Trip Report The Road to Becoming a Better Diver - Key Largo Trip Report Part 1

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Tigerpaw

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In December 2021, I earned my Open water in the calm waters of Tahiti. A few months later in March 2022, I went to Key Largo to dive and reality hit. The Atlantic Ocean is a wee bit rougher than the South Pacific. I had never been seasick before, yet on this particular trip I puked out my guts. This particular dive was on the Spiegel Grove. After I entered the water I was overwhelmed by the waves crashing into me, as we were making our way towards the mooring ball it was hard for me to breathe. I remember reading that is a symptom of hyperventilating. Between everything happening, I called the dive. The Divemaster I was with was very supportive and encouraging. Needless to say, during that trip I ended up doing 2-3 shallow reef dives instead of 8 planned dives. While those reef dives restored my confidence, I learned a valuable lesson and that was that as a diver, I need to dive to gain experience as well as dive in different conditions. At that point I had less than 10 dives and I vowed I would return. After Key Largo, I did some diving at our local lake as well as when the wife and I would go on a cruise or vacation. I had also contacted the scuba shop (Scuba Fun in Key Largo) to set up the trip for the following year, a huge undertaking, 32 dives spread out over 8 days! My intent was to focus on scuba diving the entire week!

Fast forward to April 2023, I arrived in Key Largo, anxious but ready to go. I met the Divemaster who would be my guide for the week, Scuba Joe, I told him of my plan and we both were excited. The next day, the first dive of the day was the wreck of the Eagle a deep dive, I actually started to second guess myself, thinking I should have scheduled a shallow dive first. I'd earlier explained to Joe what happened the year prior and to get me underwater as safely and quickly as possible. The waves weren't as bad but I was still a bit anxious, I think he saw it on my face, he reassured me and he took me to about 10 feet under and we sat there for a minute. By then I was good and away we went. Because this was my first dive with him, he did not want me to take my camera and he also wanted to evaluate me as well. Visibility was excellent, it was crystal clear and there were fish everywhere. Once Joe saw that I was having fun and enjoying the dive he asked if I wanted to go to 100ft. I quickly nodded yes and away we went. We stayed there for a minute then we came back up. (Prior to that the deepest I've dove was 77ft.) After swimming around we made our ascent, did our safety stop and was back on board. I completed 4 additional dives that day and finished the 1st day with 5 dives. I felt relief, vindication and was so happy that I came back and didn't give up. Three days later I returned to the Spiegel Grove and it was a triumphant return and dive! When we made it back to the dive shop, I asked them to let the Divemaster from last year know that I redeemed myself.
 
Nice you still like diving. Don't focus on the amount of dives, I prefer also a lot of dives, but the quality must be good.
Go diving as much as possible and really, enjoy, don't forget to enjoy.
 
I've done two dives on the Spiegel Grove. The first dive was one of the most extreme underwater experiences I've had. The current was ripping through to the point that if I turned my head sideways water was pushing under my mask seal. I may have done dives with equally strong current, but they have always been drift dives. We were under strict instructions to descend and ascend via the shot line. We enjoyed the dive in a terrifying sort of way, but didn't feel able to leave the lee of the wreck due to the current which meant that we didn't get to see too much of it. As I remember, the second dive was slightly better in this respect.
 
G!ad to see you did not let one bad day ruin your future diving. We all need to grow and gain experience at our own pace.
 
and I vowed I would return.
Alot of people quit from what your beginning dives were.
Congrats on seeking more dives and that truly is the key to having more fun.
Great writeup!!
 
Way to keep at it!! As so many of us have learned the hard way, scuba can be really easy ... until it's not. Current, sea state, water temp, air temp, visibility, etc. ... any number of factors can make a dive more challenging than anticipated. Gradually building experience also builds confidence and over time helps you to become a better diver. Congrats!
 
Changing conditions can make what was a brutal dive one day an easy dive the next. In some conditions, a normally safe and popular dive should not even be attempted.

A month or two ago I did a wreck dive a bit north of there at Pompano Beach. The procedure there is for a divemaster to swim down to the wreck and tie off a line to use for ascents and descents. When she came up, she warned us that the current was strong. About a third of the divers wore doubles and were planning to do a deco dive on the wreck. A couple were rebreather divers. Everyone was pretty experienced.

The first guy in was a rebreather diver, and he was followed by two divers with doubles. I was next. The current was incredibly strong, and it was really hard pull yourself down the line. After a while, the doubles diver ahead of me stopped and waved his light beam ahead to his buddy to get his attention, but his buddy didn't see it. I went by, caught the buddy, and got him to turn and look. They then thumbed the dive. I caught up with the rebreather diver before long because he was taking rest stops. Eventually we reached the wreck, and I spent that dive looking for ways to use the structure to hide from the current. When I started my ascent, I clung to the wreck with one hand and grabbed the line with the other. I was afraid to let go because I was sure I would never get back to the line. When I got on board, I learned that nearly half the divers had quit during the descent.
 
Changing conditions can make what was a brutal dive one day an easy dive the next. In some conditions, a normally safe and popular dive should not even be attempted.

A month or two ago I did a wreck dive a bit north of there at Pompano Beach. The procedure there is for a divemaster to swim down to the wreck and tie off a line to use for ascents and descents. When she came up, she warned us that the current was strong. About a third of the divers wore doubles and were planning to do a deco dive on the wreck. A couple were rebreather divers. Everyone was pretty experienced.

The first guy in was a rebreather diver, and he was followed by two divers with doubles. I was next. The current was incredibly strong, and it was really hard pull yourself down the line. After a while, the doubles diver ahead of me stopped and waved his light beam ahead to his buddy to get his attention, but his buddy didn't see it. I went by, caught the buddy, and got him to turn and look. They then thumbed the dive. I caught up with the rebreather diver before long because he was taking rest stops. Eventually we reached the wreck, and I spent that dive looking for ways to use the structure to hide from the current. When I started my ascent, I clung to the wreck with one hand and grabbed the line with the other. I was afraid to let go because I was sure I would never get back to the line. When I got on board, I learned that nearly half the divers had quit during the descent.

Lady Luck? I've had that exact same experience on both the LL and the Castor in Boynton. That's why I'm a huge fan of hot dropping and drifting the large wrecks (or wreck trecks) off SEFL. So much easier (effort-wise) in a strong current.
 
In December 2021, I earned my Open water in the calm waters of Tahiti. A few months later in March 2022, I went to Key Largo to dive and reality hit. The Atlantic Ocean is a wee bit rougher than the South Pacific. I had never been seasick before, yet on this particular trip I puked out my guts. This particular dive was on the Spiegel Grove.
Hi @Tigerpaw , you got your OW in Dec 2021, and then went to dive the Spiegel on March 2022? Did you work on your AOW in between these dates ?
 
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https://xf2.scubaboard.com/community/forums/cave-diving.45/

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