Kharon
Contributor
Does anyone have a trick or tip for how to tell which way mild current is flowing?
Discerning mild current.
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in what environment?
Can pick up some sand/silt, let out some unweighted piece of line from a spool, hack a loogie out into the water, etc. Basically anything that is not really negatively or positively buoyant that will be caught by the current.
If you are actually really good at neutral buoyancy, you can hover without moving and looking straight down to see which way it's pushing you, but you need a fixed reference point below you
Can pick up some sand/silt, let out some unweighted piece of line from a spool, hack a loogie out into the water, etc. Basically anything that is not really negatively or positively buoyant that will be caught by the current.
If you are actually really good at neutral buoyancy, you can hover without moving and looking straight down to see which way it's pushing you, but you need a fixed reference point below you
AdivingBel
Diver
No real trick for me. For someplace like Bonaire/Curacao...my wife and I swim out over the drop and hang mid-water and look at the bottom for which way we drift. If we turn to each other and shrug, we go whichever way we want otherwise we start our dive into the current. Gotta luv "dive freedom." 
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Obviously you can throw a stick in the water, but that won't help with non-surface currents. Here in Atlantic NS there can be a slight tidal current. I know that if the tide is ebbing I have to be a bit more careful how far out I wander because I'll be against it coming back in. When you are with the current you don't notice the little boost it's giving you. I used to show that to students when on the surface at the training float. Be motionless and watch yourself drift in or out.
Doctorfish
Contributor
I hover and look to see which way the soft corals are bending and/or which way the sediment is moving. If I can't tell, there isn't enough current to worry about.
nolatom
Contributor
don't jump in first. then as you descend (preferably on an anchor line), look at the rising bubbles from those who did. In current, they will be bent off vertical, just like a flag in the wind.
And current varies by depth. Some are stronger on top, some at mid-depth. Down on the bottom, usually less because of friction with the ground.
And current varies by depth. Some are stronger on top, some at mid-depth. Down on the bottom, usually less because of friction with the ground.
If you have to think about which way the current is flowing...it’s not mild...it’s really light.
OP
Kharon
Contributor
Guess I don't know the difference - mild & really light to me are the same.
seeker242
Contributor
You can sometime tell by looking at fish that are hovering in place, they will point themselves into the current.
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