Solo diving... thumbs up, thumbs down?

[Randy43068]

Who solo dives, and who doesn't... and why for each?

Diving solo isn't a DIR thing to do, but I admit to doing it.

It's a personal decision and depends on several factors for me. If it's a quarry with people around and I intend on just swimming around a platform then I haven't a problem with it. If it's a dive of any other "involvement" then I wouldn't go solo.

 

[MikeSK]

Unless I'm with my daughter I greatly prefer to solo dive for a number of reasons.

1) I can take my time and peer in to every little crevice without having to worry if my insta-buddy is dead on the sea floor, a mile ahead of me cause they're frickin aquaman and don't care about the sites, etc

2) I didn't pay a couple grand for that once every two years if i'm lucky vacation to be a babysitter. I'm there to dive, dive, dive. Not watch some insta-moron flail around, or share my air because someone has no control

True story. My very first dive vacation was to Bonaire back in..96 i think. I went with the LDS but was alone. I got paired with a somewhat nice overweight lady. IIRC..she was only OW certified whereas i had gotten up to rescue at that point and was working on my Masters.

Our first dive after the checkout dive we got down to like..IDK, 30 feet. She had some kinda problem with air, or BC or something and shot to the surface. I was about ten feet below her and tried to grab her fin to steady her so i could get to her to see what was up. All that did was pull me up with her. I let go and made a slow ascent after her.

When I asked what was up, she said she couldnt equalize. Rather than just go up a few feet and try again, she shot up to the surface. We did a slow descent, she took her time clearing, and we finished the dive. We did several more dives off of Sand Dollar in the shallows (no more than 50 feet or so).

We had an arrangement to meet every morning for breakfast and then go diving. I waited for like an hour one morning and decided to check on her only to discover she had fallen down the steps from the second floor of the hotel. She didn't break anything thankfully, but that pretty much killed her diving. I continued to do boat dives and tagged along with a couple other people for some shore dives. But this experience has soured me on the insta-buddy bit.

When i do solo, i try and stay under 50 feet or so. That's my max, but depending on the location its usually lower. Peal Lake near me for instance, everything worth seeing is below 40 feet anyway.

When I did my DM internship at my LDS i would drive ahead of the group to Devils Lake so i could grab the good parking spots, and tie off the flag on the training platform. I would do a ten minute solo dive after tying off to just relax and be at peace before the noobs showed up.

Solo diving is Quiet..its Peaceful, Its relaxing, and as long as you know what your doing, IMO..its the best way to go. Provided you aren't being stupid and doing solo cave diving, or penetration wreck dives, or dives below 60 feet without at a minimum a pony bottle. And redundant everything of course.

 

[JoeSpirit]

I enjoy solo diving.

Sometimes I'll burn a tank just hovering in meditation. I like that no-grav feel.

I've started many dives and become separated from my dive partner, and went ahead to finish the dive alone. Never seen any logic in wasting a good dive. Of course, this is only when I know the other diver, and am comfortable with their experience and skill in going on without me by their side.

As far as preferring to dive with another solo diver I'm a little mixed in feeling.

I do believe that a solo diver as a buddy is more valuable as a potential rescue source if I get into trouble that I can't handle on my own. Though I'm confident in my diving abilities, and emergency response emotions.

At the same time when I'm diving with someone else I struggle with remembering that I have a responsibility to watch out for troubles they might encounter. I'm so tuned in to not expecting any help from an external source, I space the possibility that the other diver might need my help.

In that sense I think diving with a solo diver might not be as safe as diving with an experienced diver who is aware of his buddy's safety.

But my final opinion is that we're all ultimately responsible for ourselves.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

A thought to ponder.....If you don't have the skills and mindset to be a solo diver, can you really be a solid buddy?

Yes ... I have many friends and dive buddies who have no desire to solo dive, and they are without exception some of the best dive buddies I've got. For the most part they have mad skills ... many at a level I will never achieve. But none of them have the mindset for solo diving. It's simply not, philosophically, how they choose to dive.

Frankly, one of the hardest things about solo diving is maintaining the mindset to then go diving with someone else and be a solid dive buddy. I don't think the mindsets are as compatible as some of y'all seem to believe it to be. It can be done ... for sure ... but it does take a bit of effort to remember whether you're wearing your "solo" hood or your "team" hood ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Kevin Carlisle]

Yes ... I have many friends and dive buddies who have no desire to solo dive, and they are without exception some of the best dive buddies I've got. For the most part they have mad skills ... many at a level I will never achieve. But none of them have the mindset for solo diving. It's simply not, philosophically, how they choose to dive.

Frankly, one of the hardest things about solo diving is maintaining the mindset to then go diving with someone else and be a solid dive buddy. I don't think the mindsets are as compatible as some of y'all seem to believe it to be. It can be done ... for sure ... but it does take a bit of effort to remember whether you're wearing your "solo" hood or your "team" hood ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I go from solo to buddy diving every weekend. Nothing hard about it and no solo or team hood to wear. Either you have someone to discuss and plan a dive with and throw some signals or you don't.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Well said, anyone entering the water with a fixed mindset of relying on someone else for help is a potential accident waiting to happen....

I make a distinction between solo and self-reliant. When I dive with someone, I'm not relying on them so much as sharing an experience. I prepare differently ... mentally and physically ... depending on whether I'm diving alone or with another diver. There are some dives I won't do solo, and others I would prefer to do without a dive buddy.

Everyone makes their own decisions, and for their own reasons ... but reading some of the comments here cause me to wonder if perhaps some of y'all have either missed the point of buddy diving or else have never, really, dived with someone who knows how to be a dive buddy.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I go from solo to buddy diving every weekend. Nothing hard about it and no solo or team hood to wear. Either you have someone to discuss and plan a dive with and throw some signals or you don't.

Our teams are a bit more interactive than that ... particularly on more aggressive dives. Things like communication and positioning are much easier when they're habitual. Of course, that assumes you use those skills when you're with a buddy. If you don't then I can understand your point.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[spectrum]

I do go solo. perhaps 10% of the time. Sometimes the solitude is welcome but in general I prefer to share the experience with a good buddy, ideally my wife.

While the buddy skills to get a rest I do find that the situational awareness gets cranked up and I think that washes back to the buddy outings.

I think I went through the classic stages of I want to, no way, and finally feeling I was ready and understood what I was getting into. It's an empowering feeling to go the the beach for a dive, see the conditions are sub-par and head off to do something else. I think getting to the stage where my desire to dive would not override my better judgment was a milestone.

Pete

 

[kathydee]

About a year ago I did a little bit of solo skill practice in shallow, warm, clear, calm water just outside a resort. A free diver solo woman was practicing near by and we kept each other company. I promised myself I wouldn’t go past 15 ft deep but found myself at 30 and wishfully gazing out into the blue. It would have been so easy to step through that door, but quickly ascended back to 15 ft before I caught the solo bug.

Much like I never allowed myself to enjoy that second cigarette which could lead to a habit – in both situations (in very different ways) I could just see potentially risky journeys lying ahead. So IMHO there was no reason to step on to the inviting path.

After this solo experience I can certainly understand the appeal for that level of freedom and peace, but know solo diving can kill. I helped with a gruesome rescue of a diver who almost died while soloing in 40 ft where a buddy probably would have made the difference.

So except for the occasionally solo pool practice of simple skills at the dive shop where there are employees walking by, I never take my scuba equipment into the water without a partner (preferable a good trusted partner who sticks close and has great situational awareness). I feel very strongly about that decision.

After the rescue, it makes me quite uncomfortable to see others dive solo, especially good friends. I’m always a bit relieved when they return safely to the surface.

 

[chrisbrown]

Depends on how deep, anything at 70+ is a must for a buddy.