Spring is just around the corner. Lately, diving has been somewhat limited due to a variety of issues. Things are looking up for divers. While Dolphin Divers has had a limited number of organized events, that is about to change. Starting in March, we have an event each month taking us through September. You can check out the club calendar of events on our website or watch for events noted in emails, on Facebook, and our club newsletter.

Our club safety officer, Steve Gilmore, has a dive planned for March. He will be leading a dive at Monterey. Something about looking for Easter eggs underwater. For more information, please give Steve a call at 916 929-8188.

April will find us back at Monterey. Brad Freelove will be hosting a treasure hunt themed dive. If you cannot make the March dive, come join us for our April dive. You can reach Brad at bradlinda@frontiernet.net.

May will find Ken Takata leading us to Albion River Campground. Just south of Ft. Brag, you can stay in your RV, pitch a tent, or do the motel thing. A multi-day
event with lots of fun and food, you can reach Ken at kennethtakata@gmail.com,

June will find us holding a photography dive. Brad Freelove will lead us to Ocean Cove Ca. If you want to get in a dive or two in a somewhat protected location,
Ocean Cove is the place to do it. If the weather gods do not cooperate, the location may be moved to Monterey. bradlinda@frontiernet.net.

July and Jack Millard! The club has a 4-day trip on the liveaboard dive boat The Vision! Jack has been leading this trip for a couple decades and promises a ton of fun and great diving. You can get in 20 dives on this trip. Giant Black Seabass will be around. There are only 7 spots left on the boat. Contact Jack at
jmillard@aol.com

Memorial Day Dive and Camping Trip
May 28, 2021 – May 31, 2021
Albion River Campground

We have 8 campsites set aside for our club’s annual Memorial Day event at the Albion river campground (http://albionrivercampground.com). The campsites reserved for our group are: d4, d6, d8, d10, d18, d20, d22, and d24. This is a different section (but equally nice) from the c section we usually reserve. Because of COVID restrictions, our campsites are assigned in a checkerboard pattern with a vacant campsite between each site. Look at the campground’s website to see a campsite map, COVID restrictions, cost and refund policies: http://albionrivercampground.com/.

The campground has agreed to “hold” our assigned campsites until April 1. After the April 1 deadline, the campsites will be open to the general public. Don’t wait too long to reserve because the campground is typically filled on Memorial Day.

If you wish to guarantee a campsite with our group, you must call the campground and put down a deposit by April 1st. When you call, identify yourself as belonging to the Takata/Dolphin Divers group. Since it is a group reservation, you will not be able to reserve on-line. Call for reservations at (707) 937-0606 between 9am and 2pm on Thursday through Sunday.

Please let me know as soon as you reserve a campsite.

Ken Takata
kennethktakata@gmail.com
(916) 599-5270

Channel Islands 2021
July 24-28

M/V Vision
https://www.channelislandsx.com

We are excited to be able to renew our annual live-a-board dive trip to the Channel Islands! New owners Channel Islands Expeditions has purchased the two remaining boats, the M/V Truth and M/V Vison. We have booked the M/V Vison which is actually bigger than the Conception. Concerned about safety? Check out the Service and Safety page on their website. Scroll down to the section on “Recent Vessel Upgrades” to read about what they have done to make the boat safer along with photos.

The cost for the four day trip is $800 per person. As always berth assignments are made in the order of payoff. The Vision is a larger boat than the Conception with larger berths and more deck space, but the layout is the same with singles stacked in the center and back wall and doubles along each side.

If you want to join us please let us know ASAP! You can sign up by either making a deposit of $100.00 with full payment due by June 1st, or pay $800.00 in full now for a berth assignment. There will be NO refunds after June 1st unless your spot is filled by another diver.

Send your check to:

Dolphin Divers of Sacramento
PO Box 112
Orangevale, CA 95662

You can also make payments via Zelle to treasurer@dolphindivers.org, or by credit card for an extra 4% to cover the card processing fee. If you want to use a card let me know and I will put you in touch with our treasurer.

Trip details:

• July 24, Saturday Boarding begins at 8:30 in the evening.
• Depart Santa Barbara at 11:00 for an overnight crossing to Catalina Island
• July 25 Sunday Arrive at Catalina Island early in the morning
• Sunday – Tuesday Dive various locations around Catalina Island
• July 27, Tuesday After our night dive we will depart Catalina for the crossing to Santa Cruz Island during the night while we sleep
• July 28, Wednesday We will dive various locations along the island until 2:00, when we depart back to Santa Barbara harbor

We will arrive in Santa Barbara about 4:30 to our vehicles for the trip home. Many of us will stop in Buelton, on the way home, for a motel night and dinner. Others will drive all the way home, arriving in Sacramento after midnight.

Included for the price is all meals and non alcoholic beverages, snacks (lots of chocolate), unlimited air fills, with Nitrox available for an extra charge.
You must provide ALL of your own dive equipment, including a tank and weights. Equipment can be rented from Sea Landing, where the boat is berthed.

When I have received your payment I will send you more information about the trip.

Jack Millard –

The California Sea Otter

For most divers, there is nothing in our ocean cuter than an otter. We are fortunate to have a small population of the little fur balls close to us. Sea otters range from Alaska to Santa Barbara Island in southern California. You can also find them off the coast of Russia and Japan. The California sea otter inhabits our coastal oceans from Half Moon Bay down to Santa Barbara Island. The entire California population is estimated to be around 3,000. Early in
our history, we had a lot more of them, but hunters harvested them to near extinction levels.

Now a protected species, the otter still faces many hazards. Sharks, boat props, fishing line, disease and toxins account for most of the mortality rate. Sharks are believed to be the main cause of death with otters. 60 percent of otter deaths are caused by sharks.

Female otters can start having pups when they reach an age of 3 to 4 years. Pups take about 6 months of gestation and weigh in between 3 and 5 lbs. at birth. They stick close to momma for close to 8 months. When fully grown, females can weigh in at less than 40 lbs. Males around 60. Otters have little fat on their body. With between 850,000 and 1,000,000 hairs per square inch, fur keeps them warm. The otter spends about 10 percent of a day grooming and cleaning their fur. They spend the rest of their day eating and sleeping. Otters need to eat about 25 percent of their body weight each day to stay warm and healthy. Abalone, clams, crabs, mussels, urchins, and other marine creatures make up most of their diet.

While otters are fun to watch and interact with, they have been known to nip a diver. If you happen to run into one, keep your distance. No need to pester the cutest creature in the water.

DDS Store COMING SOON!!!

With the lack of General Meetings due to COVID-19, there has been no opportunity for you our members to buy DDS clothing swag. Coming in the new year, we will have an online store so you can get your DDS swag! In the meantime here are a few examples of what is available. In addition, is our current inventory. If you’re interested in purchasing any items, contact Tracy Clarke at tracycdiver77 at yahoo.com.