From the quarry to the open ocean

[bigred]

I finally got certified this past weekend.

The quarry was a brain-numbing experience. Visibility was only 5-10 feet. The temperature was 50F which is cold even with a 7mm wetsuit. We stayed down the PADI minimum of 20 minutes per dive because of this. The straps on my BC were worn, so I ended up having to tie the thing to myself with a spare weight belt.

The instructor did a good job of encouraging us though all this, and the divemasters were great. Most of the skills came easy, but I had trouble with a few of them:

1. I never could get myself weighted properly. I had a hard time getting down for my first three dives, and I think I over compensated for my fourth. This may have to do with the poor fit of the BC.

2. I ended up unintentionally surfacing for the underwater navigation excercise. I couldn't see anything underwater and the compass and depth-guage were on opposite sides of the console. I had no idea I was going up until things got light and I was on top.

3. I ran out of air the first time doing the CESA and I barely made it the second time.

4. I don't remember conciously making the PADI-requisite "ahhh" sound during regulator exchanges. The instructor would have stopped me if I was holding my breath, right?

Anyway...

I have family in Wilmington, NC, and I'd like to do some diving next time I visit. The charter operator said there were some suitable sites less that 60' deep and that I could be paired with a divemaster. Am I ready though? The quarry wasn't exactly a confidence-booster and there's a lot more to think about offshore. Should I wait until I have more experience and training, or am I worrying too much?

Thanks, and sorry about the long post.

-Sean

 

[1_T_Submariner]

Hi Sean Congradulations...I'm sure others will post with advice. I can sympathize with the temp and poor visability, the guys I dive with are getting excited with 20-30ft vis and 60 degrees surface temp. I didn't like it at first but, have got more aclimated to it.

The Skills will come with time/practice.

 

[BIGG_BUDD]

Man, sounds like a tough weekend.

Based on your post, it sounded like you handled the situation, and didn't freak out. Bravo amigo.

As far as gearing up and jumping into the big blue...I'd advocate caution, and get some more bottom time in the quarry. I'm landlocked in Dallas, and don't have ready access to the ocean...Therefore, I rely on quarries and lakes to sharpen my skills, and get comfortable under water.

I've found that diving in those conditions (poor viz, temp, etc) has made me a better diver.

Great question, and good luck with the diving!

 

[heliflyer]

BigRed,
Congrats on your OW ceritification.My wife and I got certified in a quarry also with low vis and very cold water,but we mad it as you did.We then went to Cozumel,and our first dive there we paid extra to have a dive master stick with us.That made a big differance for our confidence.Also to let you know,the first time in the ocean was fantastic ,great viz and a lot of cool things to see.So if you can pass your open water in a quarry with low viz,go for it,the ocean dive I meen. Be safe and have fun.
Lanny

 

[bfisher]

Quarries suck, plain and simple. Cold water and lousy viz.

You need some salt water. Just be sure to communicate with your DM as to your expeience level and any reservations you have. I assume you are now OW certified. That means you can dive, and a good DM can be a good buddy. You may even find that diving in the ocean is easier than the quarry as there is much more to see, and you usually have enough viz to see, so the willie-nillies go away much easier.

Frankly I question what kind of instructor you had. A BC that needs to be belted or tied onto you with a weight belt is not, IMO, serviceable equipment. I'm sure you'll find better as time goes on.. As for weighting, don't worry about it. You need about 4# more in salt water than fresh, but there is no way to find out about proper weighting and trim than jumping in the water and finding out what works.

The biggest obstacle you may face will be controlling your breathing. Well, you don't really control your brething. You just try to relax, enjoy what's in front of your mask, and breathe normally.

 

[Diveral]

Sounds like my OW certification training 25 years ago. I took the YMCA course and I believe it required 4 OW dives. Did the first two in a cold dark quarry with about 15' of vis. Had my own BC so I didn't have the problems you had but I did have bouyancy difficulties. On my second dive I lost my weight belt at 92' (the buckle came apart) and performed an unplanned emergency ascent (got to know what a reverse skydive feels like). The next two dives were wreck dives off of Panama City Florida.

You need more experience. Hit the quarry again and go to Wilmington. You can do some of the shallow inshore wrecks. Make sure you have a good compentent dive buddy or hire a divemaster to act as a guide. Go to the NC Wreckdivers thread http://www.scubaboard.com/forumdisplay.php?f=73 and ask if anyone is available to dive while you are there. Be upfront with your experience and you will probably have a good diver or two join you if they are available.

Welcome to an Adventure of a Lifetime, take a Blackbeard's Cruise through the Bahamas and you will be hooked for life.

 

[TxHockeyGuy]

I also did my OW training in a quarry and while I'm a new diver, I thought I'd pipe in with my thoughts here (I'm sure at least 1 person here will try to grill me for doing so).

1. It sounds like you were equipped with a woefully inadequate BC. Personally, I feel the modification to your BC was probably unsafe, OK I really think it was downright dangerous but I'm trying to be nice. I'm also fairly certain this BC probably did not quite fit right during the dives creating additional problems. However, you were able to dive with this and not become a statistic so I say, good for you. Just don't do it again.

2. I have yet to figure out how to properly weight myself in a 7mm farmers john. If you figure it out please let me know. In other words, don't feel too badly about this. I'm sure I'll figure it out but have decided I need more dives in easier diving conditions before I go back to this.

3. I did my training in 74 degree water and my first OW dive without an instructor in 50 degree water. I now consider this a mistake as I put myself into a situation that was more difficult than my original training without the benefit of experience. You however are moving from a difficult dive to an easier diving. This will make your dive easier and more enjoyable.

4. As for the navigation and trying to watch your depth at the same time. The first time I tried to follow a bearing during training and do kick cycles I went out, turned around, and went back. The only problem was I couldn't find the platform. That's when the instructor tapped me on the shoulder, pointed down, and then pointed at the depth guage. I was 10 feet above the platform and couldn't see it. Don't feel bad about this. I have since switched to a wrist mounted dive compuer, this allows me to see my depth and my compass (console mounted) at the same time.

5. As for your CESA. I was told during my training that you only need to exhale the slightest amount of bubbles as if you start going up as long as your throat is open the air will force its way out safely. There are probably others here that can explain this much better than myself. You made it to the surface, you didn't die, you must have done something right.

Basically what I'm trying to say here is you overcame several situatations that are more than likely not going to occur on your first ocean water dive. My biggest problem with my first ocean water dive was the fact that I could see too far. I have a problem with heights and it never occured to me that I might be able to see 100+' to the bottom. I aborted that dive for 2 reasons, I wasn't confortable going to 100' on my 5th dive post OW cert and I didn't like the fealing when I looked down. I did however go on the second dive down to 60' and thought I had died and gone to heaven. I thought quarries were great until I dove down in Cayman. I have no idea what your visibility will be like, but I'm sure it will be better than the quarry and will result in a much better dive experience. Of course the only problem is, you're going to hate quarries after this.

 

[m3830431]

Good job just dive more and practice, practice, practice

 

[jennasnyder1980]

I finally got certified this past weekend.

The quarry was a brain-numbing experience. Visibility was only 5-10 feet. The temperature was 50F which is cold even with a 7mm wetsuit. We stayed down the PADI minimum of 20 minutes per dive because of this. The straps on my BC were worn, so I ended up having to tie the thing to myself with a spare weight belt.

The instructor did a good job of encouraging us though all this, and the divemasters were great. Most of the skills came easy, but I had trouble with a few of them:

1. I never could get myself weighted properly. I had a hard time getting down for my first three dives, and I think I over compensated for my fourth. This may have to do with the poor fit of the BC.

2. I ended up unintentionally surfacing for the underwater navigation excercise. I couldn't see anything underwater and the compass and depth-guage were on opposite sides of the console. I had no idea I was going up until things got light and I was on top.

3. I ran out of air the first time doing the CESA and I barely made it the second time.

4. I don't remember conciously making the PADI-requisite "ahhh" sound during regulator exchanges. The instructor would have stopped me if I was holding my breath, right?

Anyway...

I have family in Wilmington, NC, and I'd like to do some diving next time I visit. The charter operator said there were some suitable sites less that 60' deep and that I could be paired with a divemaster. Am I ready though? The quarry wasn't exactly a confidence-booster and there's a lot more to think about offshore. Should I wait until I have more experience and training, or am I worrying too much?

Thanks, and sorry about the long post.

-Sean

Your story reminded me of my open water in a little lake in upstate new york in late October. Freezing cold, bad viz and not much to see under water either. when we got out of the water, it was starting to snow.... but, all that work made Thailand totally worth it

 

[herman]

Welcome to the board.
Personally, I would highly recommend you NOT do any off shore diving in NC until you have more bottom time. Even the close in "easy" wrecks can be trying at times ,5 ft vis and strong currents do happen. My best suggestion is to come join us (ncdivers- see link below my sig ) on some of our quarry dives to get your skills a good bit better then do a easy ocean dive with a known buddy. We are always happy to have new divers join us and skills improvement is something we all work on. I spent last Sat with a couple of new divers doing nothing but adjusting weights and practicing skills. Come join the board and join us next time we are at one of the quarries, the dives are well worth the time.
Don't count on anything a dive op promises you. Some will come through but you may well end up with a greener newbie than you are on a rough day. It's not a pretty or safe way to dive- been there-done that.