When divers come to North Carolina, the first thing that they realize is that they are not in Florida or in the Caribbean. The offshore dives are usually in the 85 to 120 foot range, although we do have some inshore wrecks that are in the 60 to 70 foot range. Some dive shops require that divers be certified Advanced Open Water to do the offshore wrecks, while others require the diver to show deep diving experience. Discovery Diving in Beaufort, NC does not require an Advanced Card for their offshore wrecks, but does ask for experience on deep dives within the last year. You should check with the shop you are diving with on their specific policy before scheduling a charter. Most of the offshore wrecks are located between 25 and 35 miles offshore.
Because the average boat ride to the offshore wrecks is between an hour and a half and two hours, divers want to get the most out of their dives. Most divers get more bottom time by using Enriched Air, commonly called Nitrox. Since most of the offshore wrecks are in the 85 to 120 foot range, 30% is the blend that is usually banked because it allows the diver to go to 120 feet and be within the maximum depth using a 1.4 partial pressure. Decompression diving is not allowed unless the captain of the boat approves it.
The dive boats that go to the wrecks off of the North Carolina coast are built for rougher seas than the flat, calm water in the Caribbean and Florida. The closeness of the waves, not the size of the waves determines if a charter will run or not. The natural element that affects the size and frequency of the waves is the wind. It can be a sunny day at the dock, but the wind may be blowing 15 to 20 knots. In that case, the charter would be cancelled. On the other hand, it can be raining and there not be any wind. In that case, the charter will go. Because the wind can change throughout the night, the decision to cancel a charter can not be made until the morning of the dive, but the captains try to let their divers know as soon as possible to keep them from making an unnecessary drive to the dock.
The dive boats do not have divemasters that guide the divers around the wrecks, line in Florida and the Caribbean, but one can be hired with enough notice. The dive boats have mates that assist the divers to make the charters more enjoyable, but do not set up their gear for them or switch tanks for them. The divers conduct their own dives on the wrecks and are responsible for navigation and making sure that they do not run out of air. If a diver does run low on air, the crew boats have hang regulators in the water at the stern of the boat for divers to breathe off of if they are low on air while doing their safety stop. Divers should not plan this into their dives because there might be someone already there when they arrive and it is first come, first served?
Once the boat is about 15 minutes away from the dive site, the mate will begin getting ready by putting on his gear. When the divers see the mate all geared up, they know they are getting close to the dive site and the anticipation begins to build. The divers begin putting on their gear as well but they make sure to leave a clear path for the mate so he can walk up to the bow, where he will be doing his giant stride off of the boat. As the boat gets closer to the dive site, the Captain pulls back on the throttles and the bow settles back into the water as the boat slows to an idle speed.
The Captain maneuvers over the wreck site until he locates a particular spot on the depth finder. Once the spot is located, the Captain reverses the engines to hold position and then he signals the mate to go. If another boat is already at the site and has divers in the water, the mate will jump into the water holding onto the anchor. If there are not any divers in the water, the mate will drop the anchor and follow the anchor line to the wreck. As the mate approaches the wreck, he sees the location of the anchor and looks for the spot he is going to tie the anchor, usually within 20 feet of where the anchor landed. After five minutes have gone by, beginning from when the mate stepped off of the boat, the Captain tightens up on the anchor line, because that is the amount of time that is allotted for the mate to get the anchor tied to the wreck. While all of this is going on, the divers are doing their last checks to their gear to make sure they have not forgotten anything. When all of the slack is taken out of the anchor line, the engines are shut down and the lines are dropped into the water for the divers to use.
The lines are set up so the divers have a guide to get them to the wreck. A weighted line hangs down from the stern and at 15 feet there is another line that connects the weighted line to the anchor line. The line at 15 feet is a guideline for the divers to use if there is any surface current, which North Carolina has a tendency to have. It is also used by the divers at the end of their dive as a way to maintain their depth at 15 feet for their safety stop. A surface line will be trailed behind the boat for the divers to use while exiting if they want to hang out on the surface before climbing the ladder.
After all of the lines are in place, the ladders are dropped into the water. The ladders are designed as fins-on ladders, which means the divers can climb the ladders while wearing their fins. In the event a diver was to slip off of a ladder, they would still have their fins on and would be able to swim back to the boat. When everything has been lowered into the water, the Captain gives the divers a briefing on the dive site, which includes some history of the wreck, the visibility and water temperature, and where the anchor is tied on the wreck. After the briefing, the divers are allowed to do their giant strides off of the boat to begin their dives. The crew assists the divers by helping them to walk over to the entry points. While the crew is helping the divers, the crew is also checking to make sure all of the tanks are turned on; the divers are usually unaware of this.
As the divers return from their first dive, they climb the ladders with all of their gear in place, even their fins. The mate will be waiting on the platform of the boat to take anything they might want to hand up, such as cameras, shells, or fish, if they were spearfishing or collecting. Once the divers are standing on the platform, the mate will take their fins off so they can walk back to their seat. The Captain will then ask them their name and check them off of the roster, to signify that they have returned. When everyone is back aboard, the Captain will do a count and a roll call to make sure everyone is aboard. After it is verified that everyone is aboard, the mate will go back down and untie the anchor. When the mate returns, the lines are pulled up and the ladders are raised so the boat can move to the next dive site.
The surface interval is usually between an hour and an hour and a half. While the boat idles to the second dive site, the divers switch out their used tanks for their full tanks. The divers will also use this time to enjoy their lunch and get some sun on the sundeck. The events of the first dive are relived and the digital pictures are shown to add images to the stories. When the boat arrives at the second dive site, the same routine that was done on the first dive is repeated.
Because the average boat ride to the offshore wrecks is between an hour and a half and two hours, divers want to get the most out of their dives. Most divers get more bottom time by using Enriched Air, commonly called Nitrox. Since most of the offshore wrecks are in the 85 to 120 foot range, 30% is the blend that is usually banked because it allows the diver to go to 120 feet and be within the maximum depth using a 1.4 partial pressure. Decompression diving is not allowed unless the captain of the boat approves it.
The dive boats that go to the wrecks off of the North Carolina coast are built for rougher seas than the flat, calm water in the Caribbean and Florida. The closeness of the waves, not the size of the waves determines if a charter will run or not. The natural element that affects the size and frequency of the waves is the wind. It can be a sunny day at the dock, but the wind may be blowing 15 to 20 knots. In that case, the charter would be cancelled. On the other hand, it can be raining and there not be any wind. In that case, the charter will go. Because the wind can change throughout the night, the decision to cancel a charter can not be made until the morning of the dive, but the captains try to let their divers know as soon as possible to keep them from making an unnecessary drive to the dock.
The dive boats do not have divemasters that guide the divers around the wrecks, line in Florida and the Caribbean, but one can be hired with enough notice. The dive boats have mates that assist the divers to make the charters more enjoyable, but do not set up their gear for them or switch tanks for them. The divers conduct their own dives on the wrecks and are responsible for navigation and making sure that they do not run out of air. If a diver does run low on air, the crew boats have hang regulators in the water at the stern of the boat for divers to breathe off of if they are low on air while doing their safety stop. Divers should not plan this into their dives because there might be someone already there when they arrive and it is first come, first served?
Once the boat is about 15 minutes away from the dive site, the mate will begin getting ready by putting on his gear. When the divers see the mate all geared up, they know they are getting close to the dive site and the anticipation begins to build. The divers begin putting on their gear as well but they make sure to leave a clear path for the mate so he can walk up to the bow, where he will be doing his giant stride off of the boat. As the boat gets closer to the dive site, the Captain pulls back on the throttles and the bow settles back into the water as the boat slows to an idle speed.
The Captain maneuvers over the wreck site until he locates a particular spot on the depth finder. Once the spot is located, the Captain reverses the engines to hold position and then he signals the mate to go. If another boat is already at the site and has divers in the water, the mate will jump into the water holding onto the anchor. If there are not any divers in the water, the mate will drop the anchor and follow the anchor line to the wreck. As the mate approaches the wreck, he sees the location of the anchor and looks for the spot he is going to tie the anchor, usually within 20 feet of where the anchor landed. After five minutes have gone by, beginning from when the mate stepped off of the boat, the Captain tightens up on the anchor line, because that is the amount of time that is allotted for the mate to get the anchor tied to the wreck. While all of this is going on, the divers are doing their last checks to their gear to make sure they have not forgotten anything. When all of the slack is taken out of the anchor line, the engines are shut down and the lines are dropped into the water for the divers to use.
The lines are set up so the divers have a guide to get them to the wreck. A weighted line hangs down from the stern and at 15 feet there is another line that connects the weighted line to the anchor line. The line at 15 feet is a guideline for the divers to use if there is any surface current, which North Carolina has a tendency to have. It is also used by the divers at the end of their dive as a way to maintain their depth at 15 feet for their safety stop. A surface line will be trailed behind the boat for the divers to use while exiting if they want to hang out on the surface before climbing the ladder.
After all of the lines are in place, the ladders are dropped into the water. The ladders are designed as fins-on ladders, which means the divers can climb the ladders while wearing their fins. In the event a diver was to slip off of a ladder, they would still have their fins on and would be able to swim back to the boat. When everything has been lowered into the water, the Captain gives the divers a briefing on the dive site, which includes some history of the wreck, the visibility and water temperature, and where the anchor is tied on the wreck. After the briefing, the divers are allowed to do their giant strides off of the boat to begin their dives. The crew assists the divers by helping them to walk over to the entry points. While the crew is helping the divers, the crew is also checking to make sure all of the tanks are turned on; the divers are usually unaware of this.
As the divers return from their first dive, they climb the ladders with all of their gear in place, even their fins. The mate will be waiting on the platform of the boat to take anything they might want to hand up, such as cameras, shells, or fish, if they were spearfishing or collecting. Once the divers are standing on the platform, the mate will take their fins off so they can walk back to their seat. The Captain will then ask them their name and check them off of the roster, to signify that they have returned. When everyone is back aboard, the Captain will do a count and a roll call to make sure everyone is aboard. After it is verified that everyone is aboard, the mate will go back down and untie the anchor. When the mate returns, the lines are pulled up and the ladders are raised so the boat can move to the next dive site.
The surface interval is usually between an hour and an hour and a half. While the boat idles to the second dive site, the divers switch out their used tanks for their full tanks. The divers will also use this time to enjoy their lunch and get some sun on the sundeck. The events of the first dive are relived and the digital pictures are shown to add images to the stories. When the boat arrives at the second dive site, the same routine that was done on the first dive is repeated.
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