Don Your Scuba Gear and Help Clean a Famous Catalina Harbor

ETHEREAL AVALON HARBOR... is a place that seems to have emerged, fully formed, from some perfect daydream. Just glance at any postcard or picture and you'll see the deep blue ocean waters lapping at the edge of Catalina Island in a way that doesn't quite seem real. The sky is a pinky-peach or an electric azure, depending on the time of day. And all of those picturesque boats? They're so painterly, with the iconic Casino Building adding a grand touch to the background. But what a postcard or photograph depicting this stunner of a spot will likely not show? A scuba diver in Avalon Harbor. It's true that there are other gorgeous plunges that a scuba enthusiast can take around the island, but the much-photographed harbor doesn't allow it... except for one day a year. And that day? It will be Feb. 25 in 2023, which is when the Avalon Harbor Underwater Cleanup returns to de-litter the briny blue.

IT'S THE 41ST YEAR... for the event, which regularly draws hundreds of volunteers. The Avalon Rotary Club Foundation and Catalina Divers Supply are presenting the pitch-in happening, which will conclude with an awards ceremony. The harbor tidy-up is definitely one of the more unusual ways to lend a hand in the state; while there are many beautifying events that happen on terra firma, far fewer happen fully beneath the waves (though, true, the annual cleaning of the Los Angeles River involves both land and water). The beneficiaries include "USC Hperbaric Chamber, the Avalon Rotary Club Foundation and Avalon Beautiful's Casino Dive Park improvement project." There's plenty to know before you go, so dive into all of the information on gear, the waiver, and cleanup details here.