Would anyone like to dive Devil's Throat?

[rick00001967]

i did this site once. only because i had to as part of my training at the time. there is some excellent advise here in this thread.
i am not, and never have been, a fan of "deep" diving. i was quite nervous on this dive. but i made sure to do it "my way" so i was as comfortable as i could be.
i certainly knew i was physically more than able, and my skills at the time were good enough. it was the space between my ears that was the only concern. but isn't that the truth on most new dive experiences ?
i did not rush (like some of the others), i was part of a small group (4 divers plus the guide), i insisted on being either the first diver or last diver through the passage, i was with a buddy that i trusted, i had a small bail out air source, and i had basically a week of diving in the area before hand with the same crew.
the "swim through" that we went through took me to 126 feet. i am not familiar enough to tell you in detail which one we went through but it was certainly long enough that i would consider it a small cavern and not a swim through. but that is just my opinion.
myself, my buddy, and the guide had no trouble completing the dive along with a very long and slow drifting ascent. but the other pair had to end the dive as soon as they exited, as they both were low on air. they did a safe ascent as far as i know cuz they were waiting on the boat when we were picked up. haha
make whatever decision is best for you. no dive is worth taking too great a risk. evaluate your self, your gear, your training , and your comfort level. pushing your self beyond what we normally do is how we grow. as long as we are taking small steps and not giant leaps.

 

[Dave Dillehay]

AS a following comment I will suggest that the Devil's Throat is easily within the skill level of most divers with the following conditions:

Larger than Cozumel normal (80 cf) air supply.

Small Groups of 6 or less

Good Drop location

DT Experienced DM

Good and thorough briefing

Proper evaluation of dive skills (This means the dive operator must be aware of the comfort in the water and buoyancy control of each diver).



Following these, I've taken many scores of divers, maybe hundreds, through the Devil's Throat Tour over the last 27 years and never an accident or DCS.

Dave Dillehay (Aldora retired)

 

[wgw04024]

Just to be clear, I certainly think with good equipment, ample air consumption, and reasonable buoyancy skills this dive is a piece of cake for most divers with good skills. That being said, the part I would not like is doing it with anyone other than my normal dive buddies. Yes, I read A&I religiously...

 

[uncfnp]

From entry to exit at 134 feet was roughly 5 1/2 minutes.

I dive a very conservative computer and only got into about 2 minutes deco. And that was only after doing the second swimthrough often done after DT. I think it is cathedral?

And yes, I dove it on an 80 cf with 32 nitrox. Total dive time was 40 minutes and I exited the water with 1800 cf in my tank.

Edit: I thought something didn't look quite right. Got my numbers reversed. Back on boat with 1200 psi. Sorry.

 

[BRT]

From entry to exit at 134 feet was roughly 5 1/2 minutes.

I dive a very conservative computer and only got into about 2 minutes deco. And that was only after doing the second swimthrough often done after DT. I think it is cathedral?

And yes, I dove it on an 80 cf with 32 nitrox. Total dive time was 40 minutes and I exited the water with 1800 cf in my tank.

Let me be the first to berate you for diving nitrox over MOD

 

[tridacna]

It's one of my favorite dives in Coz. I've done it mostly (about 6 times) with 80s. My SAC is nowhere near that of @uncfnp - I'm happy to get back on board with 500-600psi. Or maybe even less. Much less. Next time I'm going with Aldora. No question.

 

[AdivingBel]

LOL...it's Coz's "boogeyman" dive. Some folks like to have a dive to get excited about and this one fits the bill. If you enjoy swimthroughs, you'll like the dive and its nice topography. If you don't enjoy swimthroughs, follow the bubbles, skip the "dog run," and enjoy the nice topography. It's on the deep side so watch your NDLs though there's no reason to hang around at depth unless you choose to. Like all dives you'll either be gas limited or NDL limited. If you're generally gas limited, a little extra won't hurt especially if you're geared up and a bit excited. I tend to be NDL limited and for that reason I usually end up surfacing with more gas than usual on this particular dive because NDLs or not, the ops usually make it a shorter dive. Relax, have fun and enjoy. If you prefer to dive more conservatively, skip the dive. There are lots of others. All IMHO, YMMV.

 

[Manatee Diver]

Looking at videos I would like to dive this site, in doubles. The restrictions look like they are wide enough for doubles.

 

[Joneill]

Let me be the first to berate you for diving nitrox over MOD

Like 22 feet over the Nitrox 32% MOD and a PO2 of 1.63 - well outside of the training recommendations and not something I'd want to do, let alone admit to here... though, nor is stating one dives a very conservative computer but obviously not following it's guidance?

 

[ChuckP]

Like 22 feet over the Nitrox 32% MOD and a PO2 of 1.63 - well outside of the training recommendations and not something I'd want to do, let alone admit to here... though, nor is stating one dives a very conservative computer but obviously not following it's guidance?

Not if you hold your breathe and just exhale bubbles while at depth! You take one deep breath at 111', once you get to the exit, you exhale slowly till you're back at 111' Easy Peesy

I'm going to edit this because of the days we live in. You can easily exit the deep part at 120-125 feet, I just looked back at a dive I did there, from hitting 111' to 125' and back to 111' was exactly one minute - under the old recommended 1.6 but above the new recommended 1.4. I had ear clearing problems so was moving faster than normal, normally your below 111' for a few minutes.