Advice for boarding in choppy sea

[KeithG]

Definitely listen to the crew. And do not be shy about asking for advice on how to reboard THIS boat if they happen to not mention much. And if you are not clear, then ask again. Different boats have different procedures.

It is a lot easier to figger out how to get back on the boat before your dive than it is from the water after your dive. I have seen crews shouting at confused divers to remove their fins BEFORE they grab the ladder. The ladder being a 4 coupon ride. The reboarding would have went smoother if the divers knew this procedure before they splashed.

There is a large variation on number of ladders, ladder design, tag lines etc. A specific boat may also have different calm water and wild water procedures. 2 ladders when calm, 1 ladder when wild. No tag line until a diver asks for it.

An interesting example: A common Caribbean liveaboard characteristic is for the boat to swing in a very large wide arc on the mooring line. A 5 to 10 minute round trip. If you miss the boat, it will (most likely) be back. It swings faster than you can swim. I have seen divers miss the lunge from the tag line to the ladder and then attempt to chase the boat down. Bad idea. Lean back & relax. The boat will be back. Eventually. Maybe.

The crew are the experts on the boat behaviour and procedures. Ask them! And do not be afraid to spend enough time before you hit the water to ensure you fully understand what they expect of you when you are getting out of the water.

 

[scubafanatic]

Monitor your air supply, all the divers will tend to run out of air about the same time, all come up about the same time, and you'll find yourself in a traffic jam waiting to board. You don't want to risk being OOA (out-of-air) at this point! In choppy seas especially you'll want to ability to remain 'on scuba' until you are fully and safely back onboard. Allow yourself an extra margin of 'air' for this contingency.

 

[wolflegresley]

The big thing is to make sure that the engine on the boat is off, and that everybody knows that you are going up next. When the boat tips thats when you grab the railings (no need to do anything else) when the ship sways upward you know your on board, wait for the divemaster to give you a hand getting on board and quickly drop your tank/s off!

 

[KevinNM]

Nevermind

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

... keep your mask on your face, your reg in your mouth and your ears on what the guy waiting to help you aboard is telling you to do ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Diving Dubai]

Once aboard, pick up your fins and any other kit handed up and clear the boarding area so others can get aboard...

always a source of amazement how many divers stop St the top of the ladder to talk about the dive while others are in the water

 

[Searcaigh]

Once aboard, pick up your fins and any other kit handed up and clear the boarding area so others can get aboard...

always a source of amazement how many divers stop at the top of the ladder to talk about the dive while others are in the water

A bit like people who stop at the top (or bottom) of escalators …..

Some or the boats I dive only have one person driving the boat and taking care of everything, if you are first on then get your gear off quick and lend a hand collecting fins handed up and assist anyone climbing the ladder if required.

 

[DenbyS]

My last boarding in Lake Michigan had the potential to be the worst but was luckily very smooth and very expeditious for all divers. It was very choppy, no fun in the water. The crew had divers coming directly onto the ladder with no gear removal.

I waited until the ladder was deep in the water, so I was grabbing high. As others have recommended, I approach tentatively but when I grabbed, I grabbed hard, got my finned feet hard on the ladder and stood as the boat rose on the water. I was instantly out of the water without taking a step up the ladder. The crew grabbed my shoulders to assure I didn't make misstep as I came up. I didn't come off my reg until was was on the bench.

I know removing fins seems the better, usually safer way to exit but in this case the trade off vs time bobbing around struggling to remove and hand up fins in the proximity of the ladder plunging in and out of the water worked very well and left me with more energy for getting onto and up the ladder.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Watch you tube videos of the bull riding. That'll help .
Seriously it has all been covered very well. Boarded boats in the keys in sporty conditions (3-5 ft with 7 ft rollers). At least what they call sporty.
Off of Monterey the Keys "sporty" is "wow this is great!"

One thing I don't get is the comment about everyone running low on air at the same time. My experience was completely different. Some of us were coming up with 1200-1500 after an hour while others had 500-700. Tried to let those people on first.

---------- Post added November 29th, 2014 at 02:05 PM ----------

And I have never had to hand fins up. Slip em over your wrist until you are up the ladder if it's not a fins on ladder. You can hand them to the crew if necessary when you get to the top. That way if you do fall you just slip em back on.
And yeah keep the reg in your mouth. A snorkel does you no good if you do fall off and drop under and need to inhale. In fact leave the snorkel on the boat so that you are not even tempted to go to it.

 

[Tigerman]

Put your hands between the ladder and the boat. Works perfect if you want to be on disability for a few months