bassplayer
Contributor
I'm curious to hear what your experience was like with the currents, compared to what you were anticipating. Did you feel like there was much of a learning curve to get over?
Advice (and encouragement?) for surviving and thriving in Raja Ampat
- Thread starter melliodora
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OP
melliodora
Registered
@bassplayer I had been most concerned about the potential for strong down currents (why did I read the report of the diver who died in a down current in RA???), or having to kick against super strong currents, and I didn't really experience these. A few sites had slight down currents, and the advice of watching the fish was actually incredibly helpful for spotting these in advance (fish swimming up = current moving down). In RA the guides always did a current check before we descended, and with a few exceptions (see below) it was always light to medium.
In terms of currents in general, I definitely was less experienced before this trip (just a few drift dives off Vancouver Island, a couple with stronger current here and there around La Paz), and felt my comfort and confidence grow over the month I was in Indo (Nusa Penida, Komodo, RA). I guess 50+ dives in a bit under a month will do that!
I started in Nusa Penida, and currents were generally fairly mild, or medium but a manageable drift dive - surge at Manta Point was more of an issue but that's never really bothered me. On one strong "superman" drift in Komodo I found myself struggling a bit with buoyancy and getting pushed off the reef and fighting to get back - my breathing got out of whack and the CO2 scaries kicked in, but I made it to our guide and she calmly held my hand, gave me the kindest and calmest look I have ever received, and all was well. That was also a good learning experience, and from then on I focussed on long slow kicks, long slow breaths, and focussing on a single point if my mind started getting ahead of me (Paula from Scuba Junkies if you happen to read this, I think I will forever picture your calming eyes whenever I need to calm myself underwater
). I was fortunate enough to be 1:1 with a guide for 3 days in Komodo with Scuba Junkies, so for those 9 dives I practised deploying my dsmb to get more confident with that.
RA was also on the whole fewer strong currents than I was expecting. The strongest (Sardine) we descended with reef hooks at the ready and immediately hooked in - I had been a bit nervous but it was both exhilarating and oddly calming, floating there in the raging current. Arborek Jetty was a medium strong drift dive, Mike's Point had some strong current to kick against just to get down to the wall, Lao Lao and some spots around Arborek had patches of medium current to kick through at times, and some (even more) inexperienced divers struggled with these, but I had a blast. The famous Cape Kri was fairly mild when we did it!
Probably the worst moment of the trip was while I was solidly planted on a sandy patch with my pointer stick in fairly strong current, watching a school of Barracuda, then getting kicked hard in the head by a diver passing overhead - mask got knocked down, breath kicked out of me, and got kicked right into strong current. Once again I made it to the DM and managed to make it through the dive but was pretty shaken up. But overall, I feel much more confident in my abilities, both physical and mental.
Anyway, long rambling answer but this was a helpful prompt to reflect
In terms of currents in general, I definitely was less experienced before this trip (just a few drift dives off Vancouver Island, a couple with stronger current here and there around La Paz), and felt my comfort and confidence grow over the month I was in Indo (Nusa Penida, Komodo, RA). I guess 50+ dives in a bit under a month will do that!
I started in Nusa Penida, and currents were generally fairly mild, or medium but a manageable drift dive - surge at Manta Point was more of an issue but that's never really bothered me. On one strong "superman" drift in Komodo I found myself struggling a bit with buoyancy and getting pushed off the reef and fighting to get back - my breathing got out of whack and the CO2 scaries kicked in, but I made it to our guide and she calmly held my hand, gave me the kindest and calmest look I have ever received, and all was well. That was also a good learning experience, and from then on I focussed on long slow kicks, long slow breaths, and focussing on a single point if my mind started getting ahead of me (Paula from Scuba Junkies if you happen to read this, I think I will forever picture your calming eyes whenever I need to calm myself underwater
). I was fortunate enough to be 1:1 with a guide for 3 days in Komodo with Scuba Junkies, so for those 9 dives I practised deploying my dsmb to get more confident with that.RA was also on the whole fewer strong currents than I was expecting. The strongest (Sardine) we descended with reef hooks at the ready and immediately hooked in - I had been a bit nervous but it was both exhilarating and oddly calming, floating there in the raging current. Arborek Jetty was a medium strong drift dive, Mike's Point had some strong current to kick against just to get down to the wall, Lao Lao and some spots around Arborek had patches of medium current to kick through at times, and some (even more) inexperienced divers struggled with these, but I had a blast. The famous Cape Kri was fairly mild when we did it!
Probably the worst moment of the trip was while I was solidly planted on a sandy patch with my pointer stick in fairly strong current, watching a school of Barracuda, then getting kicked hard in the head by a diver passing overhead - mask got knocked down, breath kicked out of me, and got kicked right into strong current. Once again I made it to the DM and managed to make it through the dive but was pretty shaken up. But overall, I feel much more confident in my abilities, both physical and mental.
Anyway, long rambling answer but this was a helpful prompt to reflect
TostitoBandito
Contributor
Haven't been to RA yet, though I'm going in January. I'm not concerned because I've done a lot of diving elsewhere in the Pacific at places known for strong currents, like Fiji for example. Ranging from relaxing drift dives, to brisk drift dives, to brisk drift dives with surprise 5+ knot adventures up and over the reef, to "holy crap I can't even get to the pinnacle I have to abort the dive". Currents can never be entirely predicted, so stuff happens. Good dive staff and captains can usually put you in a good situation 90% of the time though. They know the sites they dive, when to dive them amongst tides, which direction to go, monthly tidal cycles, etc... Good operators won't just randomly drop you on a site because it's next on the list without considering conditions. Many places I've been there's certain sites that aren't diveable a large portion of the time due to the tides.
I've done a fair bit of diving and never encountered any significant down current, but the common theme you'll find in almost all accidents blamed on them is that the divers panicked or otherwise didn't do what they should've done or were trained to do. Which is to stay calm, not try to furiously kick against it (the case with ANY current), monitor your depth, and systematically try to do things like kick towards or away from the reef, perpendicular to the current, and/or carefully using your BCD to help arrest your descent. If you don't panic, even being blown down to say 150 feet on a recreational dive isn't immediately fatal. You stay calm, get out of the current, ascend at a safe rate ASAP, and follow any deco obligations (if you have the gas or a buddy's gas for it). If you're struggling kicking like crazy against the current while getting pushed to depth you're gonna NARC instantly (or if on nitrox, have a seizure) and be so out of your mind that you can't save yourself, so being calm is the key. As it is with anything in this sport.
Anyways, not something any experienced diver should be afraid of. Use a good operator, pay attention to the briefings, have a good buddy, and remember your basic skills. Odds are you'll never have even to deal with freak horror story situation like the ones you read about, and if you do the results will be much better.
I've done a fair bit of diving and never encountered any significant down current, but the common theme you'll find in almost all accidents blamed on them is that the divers panicked or otherwise didn't do what they should've done or were trained to do. Which is to stay calm, not try to furiously kick against it (the case with ANY current), monitor your depth, and systematically try to do things like kick towards or away from the reef, perpendicular to the current, and/or carefully using your BCD to help arrest your descent. If you don't panic, even being blown down to say 150 feet on a recreational dive isn't immediately fatal. You stay calm, get out of the current, ascend at a safe rate ASAP, and follow any deco obligations (if you have the gas or a buddy's gas for it). If you're struggling kicking like crazy against the current while getting pushed to depth you're gonna NARC instantly (or if on nitrox, have a seizure) and be so out of your mind that you can't save yourself, so being calm is the key. As it is with anything in this sport.
Anyways, not something any experienced diver should be afraid of. Use a good operator, pay attention to the briefings, have a good buddy, and remember your basic skills. Odds are you'll never have even to deal with freak horror story situation like the ones you read about, and if you do the results will be much better.
bassplayer
Contributor
very interesting answer, and nice work recovering from the kick to the head! that must have been intense.Probably the worst moment of the trip was while I was solidly planted on a sandy patch with my pointer stick in fairly strong current, watching a school of Barracuda, then getting kicked hard in the head by a diver passing overhead - mask got knocked down, breath kicked out of me, and got kicked right into strong current. Once again I made it to the DM and managed to make it through the dive but was pretty shaken up. But overall, I feel much more confident in my abilities, both physical and mental.
Anyway, long rambling answer but this was a helpful prompt to reflect
OP
melliodora
Registered
I did actually try and call the dive but I guess in all my flailing and trying to gesture "fin to head, fin to head!" the DM didn't understand, and I decided I could pull through. Crying inside a mask (it wasn't THAT hard, just shaken up) is a weird sensation!
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