Boat Diving Tips?

[Dixie Diving]

I was wondering what is the way you guys make your boat dives. I have been on a charter a couple times, and how they did it was just tie (anchor) into the wrecks we were diving and run a rope from the anchor line down the side of the boat and about 100 feet pass the back of the boat.

Is this pretty much the standard why of doing? I'm about to take my adv. open water soon and was wondering if I was going to do the boat cert with it, would it be a waste of time, or will they teach me stuff that I really need to know if I'm going to be boat diving on a someone's personal boat.

I was thinkin that if I was to dive off a personal boat, I would use the same method as above but anchor just north of whatever I dive and when I get to the bottom at the anchor just tie a reel off and head south.

Now is that a horrible idea or do you know an easier more practical approach? Just trying to figure out how things are done, because I have access to a boat and it would be a lot better than having to pay out charters.

 

[Hetland]

I say take the class anyway, especially if you plan to dive from your own boat. Every little bit of experience is helpful. This is especially true in the Gulf, as conditions can be wildly different on each dive.

IMO the best practice is to anchor, then set out a safety line behind the boat, and a line from the stern to the anchor line. Ascend and descend the anchor line. There's not a lot that can go wrong with that practice.

The alternatives are to tie directly into a wreck or mooring buoy, which requires a divemaster, or diver to bounce down, or do a live boat, where the divers descend freely, or down a buoy line while a boat operator idles nearby. The last method is used by spearfishers that want to hit several locations as fast as they can, or in areas where it's not practical to anchor. It's riskier than the other methods though, and I would not recommend it until you're VERY comfortable with the idea, and always try something new like that with divers and boat operators that are experienced, or better yet, a class.

 

[Dixie Diving]

IMO the best practice is to anchor, then set out a safety line behind the boat, and a line from the stern to the anchor line. Ascend and descend the anchor line. There's not a lot that can go wrong with that practice.

QUOTE]

This is what I was thinking. I will be taking adv. open water soon, so I'll just do the boat diving option with it.

 

[sstep5884]

Another method that I use is to bring a marker bouy with you. When you see the wreck you're after on the bottom machine, throw that out, figure out which way you're drifting, the counter that and drop anchor. That way you'll drift back over the wreck and decend down the line on your marker bouy. I've found that it gets you a lot closer to the wreck, which is a help if you find the vis isn't that great.