Diving from a Kayak

[divezero]

I'm not familiar with that model of kayak but I have a Ocean Kayak which is roto molded plastic and I am curious as to what type of natural material managed to puncture your hull. These things can take a lot of damage. Like DOkie my kayak had a forklift hole, which was about six inches by four inches. With a piece of excess plastic and a tube of 3M Marine Silicone, the hole was repaired in no time and it has lasted 10 years now without a single leak. As for kayak diving, you can read about it first but the only way to get good at it is getting out there and trying it.

Yup, it was a rock/boulder that I hit that punctured the hole. I heard they do take a lot of damage but I guess it happened. I sent an email to Cobra Kayaks and they are sending a repair kit. Very nice of them.

I appreciate all of your advice.

Now...has anyone bought a magnometer and hung it off their kayak...now this would be fun...kayak diving and looking for metal at the same time. Find something, anchor, then dive it.

 

[diver 85]

Thinking about getting one(a Kayak) for a dive about a mile or so down from a river shore dive I make......There are NO rapids, no currents when the generators are not running, and very straight forward a simple 1 mile or so paddle-there and back...............Are any used ones out there, will need it for 2 divers with max 4 tanks(Al 80's).......Any help is appreciated......TIA.........


EDIT: will post this in WTB section also.....

 

[perdidochas]

Anyone into Kayak Diving out there?

I just bought a Cobra Navigator, and took it down a creek for fun...well so I thought. Went down some unexpected rapids, put a hole in the kayak, filled up with water, etc...

So now it's fixing time...just wondering if anyone has patched up plastic before on a kayak or anything else and how did you go about doing it...

Check with the manufacturer. They may sell repair kits.

Also I am new to Kayak Diving...read it in a magazine, coming back from one of our film trips, and thought eh...looks like fun. I am based out of Canada, so we dont have any crystal clear water, but any advice on kayak diving would be helpful.

I've done some kayak snorkeling. It's great for that. I use the kayak (Ocean Kayak Malibu 2) as my dive float. It's not that much harder to drag around than an inner tube.

 

[Boxcar Overkill]

I wondered about that.

Do you inflate your BC/Tank and trail it behind you, or do you keep it stowed on your kayak? Is it hard to get it on and off the boat?

 

[Nemrod]

Kayak diving is not a big deal and requires logic along with a few skills to do it safely. Obviously you will need to don and doff your gear in the water. Something you should practice once in a while anyhow. The kayak will need to be set up for kayak diving, but that is not a big deal. Perform a search on this board for "kayak" and you will have a little reading to do, but kayak diving is not common, or at least not discussed very often.

I usually put my gear on in the yak an then remove it and clip it to a tag line upon return. Just depends upon sea conditions. I disagree, kayak diving may not be totally common place but it is not uncommon and is a growing segment, small true but growing.

You will find some kayak info on this board in the "Boating" section since kayaks are boats that is where you would expect to find discussions. The site, Spearboard Spearfishing Community - Powered by vBulletin has a section on kayak diving with interesting threads. Also, the Boating & Fishing Forum - The Hull Truth has a kayak and scuba and etc forum way down at the bottom with occasional threads.

I don't have anything against the Navigator but I prefer OK kayaks. I found another company recently, google RTM Kayaks and look at the model called the Tempo, it is a clone of the highly respected and no longer available OK Scupper Pro TW.


Good luck.

N

 

[Nemrod]

I wondered about that.

Do you inflate your BC/Tank and trail it behind you, or do you keep it stowed on your kayak? Is it hard to get it on and off the boat?

No, the assembled scuba goes into the tank well behind the seat. The spare tank (second tank) goes in my forward hatch (Scupper Pro TW). My other equipemnt is stowed, tied, bungeed, clipped or worn. I find kayaks to be great for simple warm water diving. I know people dive with them dry but you will have to get one of them to explain their process, I cannot. My flag and float and a 50 foot tag line go in the tank well until anchored (or if about to go in if drifting or towing). The dive flag is the smaller type, in Florida if the flag is on a boat it has the be the larger size, towed it can be the smaller size. I carry an anchor always and it is a small 4 pound folding grapple and I usually have several bundles of 1/4 inch nylon braided line with clips for anchor or tow duty. I have installed "pool noodles" and two air bags inside my hull so that should I flood the boat (roll it with a hatch open) the boat will remain afloat. Warning, anything you value, tie it down, clip it off or you will doante it to Davy Jone's Locker. Pole spears I stick through my side webbing and bungee. My paddle gets a bungee as well. My lifejacket goes up front ahead of the forward hatch unless conditions are bad--then I wear it. Cary a sponge and a bilge pump, VHF, cell phone, signal and rescue gear, mirror, flares etc. One other thing that may seem obvious but it is not. Do not put a wetsuit or top or vest on over your head and get it stuck over your head and then fall in the water because you might just drown . Don't ask how I came to this conclusion. :no

My boat, I had already made several loads back to the car but it is the general idea.

This is an opinion based on my experience, each diver should have their own yak, one diver per yak, two seats jobs are hard to paddle solo and don't carry enough gear for two.

N

 

[Peter_C]

No, the assembled scuba goes into the tank well behind the seat. The spare tank (second tank) goes in my forward hatch (Scupper Pro TW). My other equipemnt is stowed, tied, bungeed, clipped or worn.

BC inflated and regs pressurized which means air full on! Clipped off in the back of the kayak, and strapped down. I do not think I could swap an HP100 on the water without major issues, like water into the first stage. So we never carry a spare tank. Instead we just head back to our launching point, which is typically the only safe area to come ashore.

I find kayaks to be great for simple warm water diving. I know people dive with them dry but you will have to get one of them to explain their process, I cannot.

Our coast is very rugged with only a couple of launching points for boats, but there are a few if using kayaks. Drysuits are required here for diving warm. I usually just get out a ways and bail off the kayak to cool off, then continue on our journey out on the ocean. I put my dry gloves on before departing shore, then doff everything else once anchored.

My flag and float and a 50 foot tag line go in the tank well until anchored (or if about to go in if drifting or towing). The dive flag is the smaller type, in Florida if the flag is on a boat it has the be the larger size, towed it can be the smaller size.

We fly a flag off the kayak, but it is impossible to use a float in the kelp, or tether the kayak for the same reason. The kayak dive flag is stowed under a bungee on the port side. The paddle is stowed on the starboard side.

I carry an anchor always and it is a small 4 pound folding grapple and I usually have several bundles of 1/4 inch nylon braided line with clips for anchor or tow duty.

Due to our sometimes extreme conditions. I carry a 5 lb anchor and have a few feet of heavy chain in front of it, with 200 feet of line on a cheesy reel. Overkill? Probably, but we tie two kayaks together with a bungee cord I made, and it is important for us to make it back to the kayaks and our launching point safely. We can anchor in over 100 feet of water with no issues. A depth finder is a requirement here.

I have installed "pool noodles" and two air bags inside my hull so that should I flood the boat (roll it with a hatch open) the boat will remain afloat. Warning, anything you value, tie it down, clip it off or you will doante it to Davy Jone's Locker. My paddle gets a bungee as well. My lifejacket goes up front ahead of the forward hatch unless conditions are bad--then I wear it.

My kayak was filled with expandable foam between the hatches. It is unsinkable, and nothing can get lost in the caverns below, as the foam creates a barrier. I always know my mask and other small gear will be close by.

Cary a sponge and a bilge pump, VHF, cell phone, signal and rescue gear, mirror, flares etc.

I carry VHF, flares, bilge pump, cellular also.

This is an opinion based on my experience, each diver should have their own yak, one diver per yak, two seats jobs are hard to paddle solo and don't carry enough gear for two.

N

Two seaters that can be paddled by one person work pretty well for kayak diving as I have witnessed.

 

[Boxcar Overkill]

Thanks Nemrod and Peter C.!

I'm starting to get excited about this.

 

[Nemrod]

I have a small 6 foot vinyl covered anchor chain that I might use if I need a secure anchor. Usually, I may anchor, swim around , return to anchor, pick it up, swim or drift to another spot, set my anchor, explore and so on. My four pound grapple is easy to pick up underwater.

I sometimes have been known to not use stink'n BCs so in those cases all I have is a tank and regulator. I am often solo, in fact, thus far, always solo. I have ranged out as far as five miles. I do carry a GPS. So far have not installed a depth finder.

Way back when I lived in Houston I purchased a Body Glove neoprene outfit that was a set of mix and match pieces. A bicycle short like short, a long pants, a vest top with zipper and a shirt like top also with zipper. I have never seen anything like it before or since. I got it for surfing/body surfing at the time, it was in a surf shop but I have used it for scuba and find it excellent for kayak diving. I can use just the right combination of pieces to be warm but not hot and the zippered top vest can be put on and off in the boat. Now, the shirt like long sleeve top with zipper, no, that goes on while on shore because as I said, getting things stuck on your arms or over your head, not good. I wish I could find this stuff again, maybe just have a new one custom made.

If water gets in my regulator while swapping tanks, oh well, I got more and I can take it apart and clean it later, they work fine, I am not paddling back five miles to swap a tank. I also like to put a small soft cooler with water and fruit etc onboard if I am going to be gone a while.

I thought about using expandable foam in my yak until I found those inflation packs, they also help to partition the inner storage area to keep things from wandering off. I was afraid the foam would be permenant and preclude interior access for modifications and repairs. Good idea though.

Thanks for the info on dry diving and the unique problems kelp would present to kayak diving. Can you just tie off to the kelp instead of anchoring or is that not secure enough?

N

 

[El Orans]

Don't forget to have a look here too: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/florida-kayak-divers/