Lost At Sea In Cozumel

[Rick Murchison]

Its tempting......

Uncle Ricky, I get told all the time that people overestimate current speed. Do you think that is true? When I go places and they say the current is "smokin" , I always ask "what does that mean here" ? And several places have said that they call the dive off around three. What do you think?

What do I think? Well, from my own experiences at COZ, I think a perceived 6kt current is about 2 to 2.5kt. But I'm not about to say it couldn't have been 6. Either way it's faster than I can swim and from the COZ reefs without a pickup I'd end up in the open Gulf...
Rick

 

[renpirate]

I am not sure where they were, but it is not uncommon to get 6kt current towards the North of the Island along Barracuda Reef. This is according to Sandro, the top divemaster at Deep Blue. When we dove it, the current was only around 3kts, which was why he mentioned it.

 

[micknewton]

I anchor my Thunderjet in the Columbia River all the time for salmon fishing. The fastest current I've ever seen (on my Humminbird) was a bit over 2kts.

I doubt that this helps at all, but I thought I'd throw it out there JIC.

 

[Diver Dennis]

I recently returned from Cozumel. We dove with Blue Bubbles also known as Ecodivers. The first day our Capitan took a while to find us drifting because he was too busy fishing. The second day we had to endure him vomiting from a hang-over between dives. The best, is the third day when he lost us and left us drifting at sea for 45 minutes. Finally after kicking 1.5 miles, we reached another dive boat. Our capitan arrived 15 minutes later after we called him on the radio.

A few lessons learned on this trip. 1)Buy the large tube signaling devices not the small one. 2) everyone should have a signaling device, not just the divemaster, 3)Dive with a shop that takes pride in their service and safety.

Blue Bubbles, never even offered an apology-- only a new capitan on the next day. They felt it was not a big deal.

ps: drifting in a 6 knot current for 45 minutes in 3000 feet of water is a big deal!!

Were you kicking for a mile and a half against the current?

 

[Divedoggie]

I have been diving in some impossibly fast currents in Coz. You just go with the flow, and the boat shadows you. It would certainly be my last dive with an outfit if I surfaced and they were not there with the boat.

I can recommend some excellent companies for future reference.

 

[DandyDon]

I have been diving in some impossibly fast currents in Coz. You just go with the flow, and the boat shadows you. It would certainly be my last dive with an outfit if I surfaced and they were not there with the boat.

I can recommend some excellent companies for future reference.

Oh, that's easy to say, but I've dived with the best there - and I'd still recommend them to anyone as the best - but surfaced alone when I ran out first (getting over a cold, and always a air hog anyway) only to see my boat out of storm whistle range, skipper talking to another on another boat. I was glad I had my Dive Alert horn.

 

[tkring]

OK, we are scheduled for our first COZ trip this year. Your stories are starting to make me wary .... Are the currents really that bad?

 

[Charlie99]

Uncle Ricky, I get told all the time that people overestimate current speed. Do you think that is true?

Having listened to many divers estimates of current in Cozumel, I routinely found that my estimates were about 1/2 what most other divers estimate -- not quite as drastic a difference as Uncle Ricky's 6 kts --> 2 or 2.5kts, but pretty close.

As I posted in your thread on currents, 10' in 6 seconds is 1 knot. Obviously, this can be extended ......

10' in 3 seconds -- 2 kts
10' in 2 seconds -- 3 knots
10' in 1 second -- I'd be too busy dodging stuff to measure, but THAT would be 6 knots.

Nearly everyday during the summer I go sailing in a 14' sailboat which most of the time is 2 to 4kts (hull speed of 5kts, and hits 5.5kts only when surfing) so I have a pretty well calibrated eye, and rarely have I ever seen even a 2kt current on a drift dive in Cozumel.

 

[Rick Inman]

.... Are the currents really that bad?

The currents are really that good. Cozumel has some of the easiest diving there is. The water is warm, it's clear, you just jump in and drift along without doing much finning at all. It's like taking a stroll on one of those airport moving walkways. Every dive has a DM to keep an eye on you and point out the cool stuff. After all that, no matter where you come up, the boat just pulls along side and you get in.

Then, when you're all done diving, the local food is cheap and plenty good, the weather is perfect and the people are friendly.

 

[DandyDon]

OK, we are scheduled for our first COZ trip this year. Your stories are starting to make me wary .... Are the currents really that bad?

Nah, don't worry about it - just make sure you each have a sausage or better, Storm whistle or Dive Alert, signal mirror, light - same signaling devices every diver should have in any ocean site. Tow a flag on shore dives and still listen for idiots on jet skis - just like anywhere.

The currents are cool, but don't think you'll turn to go back for another shot of anything.