Many thanks to Bluestar for this review of Gerstle Cove

Reviewer		Site Condition (1=worst, 5=best)
Name:	Bluestar	Entry:	3.00
Email:	Click Here	Bottom:	5.00
City:	Alameda	Reef:	5.00
State:	CA	Animal:	3.00
Country:	USA	Plant:	5.00
Diving:	3 years	Facilities:	4.00
Dives:	40	Solitude:	5.00
		Roads:	3.00
Evaluation		*Average:	4.15
2010/08/28 I free-dived here for abalone for the very first time. Before I was an 'advanced shore-picker' -- diving only in 5' of water but I do submerge completely into water. This is the first time I'm truly free-diving. Unfortunately I got my weights wrong. I experimented to get the right weight at my neighborhood pool, but neglected to consider salt water has more buoyancy. So I was unable to dive down! I saw them abalones, they're right there, but could not dive down!! Damn it! I tried holding on to kelp, holding on to rocks, swimming with my hands, to no use. Some people have sinking problem but I had floating problem. Finally I got tired from all the swimming and just gave up. I will be correctly prepared next time. The bottom looks very lush. Lots of vegetation, lots of boulders, perfect abalone habitat. I did not see a whole lot of fish, though. I saw a couple of bluish fish; probably some kind of perch. Then again I only swam in about 200 square yards of area. I was also testing out my underwater camera for the first time in ocean. In the struggle to dive I accidentally switched to photos instead of videos, so my first underwater videography project was also a complete failure. The few photos all came out blurry. May I suggest Shorediving.com add video capability? I anticipate having videos to share in the future.
		Enjoyment Level
		Snorkel:	4.00
		Beginner:	4.00
		Intermediate:	5.00
		Advanced:	5.00
		Night diving:	3.00

		Seasonal Information
		Season:	Summer
		Year:	2010
		Visibility:	3.00
		Current:	3.00
		Surf:	3.00

Site Review by Bluestar Date: 09/04/2010

Site Review by
Bluestar
Date: 09/04/2010