Labor Day Campout - Big Sur by Dan Schwartz

This year's campout was at our ol' southern stomping ground, Plaskett Creek. Curt and Carol were winding up their 2-week California and came from the south, while the rest of us drove down through Monterey. The weather was beautiful all weekend. Sheila, Cody and I came in late-ish Friday night to find Curt, Carol, Roy, Cathy and Pete relaxing by the campfire (which we were allowed to have this year) and Noah and Kaii uphill a bit kicking around a soccer ball. Nick and Tiffany came by even later to set up shop.

Saturday morning most of us headed north to Mill Creek. Nick, ever the gallant gentleman he is, took Tiffany on a romantic interlude to San Simeon's Hearst Castle - about 30 miles south.

Tiffany can't believe how lucky she is.

At Mill Creek we were able to launch directly from the parking lot, no going around the bend to the next beach.

 

I dove with Pete and we headed to the kelp bed just to the north of the kelp bed where Curt, Carol and Roy were diving. Sheila took her and her surfboard to check out the waves of Sand Dollar beach, which is just accross from our campground. Sand Dollar Beach

It ws pretty green going down and with the thick kelpbed it took a while for my eyes to get adjusted to the dark. When I finally gotr settled in I followed the pinnacle up a ways, then turned around to see where it ended on the other side. That spot had a huge school of blues, large ones, kelp rockfish, a monster ling and a wolf eel thats head looked to be the size of a basketball. I took what photo's I could in the conditions - the fish always being just out of reach of a good photo.

We all got out with some fish and headed back to camp. The kids played frisbee with the Cody for a while,

until sunset when it was time for good food, wine and fireside comradere that made up the rest of the evening.

continued on next page ...