Cold water diving is a PITA

[Chuck Tribolet]

Check this link about 3-4 days prior to a potential dive trip: http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/mtr/getcwfzone.php?sid=MTR&zone=PZ560

That link is often wildly optimistic, and it was today. I just made a post about that at http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/norcal/425815-monterey-conditions-lets-keep-going.html. The Navy and Scripps (CDIP) models are much more accurate, but harder to read (colors on a map).

Chuck

 

[BluewaterSail]

Quite possible to have unmanagable surf in warm water!

Seems like you had "the perfect storm" where almost everything went wrong. Keep at it. What's the chances of so many problems on your next excursion?

Personally, I would try to find a sheltered diving area to sort out the equipment issues before attempting that particular surf entry again.

 

[3D diver]

Quite possible to have unmanagable surf in warm water!

Seems like you had "the perfect storm" where almost everything went wrong. Keep at it. What's the chances of so many problems on your next excursion?

Personally, I would try to find a sheltered diving area to sort out the equipment issues before attempting that particular surf entry again.

Sad thing is, the breakwater is usually quite sheltered. Just wade in, put on your fins and go. (Well, that's what I do.)

 

[Ben_ca]

And using rental gear is like trying to spin the roulette wheel everytime you go out.

Imagine having random gear everytime you go out... just using a different drysuit alone every weekend would drive me crazy

 

[Peter_C]

Today simply wasn't a day to be in the water.

We drove out to the coast as I said we would do, and I got to see the highlight of day on the way out, as a HUGE bobcat sauntered across the field off a remote side road. The flowers are blooming, the grass is green and the scenery spectacular. We drove down to the bluff at Fort Ross, spent about 30 seconds looking at the water and concluded today was not a day to get in the water. So we walked the beach collecting trash, then drove to Gerstle Cove and walked around some. Stopped at Still Water Cove for some beach combing and trash pickup there. Returned to Fort Ross and cleaned up the beach of more garbage, grabbed some cool driftwood, and headed to the golf course for lunch and a beer. It was a fun day, and I never got in the water. I choose my days carefully and am never sorry for calling a dive on shore. That is the beauty of having my own equipment, and knowing there will always be another day to dive.

Had conditions been better this weekend we would have had Emily trying out one of my BP/W's, Hp100 steel tanks, with Bill using my Hp130's, out on the North Coast, but I wound up telling them not to bother coming as conditions were probably going to be too crappy for diving.

We need to get you two out to Blue Fish Cove at Point Lobos for an easy entry (Fall off the boat) and from 25ft depth follow the contour slowly downward as it gets deeper. It is one of my favorite dives in Northern California. We just need the conditions to cooperate.

 

[billt4sf]

First, ditch the aluminum tanks.

Second, see if you can borrow a backplate setup from somebody. Put that six pounds on your back, and you've now cut the total lead you have to put in a belt or pockets by 12 pounds.

Third, make a date with one of the active Monterey divers to dive at Lobos.

when you own your own equipment, it does make it both easier and kind of cheaper

It's worth persevering, for two reasons: One, you have some of the world's best diving at your doorstep, and two, you will never be as facile, relaxed, and efficient a diver if you can only do it on vacation.

Thanks, all for your comments!

Lynne, do you mean to say that a BP/W will cut 12 ADDITIONAL pounds or 12 pounds total from the load after we switch to steel tanks?

We do have an upcoming date with experienced divers at Pt. Lobos. I hope the conditions are good! We had to cancel the last one.

In thinking it over some more, I have to say that the enjoyable cold dives we have had were when we had an experienced diver with us (either an instructor or a more experienced friend) -- not so much for the diving skills but for the logistical and equipment help -- help getting the suits on correctly, help getting in and out of the surf, help toting everything around. I hate to say this but part of it is age (we are late 50's early 60's) -- we exercise regularly -- I do stairs -- so we're in great shape for our age but toting 60 lbs+ is an issue for us.

A poll: can you get up from hands and knees with your gear on? In surf or not in surf? I can do so (barely) with my tropical gear on but not with cold-water gear. My wife has more trouble with her knees -- all we gotta do is blow one of those puppies out and we're done diving -- period.

I hear you about getting our own gear. If I were still working as an engineer I would have already done so. But 10 years ago I went into new career as a teacher (word of warning, it's not that good) and now lots of things are competing for those dollars. A BP/W + tanks + DS has got to be about $2k each, right? Maybe 2/3 of that if we buy used? And I haven't mentioned regs yet. I don't see that in our near future. Maybe tanks first? (We like Nitrox).

Peter -- thanks SO MUCH for your help, offers to borrow equipment, and encouragement! You have been extraordinary!!!

We're not done yet, but like I said, we need to start having fun soon! There's lots of fun things to do in life -- diving is one of them. Maybe I will take up learning to play the euphonium.....

Thanks again everyone.

Bill

 

[g1138]

I'm glad you two have a keep-trying mindset.
I don't think buying tanks as a first purchase is wise, unless you have your own gear and go diving a lot. Tanks should be the last purchase in my mind. I wouldn't worry about buying your own set up right now. While it does help to become a better diver quicker, you can still get buy. Most shops in this are only change out their rental fleet yearly, so that gives you a year to dive with the same rental setup and get used to it.

Getting up with gear in surf or no surf? Well I'm young, 24. 5'6" 110lbs. Not exactly a lot of brute strength to go around, I tend to use leverage to my advantage a lot.

My trick is to roll over onto my stomach
- do a push up with my knees on the ground
- Lean back so I'm now resting on both knees (gotta curl your stomach, so you're not planking and using all your back muscles for this)
- Then take a football players stance.
- Get one foot planted down, opposite hand then plants on the ground.
---Push backwards on your planted foot, shifting weight onto the foot with the knee down on the ground. The idea is to dig that knee-down foot into the sand and just keep pushing into it, allowing that leg to raise. It's like putting up a plywood wall. You don't lift and tilt the whole thing. You plant the base, then lift the opposite end and walk it up. Once you get halfway up, take a step forward with the knee-down leg and then it's just a squat from then on.

Having a person assisting you when you're down helps a lot. But you should have elbows locked together OR elbow under the armpit, helps a whole lot more than trying to pull each other up with just your hands held. Exercising helps, but also diving a lot is the best way to quickly build up the muscles you need. I've been lucky to have had few long hiatuses between diving. So for me I think I'm well tuned to getting back up from a fall. I'm usually in a class setting, so I'm picking up dropped fins, getting my feet sweeped out while helping up rolled students etc. But whenever I got back into it from a long break, it hurt A LOT.

 

[billt4sf]

I'm glad you two have a keep-trying mindset.
I don't think buying tanks as a first purchase is wise, unless you have your own gear and go diving a lot. Tanks should be the last purchase in my mind. I wouldn't worry about buying your own set up right now. While it does help to become a better diver quicker, you can still get buy. Most shops in this are only change out their rental fleet yearly, so that gives you a year to dive with the same rental setup and get used to it.

g: We have used the same LDS exclusively (Bamboo Reef, they have been good with us), we basically have the same rental gear each time. I said "tanks" because perhaps it is the easiest, cheapest way to lose a few pounds off our set-ups, which I think is the first thing we need to do if we really go forward. Am I wrong?

- Bill

 

[g1138]

g: We have used the same LDS exclusively (Bamboo Reef, they have been good with us), we basically have the same rental gear each time. I said "tanks" because perhaps it is the easiest, cheapest way to lose a few pounds off our set-ups, which I think is the first thing we need to do if we really go forward. Am I wrong?

- Bill

Not by much. Depending on manufacturer, an Al 80 is about 30-35lbs empty dry weight (not buoyancy). A St 80 is about the same, 28-30lbs, depending on manufacturer.
If you move up to a HP 100 it's 38lbs empty dry weight. What changing from Al to St really does is help with your trim. It allows you to re-arrange your weight placement. Because truly, you're always sporting the same buoyancy characteristics; you're just moving it around when you change tanks/weight belt weighting.

I know Seven Seas has Steel tanks for rental, so next time you go for a dive, perhaps you could rent tanks from them and see how you like it. Might seem weird renting from two places, but I'm sure the staff at Bamboo would understand.
I personally don't see it as cost effective to buy your own tanks just to shed a few dry pounds off your set up.

 

[fisheater]

Bill:

When I switched from a Zeagle BCD to a steel BP/W, I lost ten pounds of lead.