Interesting story from DM about dive site Barracuda!

[sasscuba]

DM from DWM told us on Friday the current was so bad on Barracuda that one day they were diving with a group at about 80 feet on the wall when the current pushed them downward to 150 feet very fast. He said even with a full BC of air and kicking there was nothing they could do until it stopped. Most of the people made it back with hardly any air left and many were crying from the experience. Does not sound very fun if you ask me. The current there can be very dangerous from what I hear. I have only dove it once and it was by far the fastest current I have dove on Coz.

He said DWM was the only OP to dive that site unless you are willing to pay extra?? Anyone dive it without going with DWM?

The current was very strong when we dove it and we found it to be in the best shape even after the hurricane. It is a very nice wall dive!

Scary dive story to say the least.:11:

 

[Mako Mark]

Wall dives can be hectic and Coz is no exception. Down currents are a fact of life and something that I guess we really dont consider enough when we are assessing currents.

There is a dive site in Bali (I forget the Balinese name) called the "toilet". To get through it you had to rope together about 5 meters apart, otherwise it spat you out at about 50 meters.

 

[Christi]

He said DWM was the only OP to dive that site unless you are willing to pay extra?? Anyone dive it without going with DWM?

Completely, 100% false. I don't charge extra, Aldora doesn't charge extra, Liquid Blue doesn't charge extra, Living Underwater doesn't charge extra, Blue Angel doesn't charge extra, just to name a few......yes, there are a few ops that charge extra, and there are a few who won't go there at all...but DWM is NOT the only one.

I do not recommend not going with an operator who doesn't dive the area much. Having a DM, and even more importantly a good captain who knows the area WELL is critical IMO for that dive.

I agree the current can be vry wicked there...it can also be super mild. It's unpredictable which is why we are very selective about who we take there. Holding an "advanced card" or even a professional level card isn't good enough. ANy responsible dive operator will require at least a couple of days of diving (while the DM observes the diver) before taking anyone there.

 

[cowboyneal]

There are several different methods to deal with this kind of current. I do NOT recommend inflating your BC to fight the current, unless you are super-experienced and are ready to dump fast once you get out of it. If you feel like you must do something (sometimes it's best just to wait it out if you are a Zen master) I DO recommend immediately reversing course, and swimming up as you back track out of the current. I also recommend getting as close to the wall as possible. Sometimes that is enough to either get out of the down current completely, or to become "one with the reef" as it were and have the current flow over you. Work your way back up the wall diagonally. Why diagonally? You need to get out of the current - that's either going to be back the way you came or further on up the road. If you go "straight up" you are going to stay in the current, and some of these downcurrents can be pretty violent. Another method is to swim out away from the wall and again, up. However, this will put you out in blue water with no bottom and again, unless you're an experienced Zen master, this can be a little disconcerting as well. Vertical (up or down) currents are fairly rare, although there are some places where they do happen frequently. By far the best method is to stop, breathe, think and then act. By then, the current will have probably released you...

CN

 

[Ron Brandt]

I have been to Barracuda several times. No extra charge with the guys I dive with.

Ron

 

[cowboyneal]

...yeah, no extra charge any time I have been there either...

 

[scubawife]

He's lying to you about the charge... both shops I've dived with go there and don't charge extra. But before they will do Barracuda or San Juan they will have to see that everyone on the boat is experienced and has the skills for it, and wants to go.

In the briefing the DM warned everyone about the potential on the site for down currents. The plan was to space out (but not too far) so that we could make adjustments and follow his lead if he has to go up to avoid them.

Barracuda wasn't a really enjoyable one for me when I did it in June. I want to do it again just so I know I can dive it better but it's not one that I'd request repetedly. It did make sites like Tunich seem like dead calm.

 

[Scuba_Steve]

Completely, 100% false. I don't charge extra, Aldora doesn't charge extra, Liquid Blue doesn't charge extra, Living Underwater doesn't charge extra, Blue Angel doesn't charge extra, just to name a few......yes, there are a few ops that charge extra, and there are a few who won't go there at all...but DWM is NOT the only one.

I do not recommend not going with an operator who doesn't dive the area much. Having a DM, and even more importantly a good captain who knows the area WELL is critical IMO for that dive.

I agree the current can be vry wicked there...it can also be super mild. It's unpredictable which is why we are very selective about who we take there. Holding an "advanced card" or even a professional level card isn't good enough. ANy responsible dive operator will require at least a couple of days of diving (while the DM observes the diver) before taking anyone there.

Having done this site with Christi myself, I can back her up on what she says 100%. She had us do a couple days of diving with her (DM), because we were unknowns to her at the time. And Geez, it's been so long maybe we're unknowns to her again

Fastest current I've experienced in Coz by far. Fun dives up north, be seriously I'd much prefer the stuff further south.

Steve

 

[*Floater*]

Too bad I missed the site. The DM we dived with at DWM asked if we wanted to go to Barracuda the next day, but we were leaving that day so didn't have the time.

A friend of mine on this board also got it by a strong downcurrent, though not in Coz. Check his report, dive #3: http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=131368

 

[TheRedHead]

I've dived Barracuda and San Juan in ripping currents, but the strongest current I've encountered in Coz was at Las Palmas in front of the Fiesta Americana. We were doing a 2nd dive on EAN37 looking for nudibranches for macro shots when the current picked up and started blowing sand. Then the current split and veered downward over a sandy drop off. I hit 87 feet before I stopped my downward fall and I basically crawled hand over hand perpendicular to the current to get out of it. There wasn't much to grab on to. My buddy shot this pic of the current blowing the sandy rubble down the reef: