How to Deal with Sea Urchin Spines
If you don’t have a few purple urchin tattoos, you likely haven’t been diving hard enough. The purpose of this article is to prepare you to remove urchin spines from yourself or others. Key takeaway: carry a safety pin.
Ocular Trauma at Sea
Vision is our most critical sense underwater. Yet, a spearfisherman’s environment is at all times hostile towards it. Scouring seascape, our eyes are beaten by sun and wind. Underwater, our eyes are subject to mask pressure, infiltration by salt, sand, and ocean microorganisms. Acute and chronic ocular traumas irritate the tissues of the eye and can insidiously perpetuate vision loss.
Sinus Inflammation
I was not going to miss a glass-off in Northern California just because I couldn’t clear my ears the night before – or the morning of. Sudafed and visions of large, toothy, holed up Lingcod helped me push past stuffy sinuses; until I came up from a dive with my mask filled with blood.
Shellfish: Nutrition and Toxins
This section seeks to embolden the harvest of shellfish, particularly mussels and chocolate clams along the California and Baja coasts. Both are exceptional in flavor, nutrition, and abundance. With precise knowledge of the risks, you may reap incredible rewards.
Ciguatera, Scombroid, & Tetrodotoxin
Our sport offers untold riches in exotic and nutritious foods, however missteps in preparation can have dire consequences.
Immersion Diuresis
I have never had the urge to pee so often than when I am spearfishing. After many bouts of folliculitis, I have come to understand that this as a well-studied physiological phenomenon known as Immersion Diuresis.
Underwater Pupillary Reflex
If you practiced, you could see clearly underwater without goggles. It wouldn’t take you very long.