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Log This Dive

Sundown Diving

Sundown Diving, for us, is one of those sites that just feels… different. Maybe it’s the light. Even on a grey day, there’s a softness to the water here, a kind of filtered glow that makes the often-overlooked details pop. We love the way the light catches the whiskers of a Roughpatch Shrimp as it scuttles across the seabed, or illuminates the subtle iridescence on a Northern Smoothtongue. This isn’t a place for big pelagics, though we have seen orcas pass through on occasion, a truly humbling experience. Instead, it’s about slowing down. It’s for the diver who delights in finding a perfectly camouflaged Slender Sole, or examining the intricate spirals of a Bryozoan colony. You’ll often spot Big Skates gliding along the bottom, and the Dungeness and Red Rock Crabs are everywhere, always busy. Keep an eye out for the delicate Four-Spined Squat Lobsters tucked into crevices. The coho and calico salmon runs bring an incredible energy to the site seasonally, a silver flash against the moody greens and blues. Sundown Diving excels for macro enthusiasts and patient observers. It’s a photographer’s dream when the conditions are calm, offering endless opportunities for intimate portraits of the smaller, often overlooked inhabitants of the Pacific Northwest. We’d suggest going in the late afternoon; that “sundown” light really does make all the difference.