joe8mofo
Contributor
Has anyone had any experience with the black-water dive that is run from Kona? Which dive shops in the area do it and was it worthwhile, scary, or exhilarating? How deep are you suspended from the bottom of the boat?
Has anyone done the black-water dive from Kona?
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cuddlefish
Contributor
I did that dive with Jack's Diving Locker. Big Island Divers also offers it. Not sure if anyone else is doing it regularly. We each had a tether and hung at about 50 feet or so. I was a little nervous before getting in...but once I started seeing all the cool stuff I forgot about being nervous (most of the time!). I thought it was very worthwhile to do such a different dive and get to see creatures you never usually see. I love Kona diving and have done a lot of it...but this is really different.
I did an impromptu blue water dive with Jacks- I was quite a bit more experienced than any of the folks on the boat that day and the DM waved me away from the group and we took off away from the others straight out from the island and just hung out at 60' (bottom was probably several hundred feet there).
It was in the late afternoon- vis was 100+ that day- saw lots of big marine life cruising by.
It was in the late afternoon- vis was 100+ that day- saw lots of big marine life cruising by.
I wanted to do that dive, hanging in the absolute dark and seeing cool luminecent critters but the doctor only allowed me one dive over the next 6 months so I did the manta dive. You ought to go for it. I am sooo jealous.
We did the dive a week and a half ago or so, with Big Island Divers. They take you out about a mile offshore, where the bottom is 6000 feet or so. You splash off the boat already tethered, something which unnerved me, but they manage it well. There is a 50 foot downline from the boat (each diver on a separate line), and then you have a 10 foot tether which is free to slide up and down the downline. You spend an hour just hanging out and watching the strange, gelatinous things that float past you.
A couple of things I wasn't prepared for before I did the dive: Most of the things you are going to see are quite small -- anywhere from one to several centimeters in size. There are very few large animals, although we saw some big salp chains. And you will end up doing a horrendous seesaw profile as you follow the interesting creatures through the water -- my ears had HAD it with me by the end of the dive, despite my care to equalize constantly.
It was fun. I'm glad I did it, although we didn't happen to hit one of the nights with something fabulous. I thought BID did a good job for us, with appropriate concern for safety, and the way they have worked out to do this went smoothly.
A couple of things I wasn't prepared for before I did the dive: Most of the things you are going to see are quite small -- anywhere from one to several centimeters in size. There are very few large animals, although we saw some big salp chains. And you will end up doing a horrendous seesaw profile as you follow the interesting creatures through the water -- my ears had HAD it with me by the end of the dive, despite my care to equalize constantly.
It was fun. I'm glad I did it, although we didn't happen to hit one of the nights with something fabulous. I thought BID did a good job for us, with appropriate concern for safety, and the way they have worked out to do this went smoothly.
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joe8mofo
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As I have no night-diving cert or experience I guess I need to get that in order before I can go do this dive. It sounds like it may be more interesting than the manta-ray night dive. I am however hesitant by the fact that you are suspended above 6000 ft of sea; but as stated above that's not an issue as you are tethered.
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In order to get the most out of the dive, you should be very comfortable in "Black" water and have excellent buoyancy control.
The visibility can be extreme and unless there is something in the water for your light to reflect off of, it's a bit like shining a flashlight into the sky on a dark night. You can use the lines, the critters and the surface for reference, but the experience can be difficult for some.
Having solid buoyancy control will allow you to hover and drift with the critters without having to focus on the mechanics of controlling your buoyancy.
I'd rate this as a very low risk dive, but solid skills make it much more enjoyable. There is a low DM to diver ratio, visibility is excellent and you're tethered.... What could possibly go wrong as long as you breathe?
The visibility can be extreme and unless there is something in the water for your light to reflect off of, it's a bit like shining a flashlight into the sky on a dark night. You can use the lines, the critters and the surface for reference, but the experience can be difficult for some.
Having solid buoyancy control will allow you to hover and drift with the critters without having to focus on the mechanics of controlling your buoyancy.
I'd rate this as a very low risk dive, but solid skills make it much more enjoyable. There is a low DM to diver ratio, visibility is excellent and you're tethered.... What could possibly go wrong as long as you breathe?
Dave, LOVE the picture of the thing that looks like a butterfly! We didn't see anything like that. But Josh did tell us that they are still finding things that, when they send them off to Scripps and such places, they get the answer that nobody has seen that thing or knows what it is.
I don't know about other ops, but BID won't take you out to do this dive unless you have done a night dive with them. For us, the manta dive earlier in the evening counted. But this isn't like night diving, really; it's much more like doing night free descents or ascents, although you CAN always turn and look at the lines for a visual reference. But you don't want to look there much, because the lights there don't show the critters nearly as well as yours, shining into the black water.
The dive's a setup for vertigo, if you're susceptible. I was very, very pleased with myself that I did the whole thing with only one iffy moment.
I don't know about other ops, but BID won't take you out to do this dive unless you have done a night dive with them. For us, the manta dive earlier in the evening counted. But this isn't like night diving, really; it's much more like doing night free descents or ascents, although you CAN always turn and look at the lines for a visual reference. But you don't want to look there much, because the lights there don't show the critters nearly as well as yours, shining into the black water.
The dive's a setup for vertigo, if you're susceptible. I was very, very pleased with myself that I did the whole thing with only one iffy moment.
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