier said than
done however.
What makes scallop diving so popular with many divers in California is
the simple fact that they are relatively easy to catch. Scallops permanently
fix themselves to rocks to spend the extent of their life filter-feeding
their food from the water. I didn't think it was easy to find them. I
was told to look hard as once the scallop attaches itself to the rig,
marine growth overtakes their outer shell making them nearly indistinguishable
from the "reef". I didn't find any on my first dive and was
rather dissapointed to come up empty handed! The experienced divers all
came up with bags full of scallops and had filled their quota of ten on
the very first dive.
Tricky entry |
After the surface interval
we went for our second dive and I did better this time. I knew what
to expect and what to look for. I came up very proud with 2 scallops.
According to the experts, diving for scallops can be done in two
ways. Some divers find the scallops and open the shells underwater,
taking up only the meat. This way there is less weight to carry
and no need for a big collection bag. This takes more time underwater
however and I thought there is something to say for sharing your
catch with other divers on deck.
After a filling lunch of veggie or meat burgers, the weater was
still sunny and relatively calm so the captain allowed us a third
dive. |
We had lots of fun comparing our catch and trying to pry open the shells
without slicing our fingers in the process. This seemed even more challenging
than finding them underwater for me.
The experienced divers came prepared and had brought the right stuff (I
didn't bring anything...) Make sure you have your cold water gear. Some
divers had double tanks and took the opportunity to do some technical
diving on the rig at the same time. Bring a sturdy mesh bag and a sharp
knife to open the scallop shells. I would also recommend a ziplock back
to bring your scallops home once you get them out of their shell.
After opening the scallops
we had to eat a few. On this trip I became an unofficial member
of the "scallop club" by eating my first raw scallop ever,
delicious indeed!
You have to get used to the taste but really, the meat is sweet,
firm, and has a slight nutty flavor according to a gourmet diver
on board. I thought it was raw and salty, like sushi. But that's
the way most divers seem to like it. I decided to save the remainder
of my scallops and make them into a pasta sauce at home that night.
A white wine scallop sauce over freshly cooked angel hair or something
along those lines.
All in all, I had a great time, sign me up for next year!
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The joys of cleaning and eating your very
own catch! |
The trips leave from the Ventura or Channel Island Harbour in Santa Barbara
in September. For further information or to reserve spots for these dives,
CICD can be contaced in a number of ways. Their web site address is www.venturaweb.com/cicd/,
email: cicd@usa.net. Dick Shrewsbury,
Chamber Day Coordinator, can be phoned at 805.485.8483. Or contact
Dive Global for more information.
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