Try Christmas tree stairs in a NJ boat with 4 tanks in a dry-suit with a heaving boat in a swell. And no, you can't take off your gear in the water either. The last step is the worst. No thanks.
Boat ladders and upper body v leg strength
- Thread starter Kimela
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'No thanks' is right! You folks who do cold water diving - and in those kind of conditions - have my respect ... from afar ... from where there is warm water to dive in!! I've read a couple of books about diving in the that area and it sounded really, really interesting - but I'll only get as far as reading about it.
To turn a phrase:
Crappy ladder arrangement. Rails are needed at least somewhere, preferably everywhere.
Since there are dive boats with decent ladders, you know it is possible.
Solution: don't spend your money at such operations, and squawk loudly.
Thank you for speaking up, and naming names.
Operations who listen to customers are going to have a better chance of surviving after COVID-19. I'd like the ones who don't improve to be the ones who disappear.
About your skills/fitness.....never hurts (except while doing it!) and it might help the next time you run into an inept dive operation.
About always taking your fins off in the water.....no, not always. Not if the T-ladder (a.k.a. "fins on ladder") is adequately designed.
About handing fins up to DM: OK idea, but easy to have one dropped by you ore the DM.
About carrying fins up by the heel straps: bad idea. Easy to drop BOTH of them.
About carrying fins up by putting the straps over the wrists: best idea. Taks but a moment, secure, and you ahve them with you to get back to the ladder if you slip off.
You are proposing a skills solution to an equipment problem.
Crappy ladder arrangement. Rails are needed at least somewhere, preferably everywhere.
Since there are dive boats with decent ladders, you know it is possible.
Solution: don't spend your money at such operations, and squawk loudly.
Thank you for speaking up, and naming names.
Operations who listen to customers are going to have a better chance of surviving after COVID-19. I'd like the ones who don't improve to be the ones who disappear.
About your skills/fitness.....never hurts (except while doing it!) and it might help the next time you run into an inept dive operation.
About always taking your fins off in the water.....no, not always. Not if the T-ladder (a.k.a. "fins on ladder") is adequately designed.
About handing fins up to DM: OK idea, but easy to have one dropped by you ore the DM.
About carrying fins up by the heel straps: bad idea. Easy to drop BOTH of them.
About carrying fins up by putting the straps over the wrists: best idea. Taks but a moment, secure, and you ahve them with you to get back to the ladder if you slip off.
DBPacific
Contributor
Oh heck no. I hate those types of stairs when I'm not coming out of the water let alone on a shifting boat. The last time I had a ladder like that it was on a boat to climb down to the ground (or vice versa) and I basically had to do a faceplant to get fully on the boat. No way am I doing that with dive gear on
My BC is the Zeagle Zena, and I take the weights out and put them on the dive platform, along with my camera. I also put my fins on the platform. I don't like to hand anything up for the exact reason you noted - they can get dropped. At Rainbow Reef they asked us to put our fins straps around our wrists and I did as told (because I'm like that) but I found it difficult to move my hands/arms as I grabbed the rope and then the ladder - and I guess if I were to take off my BC I'd have to do that before taking off the fins or that might be a challenge?
It's not you. That style of ladder is called a "fins-on"; I hate them, too, but for some folks that design is a feature, not a bug. I view them as annoying at best, and downright dangerous if the seas are rockin'.
My first experience with this "Christmas tree" ladder was my last dive trip to the Bahamas before the shut-down on the Aqua Cat live-aboard. It had been drilled into my training that you ALWAYS take your fins off before getting back on the boat, so I found this concept odd, but I did what I was told and walked up the Christmas tree with my fins on every dive. It was weird and I didn't like it, but I had no problems. All week, the seas had been occasionally rocky but not too crazy, but on day five the seas were terrible to get back on the boat. After the night dive while on the last step on the tree, the boat pitched hard, threw me forward onto the platform, momentarily pinning the fin on my left leg between the step and the bottom of the platform, then doing a face plant on the deck. That really sucked! For the rest of the dives, I took my fins off the in the water the traditional way and walked up the tree in my boots.
BTW, thanks for mentioning the dive op by name. I won't be diving with them.
BTW, thanks for mentioning the dive op by name. I won't be diving with them.
@living4experiences - that sounds absolutely horrible!! I'll remember that if we ever consider AquaCat. Yikes - I would have been terrified, and maybe thrown a few bad words around afterwards.
Tippytoes12
Contributor
We learned to dive in the Red sea and all the big boats had ladders like this. They are intended for climbing up with fins on. There are no dingies there, so if you miss the ladder you swim around the boat !
I have no idea what customer service on dive boats in Mexico is like. My hubby and I go to Asia, so the Philippines, Indonesia and also then Maldives and the Red Sea. I also have a desk job, but have a big garden to take care of and have a canine personal trainer, so am quite fit. I always aim to climb up with all my gear on, but in some areas this is not really possible, very small boats in Bali for example. There the boat crew take your gear and get it onto the boat.
But if conditions are bad or if I don’t feel I can manage, I always ask the crew to help and they always do and I them always tip them well. I have dived with many people who always put their gear on and off in the water. They email ahead and if it’s not possible they book another resort. I don’t think that any diver should be expected to do something that they are not able to.
I have no idea what customer service on dive boats in Mexico is like. My hubby and I go to Asia, so the Philippines, Indonesia and also then Maldives and the Red Sea. I also have a desk job, but have a big garden to take care of and have a canine personal trainer, so am quite fit. I always aim to climb up with all my gear on, but in some areas this is not really possible, very small boats in Bali for example. There the boat crew take your gear and get it onto the boat.
But if conditions are bad or if I don’t feel I can manage, I always ask the crew to help and they always do and I them always tip them well. I have dived with many people who always put their gear on and off in the water. They email ahead and if it’s not possible they book another resort. I don’t think that any diver should be expected to do something that they are not able to.
I have a bad hip and a couple years ago I hurt my shoulder. During the long period of rehab for the shoulder I figured out how weak my legs were (especially the right with the hip problem). I really struggled on a LOB so I went home decided that I was going to fix it. I now do squats regularly and it has made my LOB/dive boat experiences so much better. I can climb out with a tank on like a boss, so I know it really helped me. Can't fix a bad ladder, but it really helps for some of the other stuff like climbing in and out of tenders on to docks etc..
Once the squats get easy, add a block under one foot and lift the other off when you come up, then repeat on the other side.
Once the squats get easy, add a block under one foot and lift the other off when you come up, then repeat on the other side.
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