Is It Ever Ok....

[divingguru]

If you have the correct training and equipment then yes, if otherwise then a BIG no no. I used to work on the Great Barrier Reef and the Mike Ball liveaboard used to offer solo diving for their guests. Their prerequisites were that you were a rescue diver or equivalent, 100 logged dives, they gave you a pony bottle, and you had to complete a check dive with an instructor. Apparently it used to work well and was very popular with photographers and divers with no friends!

 

[TMHeimer]

This topic has appeared many times. I will solo dive to 30 feet. I did once to 50 with my pony. I don't use the pony shallower than 30 (usually 20), as I can easily do a CESA from there. Most likely the main concern would be entanglement, so I am extra careful when alone. I figure doing this with scuba is basically glorified snorkelling--If you're carefull it's perhaps even safer since you have air down there. I have a great dive buddy, but circumstances for him have kept him out of the water for a while. Logistics make it tough to find another easily--distances to sites where most dive in the area, etc.--There are several reasons therefore that one choses to go solo. As well, some people feel it is safer no matter what depth you do. One guy I know had a bad panic experience (his buddy) that nearly did HIM in, so he always goes solo now. So as stated in other posts, buddy diving is only safer if you have a good buddy. On balance, especially deeper than 30, I think the percentages are with having a buddy. Sort of like wearing your seat belt CAN cause your death, but by wearing it the percentages are with you (still shouldn't be a law, but that's WAY off topic).

 

[AfterDark]

It's okay with me. Some of the best diving IMO. You don't have to divide your attention between looking out for your buddy, looking out for yourself, and enjoying the dive and whats going on around you. However if you really need to ask and aren't just trying to start a discussion then you probably haven't been diving long enough.

 

[Cave Diver]

No. You're gonna die.

Aww, c'mon, SOMEONE had to say it.

 

[ZenDiver.3D]

No. You're gonna die.

Aww, c'mon, SOMEONE had to say it.

Totally dead. It's true........

Seriously, training, solo certs, sure you can....

 

[DaleC]

As long as you do it the PADI way.

 

[AfterDark]

No. You're gonna die.

Aww, c'mon, SOMEONE had to say it.

That's true everyone that solo dives will die someday, everyone!

 

[mpgunner]

But why? It is fun to dive with others and share the experience, right?

 

[laurin]

It is called a Solo Cert and I have been as many Photographers diving solo for years! So the answer is YES! People who scrap boat bottoms do it all the time! On and on!

I think one of the most common fallacies among underwater photographers is that since they don't have the skills to dive with a buddy or a team when shooting, then diving solo with a camera becomes somehow more OK. Diving with a big DSLR rig and shooting macro is not hard at all in a team, it just requires that you've got your other dive skills together and not some insta-buddy who doesn't have any interest in the activity.

I've actually seen people saying "the moment I grab the camera I lose track of everything else" - this kind of attention span problems sound like the guy shouldn't be diving with a camera in the first place, but some people feel they're better off diving solo to not bother other divers.

Rephrased: The original question was if solo diving was ever OK, you answered that many photographers do it all the time. Unfortunately, in most cases it's just what happens, but it's not OK from safety viewpoint.

Some discussions about solo diving tend to follow this flawed logic, which is related to the camera argument:
1. Solo diving requires solid skills, lots of experience and proper equipment
2. I've solo dived and am still alive
3. Therefore I must have solid skills and lots of experience

For the original question: yes, solo diving can be done, with the right diver, gear and easy enough dive it can even be almost as safe as team diving. On some very special occasions it may even be safer than team diving, but then we're talking about dives that are very risky anyway (sumps etc). On the vast majority of dives, it will not be as safe as with a buddy - so a person considering solo diving would have to rationalize the extra risk somehow. I haven't found a compelling reason to dive solo yet, but then again I have lots of extremely competent buddies available who are ready to dive pretty much anytime. I can understand why some choose to dive solo, I have no problem with that, what I don't get is them claiming it's somehow safer.

//LN

 

[RJP]

No. You're gonna die.

I don't think the OP mentioned he was gonna wear split fins...