SlickNick
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how do you set the anchor and should you tie a wreck reel to the line?
How to dive a wreck with your own boat?
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lindenbruce
Contributor
Depends on the site and whether or not there are any established surface buoy's. What is your thinking on the wreck reel? Using it as a current line? Bruce
EastEndDiver
Contributor
How deep is the wreck,how much anchor line is available,what are the currents like,what is the vis,how big is the boat,what kind of anchor,is there other boat traffic in the area,how experienced is the boat crew with wreck diving,is deco involved,what is the plan for a missed deco stop,what is the plan for an overdue/missing diver,will there be there a safety diver remaining on board,what will the weather be like,what will the sea conditions be.........I could go on BUT these are the questions that need to be answered.
What I am trying to say if you have to ask I don't think you are ready .I may be wrong but thats my opinion.
What I am trying to say if you have to ask I don't think you are ready .I may be wrong but thats my opinion.
Last edited:
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SlickNick
Registered
So you can find your way back. Im planning on doing alot of ocean diving in the Delaware inlet, and the vis isnt so great.
It is fairly low viz diving and some of the wrecks are both large enough and broken up enough that navigating on them can be a challenge for a diver in low viz, especially for one not familiar with the wreck and doubly so for a less experienced diver not familiar with the wreck.
Generally speaking, the charters I have been on motor the boat to the numbers then put a diver over the side who rides the hook down to the wreck and secures it to intact structure. When the line is secured, they'll send up a styrofoam cup to indicate the pool is open and then continue their dive.
Many of the wrecks in the area due to low relief are not all that amenable to dragging the hook to snag them, and that practice is an incredibly poor one anyway as it tears the crap out of the wreck. Compare the U-352 (in NC) which gets snagged on a regular basis by charter boats with any of the lesser traveled subs of similar age and at similar depths and you'll seethe difference that the practice makes in terms of destruction of the superstructure. It's literally a case of boat captains vandalizing their own dive sites and slowly putting themselves out of business.
Once in the water, you'll follow the anchor line down to the wreck (and in current there will usually be a current line to pull yourself along from the entry point to the anchor line). Once on the bottom, I recommend tying off a wreck reel with #36 line a few feet up current from the anchor line. You never want to tie to the anchor line in case it comes loose. Then navigate up current laying the line with periodic placements to keep it secure. Current permitting you can explore out to each side from each line placement and cover the whole wreck while minimizing the time needed to navigate back to the anchor line as it is will be down current and in a straight line.
In the event the boat ties in on the up current side of the wreck use care to ensure that you can still swim back up current and be very alert for any hints that the current is picking up. In the event you cannot get up current, you are far better off ascending before you are low on gas and/or in serious deco. You do not want to be drifting on the surface as you may be drifting an hour of more before the boat can come get you - but it's better than running out of gas struggling on the bottom, getting into deco, then getting bent and drifting for an hour.
Ideally, you have a 75 to 100 pound lift bag or SMB (smaller bags or SMBs may not reach the surface in a strong current) and some variant of a reel that will allow you to set your own up line in the event this occurs so that you'll stay on the numbers of the wreck and be able to ascend on schedule. You'll still be in the water until the boat has recovered the other divers, but they'll have you in sight and you won't be adrift in high waves, fog, shipping channels and swirling currents that can make finding a diver difficult.
My preference was to carry either a Jersey up line (old school, but it still works) with 1/8" nylon line (as manilla hemp rots too easily if it's not removed and dried after each and every dive day) or a smaller/shorter butt mounted reel with 300'-400' of #48 or 1/8" nylon line on it. I also carried a 3-4' long piece of tubular webbing. That allowed me to tie the webbing to the wreck, and then run the line through the loop of webbing to shoot the lift bag. When the bag surfaces you tie off the line to the webbing and cut the unused section of line and reel free. That ensures the wreck won't cut the line while you are ascending and waiting, as would be the case with just the line tied to the wreck. This also works if the anchor line comes loose and there is no up line to return to. I never had to use it in anything other than practice, but it was always nice to have along.
Generally speaking, the charters I have been on motor the boat to the numbers then put a diver over the side who rides the hook down to the wreck and secures it to intact structure. When the line is secured, they'll send up a styrofoam cup to indicate the pool is open and then continue their dive.
Many of the wrecks in the area due to low relief are not all that amenable to dragging the hook to snag them, and that practice is an incredibly poor one anyway as it tears the crap out of the wreck. Compare the U-352 (in NC) which gets snagged on a regular basis by charter boats with any of the lesser traveled subs of similar age and at similar depths and you'll seethe difference that the practice makes in terms of destruction of the superstructure. It's literally a case of boat captains vandalizing their own dive sites and slowly putting themselves out of business.
Once in the water, you'll follow the anchor line down to the wreck (and in current there will usually be a current line to pull yourself along from the entry point to the anchor line). Once on the bottom, I recommend tying off a wreck reel with #36 line a few feet up current from the anchor line. You never want to tie to the anchor line in case it comes loose. Then navigate up current laying the line with periodic placements to keep it secure. Current permitting you can explore out to each side from each line placement and cover the whole wreck while minimizing the time needed to navigate back to the anchor line as it is will be down current and in a straight line.
In the event the boat ties in on the up current side of the wreck use care to ensure that you can still swim back up current and be very alert for any hints that the current is picking up. In the event you cannot get up current, you are far better off ascending before you are low on gas and/or in serious deco. You do not want to be drifting on the surface as you may be drifting an hour of more before the boat can come get you - but it's better than running out of gas struggling on the bottom, getting into deco, then getting bent and drifting for an hour.
Ideally, you have a 75 to 100 pound lift bag or SMB (smaller bags or SMBs may not reach the surface in a strong current) and some variant of a reel that will allow you to set your own up line in the event this occurs so that you'll stay on the numbers of the wreck and be able to ascend on schedule. You'll still be in the water until the boat has recovered the other divers, but they'll have you in sight and you won't be adrift in high waves, fog, shipping channels and swirling currents that can make finding a diver difficult.
My preference was to carry either a Jersey up line (old school, but it still works) with 1/8" nylon line (as manilla hemp rots too easily if it's not removed and dried after each and every dive day) or a smaller/shorter butt mounted reel with 300'-400' of #48 or 1/8" nylon line on it. I also carried a 3-4' long piece of tubular webbing. That allowed me to tie the webbing to the wreck, and then run the line through the loop of webbing to shoot the lift bag. When the bag surfaces you tie off the line to the webbing and cut the unused section of line and reel free. That ensures the wreck won't cut the line while you are ascending and waiting, as would be the case with just the line tied to the wreck. This also works if the anchor line comes loose and there is no up line to return to. I never had to use it in anything other than practice, but it was always nice to have along.
If there is a question of making it back to the boat due to current or bad vis it might be an idea to bring two dive teams and stagger the dives so someone remains topside at all times.
BlueDevil
Contributor
Just drop a shot line on the wreck. The boat then stays 'live' in order to pick up divers should they not get back to the shot line for their ascent, or is currents are strong enough for them to leave the shot and do a drifting deco under an DSMB.
If you anchor you will need a contingency plan for how to deal with divers who surface at a distance from the boat.
If you anchor you will need a contingency plan for how to deal with divers who surface at a distance from the boat.
That's a given, especially off the DE coast where it's not inconceivable to get run down by a freighter, have the wind and waves suddenly pick up and part the anchor line, etc. If you leave the boat unattended, you just as well be prepared and plan to swim home.
---------- Post added November 18th, 2012 at 09:28 PM ----------
Live boat diving (even dropping them on the numbers without a shot line) is pretty common in Florida, but it's a lot less common in NC and pretty stupid to even try off DE.
The current is generally not quite as strong so hanging on the line is both do-able and preferable as the waves tend to be higher, the surface visibility can go to pot in a hurry and a drifting diver is likely to end up in a shipping channel with the possibility of being run down, and the current is not constant in terms of direction, so two teams beginning ascents several minutes apart won't always drift in the same straight line. It would be my last choice for a planned decompression of DE, and something that is number 2 on the "emergency ascent" scale, with the first choice being to send up my own bag and ascent line to ensure I stay on the numbers where the boat can find me. Even if the boat has to leave, hook pulls loose, etc, the first place they'll start to look is on the numbers and if you're there the search is short. If not...you could be out there awhile.
waterpirate
Contributor
Delaware inlet? There have been fatlities in Indian river inlet, as well as Roosevelt inlet. Unless you are squared away add nauseam I would discourage you from diving the inlet. Fenwick shoals is a whole nother ball game and can be quite rewarding. You need to be AOW minimum as that class will address your navigation issues. ocdiveboat.com loves new ocean divers and takes the time to educate and train you for the ocean.
hope this helps
Eric
hope this helps
Eric
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