Socorro Islands (For Newly Certified Divers)

[Diver.Jason]

Hello -

Question. I am an experienced diver, but our friends recently got certified. We have always talked about a dive trip, and I am hooked on diving Socorro. I am a bit worried that this might be a bit much for my friends. Looking for opinions on this trip, and if anyone has an alternative suggestion for a Socorro-like experience, but better suited for us as a group. The last thing I want is for someone (new to diving) to have a bad experience and be turned off to diving afterwards because they were diving above their skill/comfort level. Also - friends get seasick very easily

Regards,

Jason

 

[BoltSnap]

VERY BAD idea for the inexperienced diver and the experienced buddy in the group.

It isn't bad just in the diving part, it is also the boat trip to and from.

 

[Diver.Jason]

Thanks Everyone. Something to work towards

 

[pintodog]

Don't do it. Diving in the open Pacific Ocean is unpredictable. Even if things are "okay", you want them to have a great experience as they are just starting their diving journey. I went to Socorro in December and there were some inexperienced divers onboard. They just were stressed and didn't have a good time. Getting on and off the boat, currents, air consumption, 36 hour crossing, etc. are all something you want to be comfortable with. After all...the point of diving is to have a good time! This is not the destination for beginners!

 

[GDMP]

Tricky one.

I did a liveaboard there in April. I've spent a lot of time on long boat rides and been seasick twice in my life, and our trip to the islands was a beast (I tried it without medication and was throwing up within minutes of waking). But the crew said it's only that bad 3 or 4 times a year, and the journey back to Cabo was completely calm.

Honestly, the diving is trickier than many places, but I didn't think it was very challenging. Currents were nothing like as strong or unpredictable as I've experienced in some places (Alor, Maratua, Belongas, etc). But you do need okay buoyancy for when you're in the blue (some get carried away following mantas, etc). The dive profiles are generally not very deep max depth (mostly ~ 29 m), but the average depth can be quite deep (mine were usually 19 to 20 m average), so lots of our boat just cranked through air, which was frustrating until I switched groups. By the end, we were on a roll though.

Re general advice, I'd say:

* Get your scopolamine patches on well before the crossing!
* Specifying a minimum number of dives is hard. I've dived with people who have done 5 dives who are more competent divers than others who have done 100. I'd say you need average air consumption, okay buoyancy, and comfort in moderate currents to enjoy it fully.
* It can get coldish. I was there in early April, and water temperatures ranged from 20 C at Roca P to maybe 23 C max. Most dives were 21 to 22 C. I freeze my balls off in the water, so a 7-mm wetsuit was just about enough.
* Ability to deploy an SMB is handy, of course. People often ended surfacing at different times.

Finally, the diving really is awesome, so I hope you go! I think we had about average luck for that time of year. In case of interest, there are highlights of each of our dives on my Instagram account. Here are a few favourites: