how to forecast weather conditions and vis for scuba?

[TSandM]

This is where local knowledge is invaluable. At least where we dive, there are huge differences between sites on what conditions render them unpleasant to dive. Some are sensitive to wind, some are current-intensive, some are near river outflows where rain in the mountains will trash the viz very quickly. Active local divers will know these things and be able to advise you.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

Not only in Australia, but everywhere, local dive shops and charter runners are the best source of information because they are at the sites all the time. Personal familiarity with site conditions in varying weather patters is nice, but ultimately there is no substitute for "taking a look."
DivemasterDennis

 

[vladimir]

but what about visibility? i basically go off if it hasnt rained for a few days then vis should be good but i am not always correct.
knowing how to forecast and guess the vis for the day based off weather forecast will help.

Visibility should (generally) be better when the tide is flooding and worse when it is ebbing.

 

[Doc]

Move to paradise.

Become a "local".

Look towards the ocean and ponder what you are seeing,
formulate in your mind the confluence of wind, wave, tides,
and the solar flare cycles.

Then just mumble your best guess.

Mumbling is good because they can't pin you down and
hold you to your predictions later. It is also good practice
for when you finally "go island" and begin mumbling quite
naturally.

 

[cam_snapper]

Nitro, I dive wherever I guess the conditions will be good and depending on my mood. This weekend I ended up diving three different sites and they were all totally different dives:

Oak Park down in Cronulla, a shallow cruisy dive with decent vis (top of high tide) snapping hundreds of nudibranchs, and a few other little critters;

Chowder Bay, Middle Head - closest thing in Sydney to muck diving. Not great vis (3-5m), but nice warm water, and lots of good stuff to see, particularly heaps of seahorses hanging onto the shark net, including one pregnant male. Also an enormous eel who posed for quite a barrage of photos;

Then finally Harbord (Freshwater) just north of Manly. This is a proper "ocean" dive, with big schools of little fish and occasionally small schools of big fish hanging out in the gutters, hiding out of the surge. Saw a very active and inquisitive wobbegong, a couple of really large giant cuttlefish and my buddy even spotted a yellow boxfish!

Would be happy to head out with you some time. Am actually night diving tonight at Fairy Bower, but then won't be hitting the water until the weekend after this one, sadly. PM me your contact details and I'll keep you posted if you like.

Cam_snapper

p.s. Michael McFadyen site is great, but not always 100% accurate - either out of date, or occasionally I think he get's west and east mixed up!!! Good reference though, and if you want to know the exact lifestory of every pygmy pipehorse in Bare Island, he's your man!

 

[Nitro91]

im actually doing oak park today
will post results,

 

[freewillie]

Here's what I've learned about shore diving.

In general, the higher the surf, the worse the visibility. During times the surf is high visibility will be down, and takes a few days for viz to increase as surf decreases.

Even beaches along the same stretch of coast have individual differences for viz even with same conditions. One beach may not be very good but another even 1/2 mile away will be better. This is where local knowledge pays off. Talk to local dive clubs or local LDS.

When at the beach look at the tops of the waves as they crest. The water at the top of the wave just before wave starts to break. One clue is that if the water looks clear the viz may be better. If they look murkey indicates wave action is churning up the sand.

The best way is to aks the divers who just got out of the water. "hey, what was the viz like?"

Good luck.

 

[muddiver]

Here is a generic set of items that affect visability in the ocean:

1. Rain - you said that one.
2. Tide going out will degrade shore visability. Incoming and slack tide is when the water is usually clearer.
3. Alge blooms - a sunny day on some good cold water will sometimes cause alge to kick off and musck up the water. Actually happens more in the summer than winter months.
4. Wave action - wind is a cause of waves and when it is up you might have stirring of silt or light particulates in the water column. Surf is from wind out in the open ocean causing waves that travel to your shore, see previous on mucking up the visability.
5. Storms - see number 1 and number 4.

The area you dive in is also affected by the eco system and the local standard water temperature range. This means that if the water at your beach is usually in the 50 to 70 degree F range it will be green, and murky in the summer. If the water is 75 to 80+ you probably have blue tropical water that gets murky in the winter due to storm action.