Dumaguete Trip report feb 24-26

[pakman]

actually the dm was fine but he gravely underestimated the currents. like i mentioned glad i experienced this dive but would have preferred that i be informed prior to the actual dive. also glad that it was only me and chip, there could have been serious trouble had mons come along for this white knuckle dive


we actually could not see the downwellings from the boat because the waves at the surface were overpowering the boat. we had to donn our gear and jump at the dms signal and do negative descents

Hmm.. Ok, I'm not trying to take"a holier than thou" attitude or trying to talk down to you, but a few things... The DM did underestimate the current on a site which appears to be notorious for some vicious currents. I'd hope a DM would err on the conservative side in that situation... but sh!t happens... Was this the first dive with this DM (I presume they never dove with you and Chip before)? Again, I wasn't there so I shouldn't really be criticising but its monday afternoon and I'm bored... u say the "waves were overpowering the boat"... Sorry, in my book, that's enough to call off a dive...

What IF your girlfriend had been there... would your decision have been different? Experience or no experience, a severe down/up current could take both seasoned and inexperience divers for a ride like a ragdoll regardless of their experience... look at what happened to those two in that article.

Anyways, as you said, chalk this one up as an experience and I'm sure you'll know better in the future. dive safe

 

[Spoon]

just a note on this report, michael and raymond were not newbie divers, they were hardcore experienced divers diving the area for a long time already. I don't buy the statement

"Pascobello stressed that the incident could have been avoided had they hired local dive guides familiar with the currents in the various dive spots in the island"

both divers were as good or probably better than any dive guide in dumaguete.

i totally agree bud. a lot of my friends said the same thing about these divers. they were the real deal. the fact that this happened to them and of all places in coconut point stresses the inherent danger of this site. my dm was good but he should have never assumed that our diving abilities were sound and underestimated the currents. thats how accidents happen

 

[Spoon]

The DM did underestimate the current on a site which appears to be notorious for some vicious currents. I'd hope a DM would err on the conservative side in that situation... but sh!t happens... Was this the first dive with this DM (I presume they never dove with you and Chip before)?

yes this is the first dive with the DM, honestly i heard and read of a site in the philippines known for dangerous currents and all but only found out today that this was the infamous one, Coconut point.

u say the "waves were overpowering the boat"... Sorry, in my book, that's enough to call off a dive...

they were pretty rough but the dm said that was normal on apo island. what do i know right? never been here before but defintely a good call to do the dive anyway. like i mentioned it would have been a world of difference had i known what to expect. i just got caught offguard. and from the looks of it so did the DM.

What IF your girlfriend had been there... would your decision have been different? Experience or no experience, a severe down/up current could take both seasoned and inexperience divers for a ride like a ragdoll regardless of their experience... look at what happened to those two in that article.

my decision would not have changed, mons wanted to do coconut point as well but we did not do it for the 1st dive as the waves were even stronger in the morning. i defintely would have dove coconut point whatver the case but would have wanted to be informed about the currents instead of jumping into it and expecting a small drift. just my 02.

Anyways, as you said, chalk this one up as an experience and I'm sure you'll know better in the future.

defintely. this is one of my most memorable dives to date

btw you really like pink huh?

 

[paolov]

i read between the lines ..... :book3: :1book: :33: :book2: :leseratte :burnout:

glad you can post your experience here.....


.

 

[chip104]

Here is a bit of explanation on the wild currents that day

Cebu Port
Saturday 2006-02-25
Sunrise 6:00 AM CST, Sunset 5:54 PM CST
Moonrise 3:22 AM CST, Moonset 3:09 PM CST
Low Tide: 4:31 AM CST -0.2
High Tide: 8:56 PM CST 1.5

Tomorrow is a new moon.

hey Jai, is there any reason why you're using Cebu port as a point of reference? I know dumaguete has a PAGASA station so they should have tide readings that are much more accurate.

I'll post my part right now...

 

[chip104]

Chip which movies did you watch?

ooh yeah, nice report carlo

It definitely wasn't brokeback mountain, if that's what you're thinking pak.

 

[iris_ice]

great experience. saw the pictures. really lovely place mon's family has. love the scenic view from the swimming pool, capiz windows, antique furniture... sooo bahay ni lola

as for your dives...

i think that if a certain dive site's notorious for taking lives, it should be closed for diving. or at least warn divers that it has taken lives and not volunteer it for fun diving.

you two could have been seriously hurt...

anyone out there who has such list of really dangerous dive sites?

 

[Xizang]

hey Jai, is there any reason why you're using Cebu port as a point of reference? I know dumaguete has a PAGASA station so they should have tide readings that are much more accurate.

I'll post my part right now...

I was too lazy too look up dumaguete on the wxtide tool yesterday anyway here is for dumaguete. Usually ports near each other approximates one another anyway.

Saturday 2006-02-25
Sunrise 6:02 AM CST, Sunset 5:57 PM CST
Moonrise 3:22 AM CST, Moonset 3:14 PM CST
Low Tide: 4:06 AM CST -0.1
High Tide: 8:31 PM CST 1.4

 

[Xizang]

great experience. saw the pictures. really lovely place mon's family has. love the scenic view from the swimming pool, capiz windows, antique furniture... sooo bahay ni lola

as for your dives...

i think that if a certain dive site's notorious for taking lives, it should be closed for diving. or at least warn divers that it has taken lives and not volunteer it for fun diving.

you two could have been seriously hurt...

anyone out there who has such list of really dangerous dive sites?

Chip post the topside pics! I am from that part of the Philippines but never appreciated spanish-era houses until I got here to manila.

 

[dlndavid]

Great report, you are setting the standard pretty high for trip reports.