How did you learn to navigate underwater?

[DiverLS]

I used to use an aluminum 80. Now I use a steel 100. That gives me more time to let the "dog out of the house" and increases the error on return. But the trade off is great - more time underwater.

 

[ScubaSteve]

I used to use an aluminum 80. Now I use a steel 100. That gives me more time to let the "dog out of the house" and increases the error on return. But the trade off is great - more time underwater.

Now that definitely makes sense. I dive steel 120's and know what you mean....although most of my diving is shore and resonably easy to navigate. Thanks for the clarification.

 

[Sinbad the Diver]

My take is that navigation is a somewhat native skill that is either easy for you or isn't. Part of it is how you see things and what you notice. A compas is a great tool as long as you know what it is and more importantly what it isn't. You have to know where you are for it to get you to where you want to go. On the other hand in a linear sense they are great...I went N from the boat...if I go South I'm heading back toward the boat. The better the vis the better they are and you can be taught to use a compass.

Natural on the other hand seems to be an inate skill that is hard to teach. Part of the issue is how aware you are of what you see as you go and how your mind translates that into landmarks and direction. In it's simplest form you go out with a wall to your left...you come back with the wall to your right. Then it becomes taking note of landmarks and things like that. It's no different than driving a car, I'm one of those people that can be in a car and go somewhere once and I can get back from there and to there from that point on. My wife...if you can't tell her turn left go two lights, turn right go three lights etc....she's gonna end up in another county.

 

[ruready7]

Well, I cheat!

First, I’m a Land Surveyor in California. I’ve been making maps and navigating by compass since I was very young. Being used to a compass and the idea of headings, reciprocals, angles and the like made the transition to navigating below the surface a bit less difficult.

Second, as I descend, I look for “stuff” on the bottom that will help me find the same point again before I ascend. I look for unique looking items on the way out that I can use as “breadcrumbs” on the way back.

For example, on my dive at Goat Harbor on Catalina this past Saturday, the boat was anchored over a sand bottom. The kelp bed was a certain bearing from the boat and a certain distance. I went down the anchor line, pointed myself to the kelp bed and began to swim. At the edge of the kelp bed, nothing looked terribly unique. I soon took care of that with four empty Wavy Turban Snail shells. I set those in a line about a foot apart, pointing at the anchor. From there, I swam off along the kelp and through the kelp, knowing all I had to do was swim back along the edge of the kelp bed to my Turban Snail pointer before heading back to the anchor.

It’s not really “cheating”. I prefer to think of it as “spatial referencing and thinking”.

And, as del mo said, once you get familiar with an area, you’ll start picking out reference objects that will make it easier to “navigate”.

Of course, now that I've shared my secret with you, I have to come and cut your hose during a dive. So...where in LA ARE you?

Ian

Calif PLS 7010

Dokie: Cool idea! Excellent method, as long as the dive doesn't stray too far from the anchor and thee isn't a lot of stuff to get tangled in!

Good idea. never thought to use shells or rocks in that way. See learning something new everyday.

 

[MauiScubaSteve]

I think is all begins as a child. I know people who grew up in Denver or Colorado Springs that get lost driving around their home cities (the mountains are West!!). My parents were both geologists and my childhood summers were spent on back roads and mountain trails. None of my siblings or I are likely to get turned around.

Underwater, someone who drives listening to their Tom Tom will probably need a guide, no matter how much they practice. Learn your limits and plan accordingly.

 

[Alex777]

I agree with the logic of diving with a trusted "leader" but I would suggest that you take some time to understand and learn navigation just in case. When you need it as a skill, you REALLY need it. Just my 2 cents.

I don't disagree with the sentiment, but most people who follow a guide (underwater or not) have difficulty maintaining a high enough level of awareness of the geography to take over the navigating suddenly. In my kind of diving (plain-vanilla recreational stuff), the leader is often the ONLY diver who knows where the group has been, is, and is going. The others are, by definition, "lost."

"Breadcrumbs" & similar tricks have been used by mountain & wilderness guides since the BC (before Cousteau) era. Natural navigation is the same IN PRINCIPLE whether it is used above or below water.

However, GPS has now changed everything on land. Why should a mountain guide bother noting unusual rock formations, leaving piles of stones (breadcrumbs), and looking back at the return route every 5 minutes when he can just carry redundant GPS units? So technology renders another skill obsolete. I wonder if, in a generation's time, dive guides will be the ONLY guides using natural navigation?

 

[cruiser]

I learned to navigate by diving in low viz many times and having to depend on the compass.

 

[Bottomfeeder Brodie]

The map you keep in your head should always be updated by the compass that stays in your face. I learned by aiming missiles and crawling through dark forest at night in the European theater. Underwater is the same just with water. You can practice on land