Galvin Thomas Templar
nstructor Trainer
Location: Atlantis
Hometown: Temple City, CA
Born at the tender age of zero, he began his first migration towards the great Pacific Ocean. Forged by the rough shell sand and pounding temperate waves, he formed a deep connection with the sea and all of her creatures. Now he uses his powers to teach others how to form a deep and lasting relationship with our mother, Ocean.
In his terrestrial life, he is most commonly spotted at the Ocean Safari headquarters answering calls, repairing equipment, orchestrating excursions, and signing autographs.
After hours he must travel to the nearest body of water to avoid desiccation, often spending his weekday evenings teaching scuba, free diving, and rescue diving at the Norman S. Johnson Aquatic Center in Arcadia.
When he is not “working” photography, music, surfing, and hiking are his go-to activities.
Though his powers are great and many, there are still countless migrations ahead.
Join Ocean Safari and view this majestic creature on your next underwater adventure.
March 14, 2020 Redondo Beach Night Dive
March 15, 2020
Aside from a little rain, diving conditions at Vet’s Park were optimal. I was surprised to see that we were the only divers there on a Saturday night. The visibility was easily 25’, surface temperature was 60F, and the swell was minimal. The five of us spotted several rays of varying species and small schools of fish while we kicked out on the surface. Our dive profile was pretty conservative for Vet’s considering that one can very easily get below 100 feet of water. We cruised, following the sandy bottom down from 20 feet to a max depth of 70 feet. During our 50 minute journey we had a lot of fun and came across all kinds of exciting creatures!
We were absolutely surrounded by prawn, crabs, turbans, tube worms, sand dabs, and everything else you can find on a sandy bottom in southern california. On top of all of that one of the first special guests we spotted was a spotted-cusk eel. We observed it sifting the sand with its whiskers for a while before it got annoyed of our lights and slipped tail-first into the sand. Just a few meters away from the cusk eel we found an adorable sarcastic fringehead who was posted up in an upside down turban shell. Luckily for me the fringehead was cooperative and posed for some photos! As we started to follow the bottom to shallower water we crossed paths with a halibut, a sole, and several types of rays.
One of my favorite things to see on a night dive is the bioluminescent algae sparkling in the water. The only way you can enjoy this phenomenon is for everyone in your group to turn off their lights. Prior to getting in the water we agreed on a signal to go lights out, and made sure that everybody was comfortable with it as well. Once the lights were out we spent at least 10 minutes playing in the dark before we turned the light back on and made our ascent. Every one of us was stoked after such a great dive, and I can’t wait for the next one!
