entry/exit observations

[Littlerayray]

Part of my dive planning includes entry and exit and this includes finding out if people can handle their gear out of water
I dive with some people who find it difficult to carry all their gear due to physical limitations and part of the plan is discussing how I get out of water remove my tanks while they remove theirs in waist deep water and I return to render assistance
Never leave a man/woman behind

 

[boat sju]

If I'm going down the camera is going to land on me! Repairing me is much cheaper. It does make an excellent counterweight to the tank on my back actually.

Actually, this post is more to the point of what I was getting at. We watched people getting knocked down face first, hands now extended, minus reg or mask. If you're paying attention to the waves you can kind of twist and if you go down you land on your tank. Most were completely oblivious to the waves.

Picked the dive guide out of one larger group. Only one with a full wetsuit that kept her reg in until she got completely to shore.

 

[Jetwrench]

I give myself permission to ensure my own safety and survival when making physically challenging entries and exits in very rough waters. I certainly do suggest anyone interested and fit enough to dive otherwise inacessible locations due to violent sea conditions and currents to use them. The only other options are to avoid the sites, get battered and/or swept away. Having been to Bonaire several times, and with my affinity for diving off the beaten path, they come out a few times per trip. With large waves crashing in high frequency on shallow dead coral or rocks, no damage is done, except to yourself if you attempt an entry or exit without the ability to make progress safely. 5mm Kevlar. Indispensable for the adventurous diver.

That is an excuse for doing what you want to do and is not the law on Bonaire. Take that statement to STINAPA next time you are on island and let us all know what they have to say in response. I know a park ranger or two down there that would really be interested in hearing how you managed to self-permit the use of gloves. Murky, it's not a good thing to suggest breaking the law much less admitting that you do it yourself.

 

[guyharrisonphoto]

I guess that is my question. If I use gloves only for safety during actual shore entry/exit, and keep them in my pockets during the dive so as not to touch the reef, is that a violation? Are you forbidden from even possessing gloves during a dive?

 

[wwguy]

http://www.stinapa.org/pdfs/AB2010_no-14-Island_Resolution_Marine_Park_Bonaire FINAL.pdf

Section 3 - General Management Measures
Article 8
1. It is forbidden for divers to wear or to use gloves in the Marine Park.
2. The prohibition in paragraph 1 of this article, does not apply to catching, gathering
and killing harmful species referenced in paragraph 1, Article 19 of the Island
Resolution Nature Management Bonaire.
3. The Manager of the park can grant an exemption to the prohibition set forth in
paragraph 1of this article provided that a physician declares that there are medical
reasons for doing so.

 

[darook]

I know Murky and know that he knows that gloves are against STINAPA rules in every way. I will say that I don't use them and suggest that no one takes them to or uses them on Bonaire. That said, I also know he only uses them as needed on really aggressive entries and exits which the average Bonaire visitor does not typically visit. He is an excellent diver and not a threat to the marine environment.

 

[lmorin]

The collapsible canes and walking sticks will eventually lodge the tip in somewhere, cane sections pull apart, and the cane and user will collapse. Use with caution!

True. I just bought 4 additional rubber tips. The correct procedure would really be to replace the rubber tip with a soft metal (aluminum?) one that is bolted into the cane. We lost our first tip in Feb., but knew it was going to happen sooner or later. I pulled the cane up and the tip remained lodged in a crevice. Also, take care about over reliance on the strength of the handles. One of our simply snapped off. I bought a more expensive, stainless steel cane that can support up to 500 lb and the handle is formed from the main shaft.

As to whether the canes will rust out, the answer is 'unlikely.' The less expensive ones are made of aluminum. HOWEVER, components are made of cheap steel. These do rust and do so quickly. The spring-loaded button that fixes cane length is one site of corrosion. I simply removed it, drilled a hole in the opposite side of the cane and installed an aluminum clevis pin. That has worked well.

 

[lmorin]

The key to entries and exits is good balance. Instead of bringing more stuff I think it is better to develop balance. I......

I don't disagree with you but some of us cannot develop better balance. I was a high level athlete (soccer, ski racing), but now have an ailment that minimizes all sensation in my feet and lower legs. "More stuff" allows me to dive places I might not otherwise be able to do so. That is likely true for most divers: a cane will allow many of you to enter/exit under more extreme conditions than you might otherwise attempt, regardless of your basic athleticism.

As a matter of note and depending upon conditions, I also now hang my fins from a large carabiner, freeing my other hand to hold on to my wife's BC, when necessary, and she does the same. Four feet and two canes are far better than two feet only!

 

[boat sju]

Imorin,

I like your carabiner idea. Here's what I have too : Cetacea BCQR7 utility clip - BCD Accessories - Scuba Equipment Dive Gear Best Prices

 

[uncfnp]

Having just returned from a week I have a few additional suggestions.

If you wear a wrist computer and normally wear it with face turned to inside/volar surface, consider wearing it turned out/dorsally, at least for entry and exit. It is too easy to mar the face against a rock otherwise.

Imorin,

I like your carabiner idea. Here's what I have too : Cetacea BCQR7 utility clip - BCD Accessories - Scuba Equipment Dive Gear Best Prices

Several years ago I made fin keepers very similar to these. Works well for Eric but I found I was too short and the blades would be caught by the surf and throw me forward as it came in the catch me again going out.

So for the petite women reading this, the last two days I draped the fins over my neck and let the blades hang in front of me, high enough to not catch the waves and it also freed up both hands. I actually had a couple of other women ask me about it when they saw me coming out at Karpata. Looks and sounds silly but it worked well at least for me and that those few dives. I plan to make another keeper that is a little longer so it will fit better.

And this may have already been said but since my mask is on and the regulator in I also partially inflate my wing and when I get to water deep enough and with iffy footing, I will carefully bend forward with hands in front and "float" out.

Being short, my greatest challenge on exit is getting shallow enough to take my fins off and stand but not so close the surf catches me. Too often when I can stand is also when the surf gets stronger. If I time it wrong, the waves carry me away from shore or I am so close they try to roll me onto the shore.