The Kelp Forest :: Part II
It is my spirited opinion, one that I enjoy defending over a beer after a long day on the water, that diving amidst giant kelp is the most magnificent diving in the world. I am fortunate enough to have had some amazing experiences underwater – watching swarms of hammerheads soar overhead, riding the broad back of an accommodating manta, being eyeballed by an inquisitive whale. However, the diving I consider most dear is that found in the splendid kelp forests along the coast and offshore islands of California. Vast beds of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) line the shore, rising from rocky reefs nearly 100ft deep to reach the surface before spreading out to form a thick floating canopy. Underneath this canopy, the sensation of swimming amid the columns of kelp plants is akin to flying through a terrestrial forest. Corridors between kelp stalks lead to wide openings in the forest in which schools of fish hover. Shafts of light filtered by the canopy above fall across kelp to the reef below. When the current shifts and bends the kelp stalks in a new direction the topology of the forest changes, creating new avenues and rooms to explore.
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| Kelp canopy. San Clemente Island, California, USA. Image: 02118 Species: Macrocystis pyrifera Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| Kelp forest. San Clemente Island, California, USA. Image: 02409 Species: Macrocystis pyrifera |
Kelp bed. San Clemente Island, California, USA. Image: 02502 Species: Macrocystis pyrifera |
Divers and kelp forest. San Clemente Island, California, USA. Image: 02988 Species: Macrocystis pyrifera |
For more photos of the kelp forest, see http://www.oceanlight.com/html/kelp.html.
