I came back to Malaspina Point on Aug. 12, 2024. I swam out on the surface from the Malaspina/Gabriola galleries rock formation towards the wall.
When I descended near the point above the wall, the current was stronger than I've ever felt here even though I was diving near the Gabriola Passage slack on a day with a low exchange. The current was almost too strong to swim against up in the shallows at the point, but it faded away as I dropped down over the edge of the wall. Visibility was only 10' in the shallower depths as I passed the mini version of the Malaspina Galleries rock formation up near the top of the wall. This mini overhang is covered with small plumose anemones.
As I swam farther out and deeper along the wall, the visibility improved to maybe 30'. The base of the wall here was about 80' deep. Along this part of the wall, there were hardly any anemones. There were mostly just a few feather stars and I saw an octopus out in the open.
As I swam farther along the wall I started to see more plumose, crimson and painted anemones.
I had reached the part of the wall that was covered with lots of plumose, crimson and painted anemones. The wall here went down to over 100' deep, but I stayed up a bit higher. My maximum depth was 92'. I swam out a bit farther along the wall than I did on previous dives. The abundance of anemones continued, but I still didn't see a single boot or cloud sponge.
In my opinion, this anemone-covered section of the wall is the best part of this site. The problem is, it's pretty far from shore (I'd estimate about 200 meters or more). This, combined with the depth and threat of current means I can't stay out here long. I headed up to near the top of the wall (about 60' deep) and started swimming back towards shore.
The top of the wall gradually grew shallower and then I was back up in the murky layer and the small plumose-covered overhang where I started the dive.
Instead of surfacing and swimming back on the surface, I followed my compass back across the 20-30' deep bay to my entry-point.
I think the anemone-covered part of the wall is one of the best dives on Gabriola Island. The problem is the work required to dive it. There's the awkward entry into the water at any time except high tide, then the swim out to the opposite point where the wall starts, then the threat of current, then the distance from shore and the the depth, which limits the time out there.
