Dive Weekend

Congratulatons to Bill--who is now a certified diver! First lake dive


Friday was departure day for the big weekend. Friday morning started off tough, because the kids & I had only a few hours to get the trailer ready to go after a tough week. We worked as a team, accomplished our goals and at 10:00 we pulled out of the drive. As I watched the back of the trailer clear the driveway, I thought, “Oh, gosh, I caught the grapevines and I’m dragging one.” Then it hit me….it was the cord for the trailer…that I forgot to unplug. You all know that sick feeling when you do something stupid…yep, it was there…..and I was thinking…all the stress Bill is under and now he has to fix the plug that I messed up. I pulled over, thinking about where on the way to HP I was going to pick up a replacement plug—and wishing I had the knowledge to do it. Thankfully, the Lord was watching over me, and the cord was just fine…not even bent. I could have kept the secret…but was so thankful, I of course shared. That, and we aren’t home yet to see what the box looks like.

We picked up Bill at 11:00, and were to camp by a little after 1:00. Just in time to set up, and have a nap! We no sooner got inside the trailer after setting up, and the skies opened and it POURED….for hours it poured. Bill & I woke from our nap, and found a huge lake outside the trailer door. Not great when you have three dogs to get in & out. Thankfully, we have a big mat to lay outside the door, and that gets a lot of the junk off their paws before they hit the door.

We headed into Florence to check out the dive spots where Bill needed to be in the morning, and then headed into town to hit our usual Friday night “Florence” spots….Taco Bell, Bi-Mart, Fred Meyer, and Kristin’s favorite—The Dollar Store! We headed back to camp and got Bill’s gear ready for the morning….and yes, it’s still raining!





Saturday we woke to drizzle, and it poured all night. I kept thinking how miserable it would be for everyone to suit up in the rain. Being rainy doesn’t really matter once you are underwater, but gearing up and getting out of gear, it makes a difference. By the time we pulled out of camp, the drizzle had stopped, and as we got closer to the first dive site, it had actually lightened up. We had no rain, and actually, the sun even came out as they did their lake dive. Kristin played on the beach, and I met a local Dentist that works in Eugene. His wife was learning to dive and he & I were the only ones left on shore once they hit the water. Bill did great. He was pretty pumped when he came up. He said he got tired (they were down 30-40 minutes) and was ready to come up, but only needed a rest, and he was ready to go again. They de-briefed everyone after the dive, talked about how things went, and then everyone broke for lunch, and was to meet back at the jetty for an ocean dive.

The weather continued to be good, cloudy, and one short drizzle while we were resting, waiting for the next dive at the North Jetty. Once everyone arrived, the sun again came out and the weather was beautiful for the entire dive time. Once again, Bill came out of the water, very pumped—but this time, very tired. Swimming into and against current is a tough thing. Kristin played on the beach for hours while they waited for the tide, geared up & dove. She had a blast. Ryan, on the other hand was bored silly, and resorted to watching a movie.

Many of the more experienced divers did some crabbing while diving. One guy came up with his limit in crab, and then went back for huge clams (don’t recall the name), but he came back with a bag full….as the limit on those is 30. After the dive, the whole crew of dive masters and volunteer divers cooked up the crab, and clams and put them out for all to feast on. Unfortunately, we didn’t stick around because of dogs, and not knowing the whole routine of “bringing” stuff…along with poor Bill being so tired. I will say this…I have never been around of people who made you feel so welcome before. Everyone was helpful, enjoyable, friendly and fun to be with.

We arrived back at camp around 5:45 and as we parked and were unloading Bill’s gear, it started to rain. God was so good to us today. We had a safe day—great weather, and Bill had so much fun!! Bill showered while I cooked supper, and fell asleep before dinner was even ready. He went to lay down after supper, and said he was only going to rest (yeah, right) and at 8:30, he woke up long enough to brush his teeth, and actually get under the covers! Poor guy was exhausted.

Bill & Erin waiting for their first jetty dive
First Ocean Dive (Bill Green Tank-Erin Yellow Snorkle)

Getting through the foam on his first ocean dive!

Sunday we woke to drizzle. It cleared off while we pulled the trailer to the dive site. There wouldn't be time to go back to get the trailer, and we didn't want to travel north to go south again, so we brought it along! It worked out great, because we had somewhere to eat, and get out of the rain, go pottie...all those necessary things. Once it was decided that Bill was diving at the jetty again, they waited out the tide and dove--and in rolled the Oregon mist! You know the type....the mist that is all day....and true Oregonians do what they planned, and endure the mist! It of course didn't bother the guys diving, and Bill said it was the best dive yet. He went 60 ft, and loved it. Kristin had been on shore for two days collecting shells, all small mind you. One of the master divers brought her a BIG shell, as well as Bill. She had TWO big shells, 4 milliong little shells, and 3 billion rocks and was thrilled.

After the jetty dive we headed to the lake again for the team to finish up their skills, and take a lake tour. It was still a heavy mist as the divers worked on their skills before hitting the water, and Ryan & Kristin decided that they wanted to swim in the lake. It was a balmy 64 degrees--nine degrees warmer than the ocean!! They didn't have suits, but ran to the trailer and made makeshift suits with shorts & t-shirts...and had a blast for TWO hours in the water. Right alongside the divers some of time! The air temp was probably 50's...but they didn't care....they had so much fun, and ran to get dressed when they finally did get out. We spent from 1-5 at the lake...so it was good they were able to pass some time having fun.

Bill finished up his dive, passed his tests, did his paperwork and is now certified!! We met a great group of people. Bill had a great dive partner Erin, and her boyfriend Bryce, both who were so easy to talk to. We also met a great group of instructors, dive masters, and lots of fun people. Being that Bill is hooked...I'm sure we will cross paths with some of these folks again. Once you dive with this group, you are welcome back anytime to dive with them when they have a class going out. They will buddy you up with someone or send you out with a group. A great opportunity for Bill to get some more dive time in a controlled environment, with experienced guys, and makes me feel much better having him go. It looks like tons of fun, but I'm sure not ready to do it....yet!!

We arrived home around 7:30, and by the time we go everything inside and dinner started it was 8:00....we got hung up cracking fresh crab.....it's tough when you have to do it before you can eat!! A great benefit of diving!! Thanks guys for the great crab!!

Congratulations again Bill...we're proud of you!