Solo Beach Diving?

[zuzanne]

Do any of you ladies solo dive? I am looking at trying some solo dives off the beach close to where I live. There is a small reef in 10 to 20 feet of water about 30 to 50 yards off shore. Hubby works weekends and so I don't have a buddy to go with as none of my female friends are divers at this point. I really need to brush up on my dive skills as its been 6 months since my last dive and I want to dive in Sept/Oct in Freeport. Would be interested in some pros & cons on solo diving from a females point of view.
Suki

 

[Dee]

zuzanne once bubbled...
Do any of you ladies solo dive? I am looking at trying some solo dives off the beach close to where I live. There is a small reef in 10 to 20 feet of water about 30 to 50 yards off shore. Hubby works weekends and so I don't have a buddy to go with as none of my female friends are divers at this point. I really need to brush up on my dive skills as its been 6 months since my last dive and I want to dive in Sept/Oct in Freeport. Would be interested in some pros & cons on solo diving from a females point of view.
Suki

First....if it's been 6 months since you dived last, now is not the time to solo for the first time! Male or female makes no difference, the 'rules' are the same! You know that most people advise against solo diving at all. And I admit/agree not everyone should do it. But since you asked and are likely to do it anyway....

I solo dive frequently in our local lake but I am extremely familiar with the location. Even so I do not go deep, I keep to the easier routes and am even more careful than usual. With 6-8 dives a week I stay tuned in and my skills are sharp.

Before you quit diving 6 months ago, were you VERY comfortable in the water and with your skills? If not, don't consider soloing.

The beach entry you mention is a concern too. Granted, most of my diving is from a boat or shoreline, no surfline involved, but I'd hate to get in trouble in the surf and me by myself. What's the bottom like? Smooth? Rocky? How strong is the surf? Knock you on your can or just gently rock you? Maybe some of our Cal. divers can jump in here but I read about alot of serious accidents happening in the surf zone when most divers consider the dive over but have not yet reached shore.

Only you can decide, just make sure you can live with the consequences.

 

[caboLH]

Zuzanne,

Yes, I dive solo frequently. I don't know that there is much difference in the male vs. female solo but here is one female's opinion. By way of background I ocean dive every day as a commercial diver working on boats, so I am very comfortable in the water. That said I am still neurotic about safety when I solo dive in the Ocean for pleasure, and I do not dive deep when solo. Assuming you are going to do it regardless a few pointers from me would be...

think of every possible scenerio you can get into out there by yourself then double that and figure how you will get out of it. ie, entanglement, lost fins, stuck fin, out of air, encounter with a sea animal, reg ripped out of your mouth, etc.

Make sure your gear is in shape, don't "try it out" in the Ocean, solo. ie check your O-rings, regs, etc.

Make a check off list for BEFORE you enter the water. Make sure it is a written list, not something you memorize. I still do this before EVERY dive, and I have thousands of them.

Carry some sort of device that will allow you to signal you are in trouble, there are various ones on the market

Take a friend, even a non-diver, that doesn't mind sitting on the beach and "watching your bubbles" make sure they know your plan and when you should be surfacing, and what to do if you don't surface on time.

All that said if I were in your shoes I would be probably go to the LDS and rent some pool time to "practice" before I went solo. Seriously, 6 months is a long time between dives.

Best of Luck to you.
Leann

 

[adjuster-jd]

You say that none of your female friends are divers. Ok. So, why not hook up with a couple male divers to dive with? I bet your LDS or local dive club could probably hook you up with some other "buddy-less" folks who want to dive.
The issue is needing a buddy. Does it really matter what gender your dive buddy is?

 

[Scuba_Vixen]

As a female diver who almost always dives solo, partially work schedule/partially by choice, you've been given some good advice already. A refresher / tuneup at a diveshop is a great idea. BUT, I'd seriously look into the solo diver cert classes as well. ( If you lack the requisite number of dives to be able to take a solo diver class, then I'd suggest rethinking the solo thing altogether. Solo diving is Not to be taken lightly, that said) There are a lot of usefull self reliance and problem avaoidance skills as well as additional gear requirements for solo diving.
Let us know how it goes.

Darlene

 

[zuzanne]

Thank you all for your advice. I'm advanced open water certified and have over 100 logged dives. I have read and listened to all of your input on solo diving. I feel comfortable with my abilities & experience in the area where I am looking at diving solo and have dove this area many times with my husband. As to not finding a male or female dive buddy thru my local shop, I am not comfortable diving with people I don't know. The only person I have ever dove with is my husband, he works in the Dive Industry and is an OWSI. So of course you know what his feelings are on the subject of solo diving. But in the end its my decision and he will support it.

Since my original post I have been back in the water (both open & confined) and practising my skills under hubby's watchful eye.
I have made the decision to get in as much bottom time as I can over the next couple of months to get my skills perfected and then take the above advice of having a friend on the beach while I make the first couple of solo dives.

Thanks again for all of your help.
Suki

 

[Scuba_Vixen]

Having decided to go it alone, be sure you have a redundant air supply, and I don't mean Spare Air. Whether you bracket mount it on your tank, or sling it like a stage is your choice, just Don't go in the water without it. In any unforseen or emergency situation, Time is your biggest asset. Your redundant supply gives you that. This may also be the time to sign up for the Rescue Diver course. I bet you'll not find many who have taken it who don't think it was the best one they took. (Rescue is one of the prereqs for SDI's Solo Diver cert) Safe diving...

Darlene

 

[Trish The Fish]

Wow, never knew that a solo diving certification exists.
I've been a diver for 15+ years now. Just goes to show... that there is always something new to learn.

Incidentally, I'm not eager to try solo diving.
Nor am I eager to try obtaining my solo certification.
But perhaps I should reconsider ..... when I see so many divers just "leaving their buddies behind".

I agree that redundant air source seems to be the biggest asset. Is that why people dive "doubles"? Or with a "pony bottle"? Guess you gals don't think highly of the "spare air", huh?!

Kudos to you Risk Takers. DIVE SAFE!
Trish The Fish

Having decided to go it alone, be sure you have a redundant air supply, and I don't mean Spare Air. Whether you bracket mount it on your tank, or sling it like a stage is your choice, just Don't go in the water without it. In any unforseen or emergency situation, Time is your biggest asset. Your redundant supply gives you that. This may also be the time to sign up for the Rescue Diver course. I bet you'll not find many who have taken it who don't think it was the best one they took. (Rescue is one of the prereqs for SDI's Solo Diver cert) Safe diving...

Darlene

 

[scbababe]

Zuzanne,

Yes, I dive solo frequently. I don't know that there is much difference in the male vs. female solo but here is one female's opinion. By way of background I ocean dive every day as a commercial diver working on boats, so I am very comfortable in the water. That said I am still neurotic about safety when I solo dive in the Ocean for pleasure, and I do not dive deep when solo. Assuming you are going to do it regardless a few pointers from me would be...

think of every possible scenerio you can get into out there by yourself then double that and figure how you will get out of it. ie, entanglement, lost fins, stuck fin, out of air, encounter with a sea animal, reg ripped out of your mouth, etc.

Make sure your gear is in shape, don't "try it out" in the Ocean, solo. ie check your O-rings, regs, etc.

Make a check off list for BEFORE you enter the water. Make sure it is a written list, not something you memorize. I still do this before EVERY dive, and I have thousands of them.

Carry some sort of device that will allow you to signal you are in trouble, there are various ones on the market

Take a friend, even a non-diver, that doesn't mind sitting on the beach and "watching your bubbles" make sure they know your plan and when you should be surfacing, and what to do if you don't surface on time.

All that said if I were in your shoes I would be probably go to the LDS and rent some pool time to "practice" before I went solo. Seriously, 6 months is a long time between dives.

Best of Luck to you.
Leann

You've said it all. Specially the part about a friend sitting off-shore just in case. I second that!

 

[scubasean]

You say that none of your female friends are divers. Ok. So, why not hook up with a couple male divers to dive with? I bet your LDS or local dive club could probably hook you up with some other "buddy-less" folks who want to dive.
The issue is needing a buddy. Does it really matter what gender your dive buddy is?

I'm not a gal, but the gender of my dive buddy is of utmost importance if I want my key to work in the door when I get home.

:banana: