Asking your opinion

[TexasGabby]

Hey Charlie - thats a GREAT idea about getting one to do shore diving with me - I could probably do that the day I get there after checking in at the dive shop.

Thanks

 

[Knight1989]

2) A formal "refresher training" course. After 2-1/2 years, and no dives after your OW cert, you may have forgotten a lot.

I certainly secound this opinion. This is absolutly correct, I strongly suggest a formal refresher course. They are relitivly quick and inexpensive and really do help you out. PADI strongly recomends that if you have been inactive for a extended period of time you complete the PADI refresher course. Many dive centers actualy wont take you out if you havent dove in a while unitll you have completed a refresher course.

As for you diving deeper than what you are trained and comfertable with. IF you dont feel comfertable, which it sounds like you dont, diving beyond what your training and experiance allows, then dont. Any DM that dosent respect that, is deffintly not a person I would want leading my dive. Dont allow yourself to be pressured into diveing beyond what you feel is safe for you. From personal experiance, it can be very very bad. Do some shore dives to help refresh yourselfself and build your confidance back up. If you have a private DM, I'd get one from anouther LDS just to avoid the case that was mentioned above about haveing your "private" DM be one of the group leaders and not being all that private. Just some thoughts.

 

[Ayisha]

First of all, my condolences for all your losses.

Santa Rosa Wall is a beautiful but challenging dive, and should not be your first o/w dive after 2 years. If I remember correctly, it had a pretty good current and was essentially "bottomless" at some points. It requires you to be comfortable with your equipment, your skills, and your buddy. On the first dive, you won't be sure of any of these things.

On the first dive, you could do a shore dive and check your weighting and your equipment. If you're concerned about equipment, you could rent equipment that you're familiar with from your Local Dive Store and take it with you. You may even be able to try it in the pool to make sure you're comfortable with it. Does your LDS have pool sessions with instructors available? They can help you practice your skills and maybe even do a refresher course. A refresher course here costs $25 (that's Canadian!), so it may be cheap there too. They should be able to give you some tips on drift diving as well.

It doesn't sound right that this Cozumel dive shop knows your history, knows that you are uncomfortable, and would still schedule this for your first dive. Perhaps you might want to check other dive shops.

I don't know which shop you are booked with, but I've spent 2 weeks over 2 years with 2 entirely different crew with Aqua Safari. I have found them to be very watchful and very helpful. I have seen them signal to people to go up a bit and even go right up to them if they're not paying attention, even if they seem to be only a couple of feet below the planned maximum. I've seen them give lots of advice and go out of their way to help people perfect their buoyancy, etc. They matched divers (novice, advanced...) to boats and were very particular about who could go on certain dives like Punta Sur - Devil's Throat (awesome - beautiful dive!) and they watched all week while we essentially proved ourselves. I've also done a few dives with Dive Paradise, and found them to be quite good as well.

Having said all this, I also realize that in warm water and amazing visibility, there are less complications and you frequently see o/w divers diving to around 100 feet. After all, the 60 feet is just a recommended limit. Also at most of the dive sites that they will probably take you to (unlike Barracuda wall, Punta Sur, Maracaibo, etc.), I found the current pretty light - it's a nice slooow drift. Probably after 2 or 3 o/w days, you might feel comfortable enough to go deeper.

Sorry to be so long-winded. Hope this helps! :sunny

 

[SubMariner]

Thank you soooo much for all of you folks support - I think I will tell them I want to keep at 45-50 ft. I am hiring a private DM - soooo, I should be OK....

I just want it to be a Good experience and keep healthy....

Thanks

First of all, congrats for being a smart diver by recognizing that:

1) You need a refresher because you haven't dove in a while.
2) You need to listen to your "inner voice" when it comes to your training, ability, and comfort zone.

However, as others have already said, the primary thing you have to remember as a diver is that while you should dive with a buddy, ultimately YOU are the one responsible for your own well being in the water. So please look upon the DM as a dive guide and not a safety net.

DSDO,

 

[redacted]

Main point is you need to be comfortable with the planned dives. If you are not comfortable, don't do it.

Where are you staying & who do you plan to dive with? If you are staying south of town but not south of Fiesta Americana, ther are many OK shore diving opportunities which beat the hell out of any TX lake dive.

Also, most of the 80 ft "deep" dives are done on strongly sloping reefs (walls) that top out in the 30 to 60 ft range. I frequently do my last day of diving on a trip to Coz limiting my depth to 60 feet while the group is at 80+ to get ready for the next days flight. Just let the DM know what you are planning to do and manage the drift so you say behind the DM and above the group. With your own DM and a cooperative operator, you could easily be doing a 30 to 40 ft dive while the rest of the boat is deep on many of the sites.

Finally, 80 ft in Coz is somewhat deceptive. It is so clear that you can easily see to the surface. I believe this has a tendency to reduce the adverse phycological effects of a deep dive (the gremlins between your ears) so you will probably be surprisingly comfortable. But it is still a to a 2 minute trip to the surface in an emergency for a safe ascent, plus the 3 to 5 minute rest stop unless the situation prohibits it.

I think you will enjoy the trip. Just don't do anything you are not reasonably comfortable with.

 

[mike_s]

As the others here said, don't do something you don't want to.

There is no reason your first dive has to be 80 feet.

I think if you could start out with a shore dive you'd like that, because you could gradually go deeper a little as you get away from the shoreline.
Follow that up with a boat dive in 20 to 40 feet of water.

Until you have a few dives under your belt and can mentally gauge your air usage, I wouldn't do an 80 foot dive yet.

You know there are lots of divers out there who are "big divers" that really don't care about going very deep. They enjoy the shallower reefs and have just as good of a time as the other folks.

mike

 

[USIA]

The one thing I've learned about diving over the past 20 year is never exceed your own expectations. Especially if you haven't been in the water for awhile. I have had a lot of friends who have had bad experiences diving in foreign countries because of the lack of safety protocol by the dive charters and dive masters. I had a friend who had never dove, takes a lesson that morning from a Jamaican Dive Instructor, takes her down 80 feet on her first dive, knowing she was flying out that night. I think you know what the result of that was. Air in the blood stream and all most died.

Diving is the greatest sport in the world, but it must be done under proper instruction and in the case of a new diver, supervision.

 

[TexasGabby]

Thanks to all for your wonderful and heartfelt advice...... I really do appreciate it.

since I am new to this website also, how do I erase this message so - people won't feel the need to write on it - however, everyone has come up with something good.

Thanks again - I just don't want to take up too much space -

 

[Warren_L]

Much of the diving in Cozumel is drift diving - which can be some of the most relaxing diving as all you do is drift along with the current. But as all the others have said, if you have doubts or concerns, better to err on the side of caution. I was just there a few weeks back and I got in a few shore dives (both by day and by night) at the hotel I stayed at (Hotel Cozumel). The depths were no more than 17 ft with little to no current, great viz, and tons to see. It may be a good idea to start off with something like that to get your feet wet again, so to speak. After you get more comfortable in the water, move on at your own pace to the deeper dives. 80 ft might be a little much, but there are plenty of reefs in the 40-50 ft range with lots to see. Good luck!

 

[Juls64]

I've been there before and dove with groups. This time I was with all non-divers, so I was on my own for diving. Went with Dive Paradise since that is who I was familiar with. They put a very new diver, and myself with one divemaster. This was on a cattle boat. He was great with the newby. Stayed beside her. Did constant air checks with both of us. He held her hand at times. I was surprised. I, personally felt smothered. But it was reassuring to see a divemaster actually watch out for his charges.

We did an 80 foot wall the first dive. It is not at all uncommon to go to this depth in Cozumel, even for newbies.

The best thing for you to do, is to do what you are comfortable with.

Have a safe, fun trip.

Julie