cavew0man
Contributor
So high season has kicked in here in the Mayan Riviera. This means that all of Cavewoman's dive partners are working, like 7 days a week crazy. So... if Cavewoman wants to dive, she generally ends up tagging along on the end of a cavern tour. (She is seriously contemplating solo training, having now done Chac Mool something like 50 times.)
Now, at the back of the pack, you see ALL sorts of things going on that your guide doesn't see, because he/she isn't staring at all of you, every minute of the dive. However, at the back, that's exactly what I end up doing.
If it's your first time in this sort of environment, nobody is expecting perfection from you. You are going to gain a whole new appreciation for the importance of buoyancy, trim, and propulsion, and, hopefully, you are going to be blown away by the sheer beauty of the cenotes.
But while you're doing it....... ! Please, please, please - listen, and pay attention to the briefing before you go in!
Here is my wish list for first-time (or any time) cenote divers:
Please:
1. Stay in your assigned position. Your guide is going to tell you what number you are, and you STAY there. Don't drift off, up, down, away to look at something, join your spouse, or whatever. If they tell you to stay within an arm's length of the line, you STAY there. If you don't stick to the plan, you're messing it up for the other people, and you are a safety hazard. If they tell you to position yourself side-by-side when you enter the halocline, do it! Not off to the side, 20 feet back, beside them.
2. Use your BC. Don't continually swim down because you're too buoyant, or swim up because you're too negative. Adjust it - that's why you've got it. Otherwise, you're banging into the ceiling or kicking up the bottom and wrecking the visibility for everyone behind you. (And if you are on the ceiling, or kicking up the bottom, you just might need to adjust your BC.)
3. The line. My god.. the line. Your guide is going to tell you all about the line, and please do what they say. Don't grab on to it and pull yourself down - use your BC. Don't grab on to it and pull yourself hand over hand to move forward - use your feet. You are going to break the line. And, absolute tops of the list - NEVER CROSS UNDER IT. Today I watched a diver approach the line at a 90 degree angle. He grabbed it with both hands, and (I s**t you not) ducked under it, pulling the line over his own head. He then twisted his body around 180 degrees to see why he was stuck. Seeing this coming, I grabbed him by the tank and disentangled him - but you don't usually have someone behind you paying attention to what you are doing.
4. Lights. Please, again, listen to your guide about what they want you to do and not do with the lights. They are not cheap. If they want to wait until you are underwater to give it you, don't just grab one and go! If they ask you not to turn it off underwater, don't do it! Today two different guides had one light lost and one light flooded because it was twisted off too far. That's about $80 each of them is out.
Now I personally think that the cenotes are the most magnificent dive sites on the planet. (That's why I live here). I think that if you are considering doing a cenote tour, by all means, do it! It's an incredible experience. Just please bring your brains (turned on), pay attention, and listen to your guide. They are there for your safety, and to ensure that everyone has the most enjoyable experience possible. Making it that way - safe and enjoyable - is also your responsibility.
And that's all I have to say about that.
Now, at the back of the pack, you see ALL sorts of things going on that your guide doesn't see, because he/she isn't staring at all of you, every minute of the dive. However, at the back, that's exactly what I end up doing.
If it's your first time in this sort of environment, nobody is expecting perfection from you. You are going to gain a whole new appreciation for the importance of buoyancy, trim, and propulsion, and, hopefully, you are going to be blown away by the sheer beauty of the cenotes.
But while you're doing it....... ! Please, please, please - listen, and pay attention to the briefing before you go in!
Here is my wish list for first-time (or any time) cenote divers:
Please:
1. Stay in your assigned position. Your guide is going to tell you what number you are, and you STAY there. Don't drift off, up, down, away to look at something, join your spouse, or whatever. If they tell you to stay within an arm's length of the line, you STAY there. If you don't stick to the plan, you're messing it up for the other people, and you are a safety hazard. If they tell you to position yourself side-by-side when you enter the halocline, do it! Not off to the side, 20 feet back, beside them.
2. Use your BC. Don't continually swim down because you're too buoyant, or swim up because you're too negative. Adjust it - that's why you've got it. Otherwise, you're banging into the ceiling or kicking up the bottom and wrecking the visibility for everyone behind you. (And if you are on the ceiling, or kicking up the bottom, you just might need to adjust your BC.)
3. The line. My god.. the line. Your guide is going to tell you all about the line, and please do what they say. Don't grab on to it and pull yourself down - use your BC. Don't grab on to it and pull yourself hand over hand to move forward - use your feet. You are going to break the line. And, absolute tops of the list - NEVER CROSS UNDER IT. Today I watched a diver approach the line at a 90 degree angle. He grabbed it with both hands, and (I s**t you not) ducked under it, pulling the line over his own head. He then twisted his body around 180 degrees to see why he was stuck. Seeing this coming, I grabbed him by the tank and disentangled him - but you don't usually have someone behind you paying attention to what you are doing.
4. Lights. Please, again, listen to your guide about what they want you to do and not do with the lights. They are not cheap. If they want to wait until you are underwater to give it you, don't just grab one and go! If they ask you not to turn it off underwater, don't do it! Today two different guides had one light lost and one light flooded because it was twisted off too far. That's about $80 each of them is out.
Now I personally think that the cenotes are the most magnificent dive sites on the planet. (That's why I live here). I think that if you are considering doing a cenote tour, by all means, do it! It's an incredible experience. Just please bring your brains (turned on), pay attention, and listen to your guide. They are there for your safety, and to ensure that everyone has the most enjoyable experience possible. Making it that way - safe and enjoyable - is also your responsibility.
And that's all I have to say about that.
