Dive report

[nadwidny]

Not to be an absolute curmudgeon but since this IS the "DIR Practitioners Zone" forum, I wonder how "appropriate" it is for these dives to be discussed here since these dives are done outside of the diver's training per the rules of each.

These dives were pure cave exploration dives -- going where no man (or woman) had gone before. rjack's GUE Cave 2 cert, which specifically precludes doing exploration diving (at least that's my understanding), and bdub's TDI Full Cave (which I also have and I believe from the same instructor) also does not "encourage" exploration cave diving.

I did a quick look at GUE standards and course outlines and I can't see anywhere that precludes exploration for Cave 2 certified divers.

 

[rjack321]

Full cave by any agency including GUE's Cave2 IS exploration diving silly boy. The police at the gate even checked my card.

And I might add, the mine has been dove before. We just found rediscovered it.

 

[RTodd]

Real exploration diving is based on experience not certs. Any limits beyond Cave2/ Full Cave are self imposed only. While this is changing, I don't know many DIR cave explorers (other than GUE instructors) that even hold a GUE certification.

My bigger issue would be how stable the mine is and if it is worth it. There are sections of cave in Mexico I have dived precisely once due to this issue. I don't know if anyone else ever went back to push them and in a case where there was already line, we don't bother to fix where the 10'+ long piece of ceiling had fallen on it and trapped it.

 

[rjack321]

My bigger issue would be how stable the mine is and if it is worth it.

It seems pretty stable. The parent rock is grandorite/granite. There is some shoring in places but that is mostly to prevent rocks that fall in from a vertical shaft above from bopping you.

Its been fun seeing artifacts from the ~1950s that were left behind when they abandoned the mine.

I don't think we are planning on going back to this tunnel. There is another one on the property that is potentially divable so we may look for that. There are also some other mines that I have heard about being flooded. So we may try to find a new "system".

 

[BDub]

Full cave by any agency including GUE's Cave2 IS exploration diving silly boy. The police at the gate even checked my card.

And I might add, the mine has been dove before. We just found rediscovered it.

It's amazing we survived

 

[BDub]

My bigger issue would be how stable the mine is and if it is worth it.

Valid point.

Our first trip to the mine was simply a hike in to look at the integrity of the mine itself.

The return trip was a dive to look at the integrity and general layout of the flooded part.

While it did have some shoring (as Richard described) it seemed quite stable. Only then did we plan a return trip to explore the remainder.

 

[limeyx]

It's amazing we survived

Indeed. Get back to cove 2 you bunch of str0kes!!!

 

[rjack321]

Indeed. Get back to cove 2 you bunch of str0kes!!!

Globel Underwater Cove 2 Exploration is quite catchy.

 

[b1gcountry]

GUE Cove 2?

 

[rjack321]

GUE Cove 2?

Our local Seattle mudhole where people go to practice ad nauseum in lieu of going on a committing dive (exploration or otherwise).