What dive ops tend to do the easier dives.
- Thread starter morg59
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fishi
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I will third (or nth) what DjDiverDan said above. My first drift dive was in Cozumel, and I was a fairly inexperienced diver then, too. Nobody had given me any tips beforehand. On my first day there, the current happened to be strong. Descending, I took my time as I was accustomed to doing, and consequently I flew past where most of the rest of the group was gathering below me. I didn't understand that the current is usually slower closer to the bottom. I also didn't quite get the idea of using topographical features to shield myself from the current, and found myself at times finning with all the strength I could muster to stay with the group. But don't get the idea that the current is always that strong. On several subsequent trips, the current was consistently mild.
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morg59
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Thanks for the replies, On our previous ocean dives we were able to descend down mooring lines and meet at the bottom. Sounds like in Coz that is not the case. The situation that Lorenzoid explained about flying past everyone else is what I am afraid of not being used to currents.
One thing that happened to us when we did our first boat dives in Hawaii was that the DM took us on an advanced dive right out of the gate and all the other divers were very experienced. I had a great time but my wife was terrified. I didn't know until a few months later that she hated every minute of those dives. I had a great time however but it is really important to me to keep her happy so she will remain my dive buddy.
One thing that happened to us when we did our first boat dives in Hawaii was that the DM took us on an advanced dive right out of the gate and all the other divers were very experienced. I had a great time but my wife was terrified. I didn't know until a few months later that she hated every minute of those dives. I had a great time however but it is really important to me to keep her happy so she will remain my dive buddy.
mediumone
Contributor
That situation is entirely possible, but the extreme that he described is unlikely, and as he said, (and here's where you should focus), "On several subsequent trips, the current was consistently mild".
A private DM would be happy to hold your wife's hand while descending, and during the first part of the dive, (or the whole dive), if she'd like.
My dive buddy is my wife, so I understand how much you want this to work. I would be devastated if she no longer could or wanted to dive.
DjDiverDan
Contributor
I understand the desire to keep the wife happy and keep her as a dive buddy, but sometimes the two desires are just incompatible. I'm not currently married, and my only marriage ended a few years before I ever started diving. But I've had a few long term relationships, and some were great dive buddies, but one just couldn't get past her fear. She did great in the classroom and pool work, and her certification dives in a Texas lake went off without a hitch, even with limited visibility. But the first time she dropped over the side of a boat in Cozumel, she was absolutely overwhelmed by the thought of being underwater in an open ocean. She started hyperventilating before she got to 20 feet, and called the dive with a full-blown panic attack. She tried twice more, on different days, with similar results. Once, she got all the way to the sandy bottom at 60 feet, kneeling on the bottom with the DM holding her hand, and she just couldn't continue, went to the surface and got back on the boat. We all have our own irrational fears - for some, it's spiders, or snakes, or lizards, for others it's flying, for me it's falling off of a cliff (you can't get me within 10 feet of the edge of the Grand Canyon!), while for others it's enclosed spaces. For her, it was an irrational dread of being swept away into the wide open ocean. So we continued to go to Cozumel, and I dove as a solo diver while she spent the mornings at the beach clubs or wandering the tourist shops and the Mercado. Between keeping the wife happy and keeping her as a dive buddy, the choice is clear - keep her happy, don't try to force her into doing something she really doesn't want to do.
I don't know that I would describe the drift diving in Cozumel as dealing with currents, when I think of currents I think of dives with tidal shifts or topography that is funneling water through it and creating a current and when I think of currents I think of powerful and fast water moving, some wreck dives where the current can blow you off the wreck. I guess the water moving on Cozumel dives is technically a current, but for the most part it's really a gentle drift that is more your friend more than anything else, because it gently takes you along the dive site without you really doing anything really unless you want to.
I've dived in lots of place outside of Cozumel where you have to get in the water and get down immediately when I say immediately I mean like down fast 20-30 seconds because you are diving in a strong current, Cozumel is not really the same thing, yes there is some drift and yes the dive master will want to get the group all down pretty much at the same time, but the reality is unless you have ear problems that will slow you down dramatically, nobody should have any problems getting in the water and descending with the group. If you do have ear issues just let the DM know and he should give you some special treatment, like making sure you're in the water first and getting a head start or staying with you on the descent.
But I wouldn't worry too much about the drift diving in Cozumel, for the most part the diving there is super relaxing, not stressful in anyway. After your first dive you'll be pros and wonder what all the fuss was about. You get long bottom times in Cozumel because you aren't exerting yourself, you just float along and enjoy the dive, cool, calm... relaxed....breathe in... breathe out... enjoy the scenery... (look at the typical Cozumel diver or dive master and notice their body posture - typically arms folded across the chest, a fin kick once in a while, just a very relaxed, calm posture letting the drift take them along)
I think if you're really worried about all this, book an afternoon dive as your first dive of the trip, those are typically shallower and easier dive sites, a good way to dip your toe in the Cozumel dive scene and get all the 1st dive jitters out of the way.
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morg59
Registered
Thank you to everyone for the help. We ended up booking an afternoon dive the fist day with a private DM.
deepsea21
Contributor
Booking a private DM is a great idea. What dive op did you end up booking if you don't mind me asking?
Fear of the unknown is a big fear and a few bucks spent on a private DM to make someone comforatable and confident is worth all the money in the world. Diving for many becomes a life-long sport and hobby that can be enjoyed well into the golden years. When others are playing shuffle board during the day and bingo at night , I'll be diving!
I remember the 1st time I had to do a backward roll off the side of a boat instead of a stepping plunge. I was not very keen on the idea but once I did it holding my mask and reg to my face as trained with one hand and the other to my mask strap on the back of my head I was like like, "What was I so nervous about... this is nothing!". Same is true with drift diving as some may think they are going to be swept away and never seen again. That is just not the case. No one is going to be swept away in a current in Coz that is moving no faster than you can walk, follows the shoreline from south to north, and there are probably 100 dive boats at any given time floating along the entire western reef waiting for the 1,000 divers that are down at any point in time. Statistically, one's odds of being swept away and lost in Coz are less than the odds they'll be struck by lightening.
Please do share your dive experiences in Coz with all of us... Can't wait to hear the great stories!
OP
morg59
Registered
My wife wanted to dive with Tres Pelicanos after she did some researching and reading reviews. We have 5 two tank days planned with the first day a private DM. Doing nitrox 32 on the first dive and 36 on the second each day.
Really excited, only 5 weeks away. We went diving locally last night to practice a few skills and try some new gear. I hope we can do a few shore dives as well. My new years resolution is to get to 50 dives by the end of the year and right now we are both at 18.
