First Spiegel Grove dives and lessons learned

[gamon]

got the throw up massively all over two other guys' gear who were down the deck. Guys were upset, and mate didn't apologize at all. Which then almost led to a full blown fisticuffs between one of the guys

A guy was going to beat up a crew member because he inadvertantly washed some watered down puke onto his dive gear and didn't say sorry. Well that's his issue, not something you need to make yours.

 

[inquis]

Large groups of divers can spread out over a depth range of 12-25 feet or whatever

But for whatever reason, they often don't.

 

[crofrog]

I was very frustrated on the SG last month when I dove with my son. The surface currents were really ripping, probably in the neighborhood of near 2 knots.

At 17 feet my son and I both hooked our jon lines to the mooring line for a 5 minute hang. One other diver decides to deploy a jon line in exactly the same place and then he becomes braided with my sons line, leading to a need for disentanglement. Then about 5 other divers coming up chose to cluster right on our hooks, one of whom puts a hand directly on my garvin hook knocking it off the mooring line. Thankfully I was holding hands with my son at the stop or I would have been blown out and needed to be recovered. As it was it took a major hand over hand scramble to get back on the line to ascend.

This, and another major issue that happened to another diver that I don't want to recount, and I won't go back to any of the Key Largo sites unless I charter a private boat.

Just hang a bit lower like at 22-23 and you'll keep most of the other dives away from you because they'll go up until their computer starts counting down for the safety stop.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

But for whatever reason, they often don't.

Some people seem to think your safety stop must be PRECISELY 15' ... or 20' ... whatever they were taught. In their heads you can almost see them thinking ... "I need to be RIGHT THERE (where 5 other divers are already)!!"

 

[Eric802]

Horizon is my go to dive charter after CDR. The reason they're second is because 1) they don't have steel 100s only a handful of those jumbo sized AL100s that may be available upon request, first come first served (and I haven't been fortunate in that regard) and secondly because CDR will allow the first diver who makes a booking to choose their dive sites and I like to get on the Duane periodically, as well as the Eagle (which is too far South for Horizon and several other popular Key Largo based charters).

The "pick your site" thing is great. I was actually the second person who signed up to dive that day, but the first guy hadn't specified where he wanted to go. CRD was great about following up with him, seeing if he had a preference, and then getting back to me and saying "He doesn't care - where do YOU want to go?"

 

[gamon]

But for whatever reason, they often don't.

Hopefully more of them will read these helpful posts and the lightbulb will go on and it will be that much less of a problem going forward. Maybe we're just making a dent but hey it's something.

 

[coldwaterglutton]

A guy was going to beat up a crew member because he inadvertantly washed some watered down puke onto his dive gear and didn't say sorry. Well that's his issue, not something you need to make yours.

If the fight started it would have been my issue. There isn't a lot of room on that boat and they would have been on top of me. And the lack of cues by the mate in not simply apologizing and offering to help clean up? I get he had more divers to assist, but it really antagonized the pissed off guy.

 

[coldwaterglutton]

Just hang a bit lower like at 22-23 and you'll keep most of the other dives away from you because they'll go up until their computer starts counting down for the safety stop.

Yes of course, but we were the first up in the stop zone as our plan that day took us down to the sand which limited our time. Which as it turned out was totally worth it as we got some close up shark passes.

 

[Nemrod]

Penetrating into the SG on a single 80 and with a poor SAC and little experience sounds like a good way to to become deceased to me. With that current and depth and the possibility of getting easily away form an immediate exit, not recommended.

I have done solo on the SG several times with an 80 and a 19/30 pony slung. No problem, I have an extremely low SAC and I am fit and experienced and I increasingly know my limits and am actively reducing them. But I do not penetrate the wreck and swim down silty corridors on single tanks with no guide or guide line or jump reel. There is plenty to photograph on the outside and several nice, short, clearly open, non-silting swim throughs loaded with critters to visit without swimming off into the bowels of a wreck known to consume the ill-prepared and inexperienced divers. With no remorse, the SG just eats them up.

The vomit part, hmmm, SCUBA diving is not a sterile sport, I would not have appreciated it but I am sure the fellow was in a dire way. The mate should have moved the gear or asked people to step away for a wash down.