-Potentially Unsafe Observation During Dive

[Frontpointer1000]

Different things happen in different places! This board is great for learning about that and for that reason I’m glad this thread is here.

Diving Aruba with “Clive” (Dive Aruba) - Sponge Reef, dropped off on the Southern side, Clive dove with us for part of the dive, signaled he was going back to boat (then it was just my bro and I) then my bro went up and I screwed around solo. Clive then picked us up an hour later. As I recall he was just about a half mile away when we came up with a sausage on top. Different kind of strategy but it worked out great.

Everywhere is different

 

[The Chairman]

Funny how all the experts come out who weren't there

I haven't read anyone claiming to be an expert, but thanks for the condescension.

It's impossible for a charter to keep all their divers together once they're underwater. So, unless all the divers were in a tight little group, the dive boat has to split its time picking up the various splinters. It takes time. This is especially true if there's the odd southward current that one group finds. The dive op can't crap another boat out on demand, so they have to be ultra diligent and keep track of the various groups. It is what it is.

Why would I name a charter that I have respect for in a thread full of angry/hateful comments..

Disagreeing with you does not make it "angry/hateful".

I have accumulated a decent number of WPB/Boynton/Pompano + some keys dives under my belt but would not claim to be a the expert on diving so you may be right.

I haven't been diving very long, so I wouldn't consider myself an expert either. With my first dive in 1969, I haven't quite hit the 50 mark. I'm working on it, though.

Different things happen in different places! This board is great for learning about that and for that reason I’m glad this thread is here.

That's very true. I love drift diving over diving off of a moored or anchored boat. The differing currents and water temps make for differences in how divers are monitored and picked up. As someone pointed out though, most WPB/Boyton Beach diving is in site of the shore where a diver could easily swim in to shore. I've been in the Sea of Cortez where we've really been split up over way more than a mile. That was a tad stressful. and I wasn't one of the divers who got caught in that mondo current. I think it was more than an hour before we were all back on board. I would do that dive over, with that dive op in a New York Minute. Or even a Mexican Minute.

No, not all dive ops are for everyone. No one's going to force you to dive an op you've lost confidence in or simply don't like. You get to vote with your fins. My favorite Dive Op in the Keys did a drift dive where they herded all of us together like cattle. I hated that dive. I got kicked, hurried, and didn't enjoy it much. My buddy had the filter kicked off of her GoPro and she was just as stressed as I was. Great op, but I didn't like being under nanny like conditions and I would avoid another drift dive with them. Everyone else had a great time. What you don't like, possibly many other divers will love. The opposite may very well be true. The conditions I choose to dive in may make you uncomfortable. That doesn't make our disagreements angry or hateful: only different. Dive and let dive. After all, this would be a boring place if we all felt the same way about everything.

 

[Soloist]

I will delete all references to the dive op

I sincerely believe in the long run you will be glad you did. I removed your quotes and the name of the dive op from my posts as well.

 

[Soloist]

I find this discussion enlightening, fascinating even. Area-specific protocols and logistics are interesting and nuanced. I never would have known the WPB-specific drift diving particulars without this pro/con discussion. Thanks for the insights!

Certainly different than my drift-diving experience, but nice to hear from the area divers on the baseline normalcy and expectations of diving the area.

Great observation, but please don’t get the wrong impression by some of these stories and descriptions. WPB isn’t the Wild West of diving. If a diver chooses to stick with the dive guide, which all of the recreational boats have by the way, it’s not that different than any other drift dive, so a beginner or anyone else should feel perfectly safe. However, as with any location with lots of boat traffic being able to inflate a SMB underwater is very important.

On the other hand, the really great thing about WPB is if you are comfortable in the water and confident in your skills WPB can offer tremendous freedom. There are numerous boats that cater to spearfishing, lobster hunting, solo divers and even scooters, but be prepared to wait on the surface. 20 minutes is certainly not the norm, but it can easily happen. As stated earlier, divers can get spread out all over the place very quickly. Would I like for my boat to greet me with big smiling faces immediately upon hitting the surface? Sure. I would like a warm towel, a comfortable chair and an espresso too, but it ain’t gunna happen. The only drawback to WPB diving is the 60 minute time limit, but this is due to logistics of drift diving.

We cut our teeth in WPB, so we were dumbfounded by all the restrictions encountered when initially diving in the Caribbean. “Divers are to stay with the guides at all times”. Seriously? The first dive op we used in Cozumel everybody went down together and EVERYBODY came up together. Needless to say we found a different op. I have read about Dive with Clive in the past. I can’t imagine you having any issues diving your preference in WPB.

 

[The Chairman]

WPB isn’t the Wild West of diving.

Yeah, that would be Jupiter!

The first dive op we used in Cozumel everybody went down together and EVERYBODY came up together.

On our last invasion in Coz, after the first day of diving our DM comes up to me and says "Senor, I am a slow, slow diver but not as slow as you." The next day I find we have a second DM who stuck with me like glue. What a great buddy and we saw a lot of stuff. My actual buddy @Moose had a hard time keeping back, but I would approach him just before he needed to ascend. It's my underwater Spidey Sense. BTW, we always surfaced with the group and I knew where they were at all times. How could you miss that volume of bubbles? However, the converse wasn't true so I got a babysitter. Kind of funny. It's a big ocean and you're not going to see it all on one dive or even 5,000.

 

[aquacat8]

In Northern California, Monterey and the Channel Islands unless you were in a class or something usually buddy teams dive alone. It’s all about the viz! 40 feet is a GREAT day but 15 feet is not uncommon. Sometimes you are surprised to run into another buddy pair or small group. I don’t ever remember following a divemaster... they usually didn’t get into the water except to check anchors, help someone, or go spearfishing on their break. They watch bubbles and help everyone with their heavy gear.

The first time I finally got to dive warm in Florida I was surprised at the “follow the leader thing”, and also that my insta “buddy” immediately swam off out of reach without looking back… but then I realized: I could see 60-80 feet, I could see a lot of people, and I could see a number of potential air sources. It was a totally different scene.

 

[HalcyonDaze]

In Northern California, Monterey and the Channel Islands unless you were in a class or something usually buddy teams dive alone. It’s all about the viz! 40 feet is a GREAT day but 15 feet is not uncommon. Sometimes you are surprised to run into another buddy pair or small group. I don’t ever remember following a divemaster... they usually didn’t get into the water except to check anchors, help someone, or go spearfishing on their break. They watch bubbles and help everyone with their heavy gear.

The first time I finally got to dive warm in Florida I was surprised at the “follow the leader thing”, and also that my insta “buddy” immediately swam off out of reach without looking back… but then I realized: I could see 60-80 feet, I could see a lot of people, and I could see a number of potential air sources. It was a totally different scene.

Yeah, I went the opposite way - I learned to dive in South Florida and then moved out to Long Beach after three years. Lobster dives on the breakwall were where the idea of "same ocean buddy" was first introduced to me; before that I was adamant about staying with a buddy at all times. On hunting dives in reduced viz it was pretty much you either had two divers hunting alone or one hunting and one tagging along as a safety diver.

Ever since I got back to FL and became a regular on a couple of the Palm Beach County dive boats, I've mostly dove without a buddy and haven't been given grief for it. I've had one time when a group of us came up and the boat was nowhere in sight; they had dropped off some lobster divers at another spot and were off picking them up. Didn't time how long it took for them to come back for us, but it didn't seem like too long.

 

[sheeper]

I happen to work for the operator mentioned in this thread. Our dives are drift dives so pickup takes time some days.
As it happens, the day this was supposed to happen the boat was running some tech divers with scooters. This REALLY spreads people out and pickups can take even longer. Nobody on the boat that day had any issues and nobody was worried about a pickup. Several of the divers were extremely experienced tech divers.
So nothing to see here folks....move along.

 

[sportxlh]

Sounds logical. I've experienced long pickup times in somewhat similar cases. Glad you cleared this up