FloridaRanger
Contributor
A while back my buddy and I went on a drift diving trip out of West Palm. The seas were maybe 5-7 feet. A lot of people on the boat were chumming (I never thought I'd want to eat Cup o' Noodles with people puking all around me, but it was pretty cold that day!). It was easy to get body slammed getting back onto the boat, and one of my friends bashed his face on the transom when the boat took a weird roll, and he came aboard with a mask full of blood.
The next day the seas were 6-10 feet, and the boat still went out. My buddy and I pondered over whether we would be wussies if we didn't go. But we're both still fairly new at this, and we both have shoulder issues. We took a drive to the beach, and there were whitecaps on top of the whitecaps. Plus, the beach was strewn with more Portuguese Man of War than I've ever seen at once. An endless string all up and down the beach. We watched a large commercial boat of some kind riding up and down the waves -- pretty much the only boat out there that day -- and decided to let our money go diving without us.
I know it's entirely a personal decision based on one's own comfort level, fitness and training, but my question is this: How much is too much when it comes to wave heights and safe boat diving?
The next day the seas were 6-10 feet, and the boat still went out. My buddy and I pondered over whether we would be wussies if we didn't go. But we're both still fairly new at this, and we both have shoulder issues. We took a drive to the beach, and there were whitecaps on top of the whitecaps. Plus, the beach was strewn with more Portuguese Man of War than I've ever seen at once. An endless string all up and down the beach. We watched a large commercial boat of some kind riding up and down the waves -- pretty much the only boat out there that day -- and decided to let our money go diving without us.
I know it's entirely a personal decision based on one's own comfort level, fitness and training, but my question is this: How much is too much when it comes to wave heights and safe boat diving?