Diving the Kittiwake with Wreck Certification

[Alucard]

I saw a question on another forum from a wreck-certified diver about doing the Kittiwake - they want to be able to do something other than the usual tour through the wreck. Is that even possible? If so, which dive ops would do something that would cater to these needs?

 

[Alucard]

Are there areas of the wreck that require wreck certification to penetrate? I have done the regular penetration a couple of times, but not sure if there is anything else.

 

[Alucard]

OK, so I just found this: Dive 365

Specifically, this:

• Open Water Scuba divers are only able to dive on decks 1 to 3 of the Kittiwake and must be supervised.

• Advanced Open Water divers may dive on all decks of the Kittiwake but must be supervised and should be taken only in areas of the Kittiwake where there is direct surface access.

• A diver holding a Wreck Specialty certification or Rescue certification or above, may have unsupervised access to all decks of the Kittiwake after a guided orientation dive. Guided orientation dives must be within 2 years of the previous dive on the Kittiwake.

• Absolutely no solo diving is allowed on the Kittiwake Site; all divers must be in buddy teams.

I have asked a friend on island who runs a dive shop - will post the results when he gets back to me.

 

[Alucard]

So apparently there are only a few places that they will go with wreck certified divers and lights that aren't particularly exciting - two obvious ones are a storage space off the drive shaft and the walk-in freezer.

And a wreck-certified buddy pair could do the wreck without a guide, but only after they have completed a guided orientation dive.

Apparently it's some kind of Tourism Association regulation for insurance purposes..

 

[FindingMenno]

Keep in mind that the Cayman Islands are very much a 'vacation dive' destination. A large percentage of divers coming here dives only once a year, or even every few years. They might be AOW certified, but still be limited in number of dives.

Having conservative regulations here is safety conscious. Also it moves the judgement away from the dive operator, avoiding any 'grey' areas and subjectiveness, or giving in to commercial pressures.

 

[Alucard]

That walk in freezer could be worth the trip if there's a pint of Haagen-Daz on the shelf.

I would hold out for Gelato from the gelato shop in Camana Bay myself, but if you want Haagan-Daz a trip to Camana Bay may be cheaper than getting wreck certified

 

[FindingMenno]

The gelato place is awesome....

 

[EastEndDiver]

Alucard when I get a chance I will PM you about Kittiwake

 

[EastEndDiver]

Menno It is !!

How was your Rebreather dive?

 

[diversteve]

One thing I have heard is that they take reservations for the moorings so you might have a better dive with one of the 6-8 divers max operations vs. someone like Foster's or Red Sail.

Also pick a non-cruise day if possible (weekends) as I believe the snorkel is also a cruise excursion now.