Scuba Dive

Diving an oil rig has always seemed a daunting task to me both in terms of accessing the site as well as taking on the monstrous-looking structure.  On the surface, many people find these rusty rigs to be an eyesore, a hulking man-made blight on the beautiful ocean surface. But, under water it’s a very different story.  The thick metal supporting beams of the oil rigs act as a magnet for a vast array of marine plants and animals, creating a kind of artificial reef, a haven for sea life in the middle of the open ocean. Twenty-three oil platforms breach the waters off the coast between Oceanside and Santa Barbara, with names like Eureka, Ellen-Elly and lots of other girly monikers.

Diving the rigs requires special permission. All divers must sign a safety waiver, promising not to touch the structure or harvest any of the creatures that live on the beams.  Your best bet for easy, comfortable, and legal rig diving is to go with one of several companies take charter boats out to the platforms.  Anchoring is impractical due to depth, and tying off to the rig is prohibited. This type of dive is best handled by intermediate or experienced divers due to the conditions.  Surge is common. Visibility can be 10 feet one day, 100 the next, with 50 feet the average. Currents, too, are ever-changing and can be strong, but it’s nearly always possible to shelter behind pilings and girders. The best marine life is found from the surface down to about 80 feet. Prime diving season is generally June through December.

And when I say ‘prime diving’ I really do mean prime.  The underwater structures are absolutely teeming with sea life.  Upon entry and exit divers usually see sea lions and dolphins, some which may even follow the divers around during the dive.  The structures themselves are covered wall-to-wall with strawberry anemones, enormous scallops and mussels, acorn barnacles, and a variety of sponges.  On top of all of that growth crawl, crabs, nudibranches, huge sea stars, multi-colored brittle stars, and scorpion fish.  In the water column swim a variety of fish including calico bass, sculpins, gobies, sheephead, jellyfish and garibaldi, California’s bright orange state marine fish.  Fish schools are common too, with hundreds of mackerels, groups of sardines and packs of halfmoons cruising the waters together.