new cave diver

[LiteHedded]

I agree Mark is a stand up person,and I like this course that he did from the bits I have seen. To go askew for a moment I really hate to see the practice of racoon tailing stages like in the :19 to :26 mark of the video. I know this is something that you guys do,but it really has a huge impact on the cave. I remember seeing someone coming out the Eye with two stages on the crotch strap and sticking straight up from being positive,and it was beating the **** out of the cave. I am sure it is a practice that works well in big cave like Wakulla,but when passing small areas like the key hole,lips etc,there is no control of these tanks,and it sure is tough on the cave. Off soapbox.

agreed. but when you have a ton of them it's really the only viable option. we're mostly exploring big cave up there but there are spots where we move gear through tight spots.

i can't really defend using this method coming out of the eye. it beats the cave up for sure. but if you have a stage, a scooter and a deco gas you're GOING to make contact with the cave exiting the eye. if anyone knows a way to do it without making contact I'm all ears

 

[PfcAJ]

Its certainly not ok to trail bottles through the cornflakes area or the lips. Anyone who does is just playing dress-up, I can't think of a scenario where that would be needed.

I will trail an al40 if I have 2 stages with me, but thats virtually never in Ginnie. Sometimes on the way in through the ear I'll do it if I only have 1 stage, but not always.

In big cave, theres just not enough real estate to clip off 4 or 5 stages any other way.

 

[karstdvr]

agreed. but when you have a ton of them it's really the only viable option. we're mostly exploring big cave up there but there are spots where we move gear through tight spots.

i can't really defend using this method coming out of the eye. it beats the cave up for sure. but if you have a stage, a scooter and a deco gas you're GOING to make contact with the cave exiting the eye. if anyone knows a way to do it without making contact I'm all ears

I only bring this up because this thread is new cave diver,and considering we teach cave divers to avoid danglies etc,we have stages positioned so there is no control,and potential damage to the cave. How did you get through these areas when the tanks were full? If they were staged on your body,why not return there. There is always the method of placing the tanks in a staging area,and retrieving them one at a time, that would reduce wear and tear on the cave,but add more time.

 

[LiteHedded]

I only bring this up because this thread is new cave diver,and considering we teach cave divers to avoid danglies etc,we have stages positioned so there is no control,and potential damage to the cave. How did you get through these areas when the tanks were full? If they were staged on your body,why not return there. There is always the method of placing the tanks in a staging area,and retrieving them one at a time, that would reduce wear and tear on the cave,but add more time.

i go in the ear

 

[corvettejoe]

Well, I'm a lazy a&& cave diver, and I'd just rather go where it isn't so much work. Airfare from here to FL or MX is essentially the same, anyway, and when I get done cave diving in MX, I get to sit on white sand beaches and drink margaritas . . .

Hey now! When we're done diving in FL..we get to... umm.. hrmm... well ... theres mosquitoes and uhhh... the Luraville Store has Beer in the cooler? and umm.. the Suwanee?

Ok never mind


I can't wait to go back to Mexico (hopefully next year) and get some more cave dives in there I had an absolute blast when I went last time and got to dive one of their caves. Simply amazing compared to FL caves.

---------- Post added August 19th, 2013 at 04:02 PM ----------

i go in the ear

We almost always go in the ear too. Its beat all up already and there isn't much "cave" there to bump around on anyway vs the eye.

Dive 1 drag all your tanks in, run the main line, set a jump or two...rest, get fills, chill... dive 2, dive dive dive, most of your "work" is already done.

 

[karstdvr]

i go in the ear

What about the lips,keyhole and cornflakes???

 

[LiteHedded]

What about the lips,keyhole and cornflakes???

I have the stage on my chest through there and don't make any contact with the cave. I'm almost always breathing the stage during those parts of the dive
even with a stage and o2 on your chest, with a scooter, there are spots exiting the eye where you're just going to make contact.

 

[PfcAJ]

Kelly, I think the point is that if someone is trailing a stage through the lips/cornflakes, they're wrong. There's no reason to do that, its bad for the cave, and generally poor form.

 

[karstdvr]

Kelly, I think the point is that if someone is trailing a stage through the lips/cornflakes, they're wrong. There's no reason to do that, its bad for the cave, and generally poor form.

Thanks,I appreciate the comment. Kind of there is DIR and DIW,and trailing stages through these areas would be DIW.

 

[TSandM]

Just out of curiosity, since I have never had bottles on a leash and likely never will . . . what do you DO in an area like the lips or the cornflakes, if you have more bottles than you can carry at your side, and you don't want to damage the cave?