Solitary Dive

[ScubaNorth]

I have been diving solo but not from a boat. I think it's commonsense that will dictate when and how you dive at any giving time. I prefer to dive with a partner but sometimes that can be more work than it is worth. My regular partner has backed out of every planned dive so far this year and usually at the last minute. You are really solo out there no matter what someone else in the water makes you think. Since I am usually looking for lobsters I can lose my partner 2 or 3 times a dive and have to double back. I usually find him/her with a lobster in hand or in the middle of grabbing one. Johlar- a man with a boat going solo? All my newest best friends have boats.

 

[ScubaNorth]

It was really dark, the vis was terrible, and it was still freakin cold - 43 degrees at 142'.

--Matt

Diving wet? Looks good for the water to warm up oh say about time to send the kiddies back to school.

 

[matt_unique]

Diving wet? Looks good for the water to warm up oh say about time to send the kiddies back to school.

Ha ha ha - no way! You would be crazy to deco dive in Massachusetts with anything other than a dry suit. Unless you are one of those with an extreme tolerance to cold. I know there are some. I am not one of them. My previous dive on the Crane (2 weeks ago) the water temps at depth were the same. I had 15 minutes of bottom time and about 16 minutes of deco time and I was shivering the last 5 minutes of deco time which is not good. Two weeks ago the temp warmed from 43 degrees in the sand to 44 degrees at 20'. Yesterday there was a nice noticeable thermocline at about 40'. The temps were in the high 40's above the thermocline.

--Matt

 

[JimJam]

I dive solo frequently...but the key to doing it safety is self reliance. Whenever I dive on a charter, I'm always the diver that gets stuck with the absolute WORST diver on the boat. The last time I was buddied up, the guy panicked and shot to the surface. I tried to grab him to slow him down, but to no avail. When I got to the surface after a SAFE ascent, his reg was freeflowing like crazy, and he was splashing around and puking all over the GD place. I ALWAYS get stuck with someone like this, so I decided a while back to try diving solo. It can be a little wierd at first. It almost feels like going into a strip club alone (I've heard!) Once you get used to it, though, it's not too bad.

The biggest piece of equipment I would make sure to have is at least a 30CF pony bottle. I make it a habit to dive with one on any dive greater than 60', but if I'm at any depth alone, I will have one with me (and of couse a separate reg, etc.) Someone else made a point to have an extra knife or line cutter, something to that effect, and that is a great idea too.

As far as leaving the boat behind, I would say that's just stupid boating, not necessarily stupid diving. But, to each his own!!!

Good lucK!!

 

[jchaplain]

As far as leaving the boat behind, I would say that's just stupid boating, not necessarily stupid diving. But, to each his own!!!

Good lucK!!

Leaving the boat isn't stupid boating....geeze..chill....!

It depends on a lot...tides....where anchored....doing a good anchor check, not going far from the anchor/boat...how far from shore you are....etc....

Like anything else we do in this sport it's all about common sense.

John C.

 

[JimJam]

I would NEVER leave my boat behind...never.

If you are going to shore, that's one thing. But I wouldn't leave the boat unattended while diving.

Let's assume (***-u-me!) that theft is not an issue. You are correct in mentioning that it is depedant on tides, etc. However, I have been in situations diving before where had there not been someone left on the boat, the boat would have been demolished by a ship b/c the ship didn't see it in time to maneauvor (sp?) around us. Luckily, the captain saw him before he saw us and was able to alert him to our presence.

Maybe you're right, maybe I am just a little too overly cautious, but it's kept me alive so far!

 

[scubastew]

I agree with many of the comments above, solo shore diving in a familiar shallow location seems safest (no dive is ever completely without danger), but diving solo from a boat? Not sure that makes sense?

Even in a group of divers one person should always be on the boat, no? What if the anchor becomes dislodged and the boat floats off in a slight current? How far would it be from you after a 40 minute dive? I've heard of a diver in which he had a heart attack trying to swim back to the boat after just this scenario. However rare, I wouldnt want to be the dude in that surfaces to find the boat gone...

 

[jchaplain]

I agree with many of the comments above, solo shore diving in a familiar shallow location seems safest (no dive is ever completely without danger), but diving solo from a boat? Not sure that makes sense?

Even in a group of divers one person should always be on the boat, no? What if the anchor becomes dislodged and the boat floats off in a slight current? How far would it be from you after a 40 minute dive? I've heard of a diver in which he had a heart attack trying to swim back to the boat after just this scenario. However rare, I wouldnt want to be the dude in that surfaces to find the boat gone...

It's all a matter of situation. As an example.....I regularly sleep overnight on my boat at anchor. Could I wake up in serious trouble because the boat drifts? ...not likely where I anchor...big sandy bay...and people do this all the time.

Also, under the subject of risk....if you are diving close enough to shore, the worst that might happen is that you might have to swim to shore and call CG or others to retreive the boat.

Some would say that putting yourself at 120 feet deep or diving solo is "stupid"...too much risk...right? But you do it anyway. If there's anything divers should understand it's all a matter of acceptable and controllable risk. Yep, to each their own.

John C.

 

[jchaplain]

I would NEVER leave my boat behind...never.

If you are going to shore, that's one thing. But I wouldn't leave the boat unattended while diving.

Let's assume (***-u-me!) that theft is not an issue. You are correct in mentioning that it is depedant on tides, etc. However, I have been in situations diving before where had there not been someone left on the boat, the boat would have been demolished by a ship b/c the ship didn't see it in time to maneauvor (sp?) around us. Luckily, the captain saw him before he saw us and was able to alert him to our presence.

Maybe you're right, maybe I am just a little too overly cautious, but it's kept me alive so far!

I've been boating for a LONG time and I've never anchored somewhere where a large ship might come through. That wouldn't even make sense.

Theft isn't much of an issue....boats are left on moorings all year long and rarely get stolen. Leaving one unattended for an hour isn't likely to be a problem, but it is something you do have to consider. Close enough to some shore to be able to swim to is important I think. Kayak divers do this all the time too.

John C.

 

[matt_unique]

It's all a matter of situation. As an example.....I regularly sleep overnight on my boat at anchor. Could I wake up in serious trouble because the boat drifts? ...not likely where I anchor...big sandy bay...and people do this all the time.

Also, under the subject of risk....if you are diving close enough to shore, the worst that might happen is that you might have to swim to shore and call CG or others to retreive the boat.

Some would say that putting yourself at 120 feet deep or diving solo is "stupid"...too much risk...right? But you do it anyway. If there's anything divers should understand it's all a matter of acceptable and controllable risk. Yep, to each their own.

John C.

I'm not busting your b*lls to say this but I would rather wake up to find myself adrift in my boat rather than surface to find the boat adrift. I sleep overnight at anchor as well and of course as captains we take every precaution to make sure the hook is set good, we (should) know the weather and wind forecast, look for environmental signs of the weather, etc., etc. I have dove off my boat leaving it unattended before - even on the U853. I came to realize this was just crazy. You surface in ripping current with your boat adrift and you are totally screwed. It's not that you may not necessarily survive (though depending upon the distance from shore, currents, and boat traffic this is certainly possible), at the very least your boat will need to be recovered if it is not already smashed to bits on rocks or such.

Just this past weekend we dove the stern of the Poling and surfaced in ripping current. The current was moving to the SW. We were down for 30 minutes. It's pretty easy to imagine worst case scenarios. Not to mention the safety devices we have on our boats - 02 for example - that we may need immediate access to for life and death.

I'm a die hard when it comes to boating, diving, weather, etc. It sounds like this is the case with you too. The opportunity for disaster is just unnecessarily elevated to dive with an unattended boat dude! I bet you could find a few die hard buddies who would be psyched to dive with you from your boat.

--Matt