TooTall
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Stay in the middle of the group, That way the BOOGIE MAN wont get you.
night dive tips
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dive_lover88
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Watch out for the critters, esp for triggers...heard from a group of divers that they got charged at by a titan trigger while doing a night dive. Pay attention to your buddy's or group's actions...and also make sure you are following the correct person.
:ssst: People... you DO realize that this thread is about 5 months old... ???
Just thought I'd bring it up.
Just thought I'd bring it up.
I strongly beleive in a personal marker,I once used glow sticks now I use the LED glo-Toob
glo-toob.com
glo-toob.com
OP
cra2
Contributor
Is that a good or bad thing?
SubMariner:
I suppose I'll have to give it a try again, but I wasn't that impressed with the one night dive we did. Lobsters look the same to me whether in daylight or by flashlight (and that's about all we saw). Then again, I didn't try covering my dive light and was too busy with all my gear and dive buddy malfunctions to enjoy the scenery.
I believe that Cozumel now has a law that you have to take two dive lights for night diving, which is a good idea anyway. I guess I just assumed that backup lights were mandatory everywhere.
I believe that Cozumel now has a law that you have to take two dive lights for night diving, which is a good idea anyway. I guess I just assumed that backup lights were mandatory everywhere.
shellig
Contributor
I would have thought two dive lights would be an unwritten rule, too...but on a night dive in Belize, an "experienced" diver with (he said) over 50 dives had a light that would not come on. He did not have a backup light, the DM did not have a backup light to give him...eventually my dive buddy (who carries three! one is small, though) gave the "experienced" guy one of hers. In the mean time, we lost about 10 minutes of our 45 min dive dealing with the situation and the DM and the other diver almost landed on a sting ray sleeping in the sand. :11:
Side note...I use "experienced" in quotes because this diver had the absolute worst buoyancy of any diver I have seen. He slammed into me twice on this dive (from above) and several other divers before he was through. He was just as bad during the day dives and I avoided him like the plague!
My favorite night dive (of the three) was a shore dive at Bonaire where you could see all kinds of activity you did not see during the day, we were not swarmed by the worms (like we were in Belize), current wasn't bad, and lots of critters hidden away during the day were out and about (like lobster which I seldom see on day dives). It's too bad you didn't see more, Giggi.
ctopus:
In the groups I have gone with, we always use tank markers, one of the group has a strobe.
Hardest thing about shore diving at night was ensuring we came out about where we came in. We used "landmarks" and timing but anyone left a strobe or light to guide them back?
Great thread!
Anyone tried alternative dive lights or filters like those at : http://www.nightsea.com/barrier.htm that allow you to see fluorescence you might not normally see?
Side note...I use "experienced" in quotes because this diver had the absolute worst buoyancy of any diver I have seen. He slammed into me twice on this dive (from above) and several other divers before he was through. He was just as bad during the day dives and I avoided him like the plague!
My favorite night dive (of the three) was a shore dive at Bonaire where you could see all kinds of activity you did not see during the day, we were not swarmed by the worms (like we were in Belize), current wasn't bad, and lots of critters hidden away during the day were out and about (like lobster which I seldom see on day dives). It's too bad you didn't see more, Giggi.
ctopus: In the groups I have gone with, we always use tank markers, one of the group has a strobe.
Hardest thing about shore diving at night was ensuring we came out about where we came in. We used "landmarks" and timing but anyone left a strobe or light to guide them back?
Great thread!
Anyone tried alternative dive lights or filters like those at : http://www.nightsea.com/barrier.htm that allow you to see fluorescence you might not normally see?
Grajan
Contributor
We prefer night diving to day diving and do as much as we possibly can. If you are going to dive remote sites at night a strobe is essential. The North Bonaire dives are our favorite night dives but they are really in the middle of nowhere and shore access is not always possible. Diving from a dark beach with the nearest light more than 5 miles away is he best possible experience.
Our primary dive light is a Diverite 10w HID 13 deg beam with a translucent red filter. It provides perfect light (the bare HID is WAY too bright). Not only is it reasonably subdued and appears not to bother creatures but everything is color corrected. We take the red filter off for daytime use.
We carry a backup LED light each and a tank marker (LED).
We night dived with Doc in Roatan and he had (among a plethora of lights) a UV light that was awesome. The dullest corals became glowing spectacles. I'm going to build one soon. Here is a link to a UV light that is supposed to be rated to 150'.
Two people is the best number for night diving (or any diving for that matter) but a pack at night is horrible.
Our primary dive light is a Diverite 10w HID 13 deg beam with a translucent red filter. It provides perfect light (the bare HID is WAY too bright). Not only is it reasonably subdued and appears not to bother creatures but everything is color corrected. We take the red filter off for daytime use.
We carry a backup LED light each and a tank marker (LED).
We night dived with Doc in Roatan and he had (among a plethora of lights) a UV light that was awesome. The dullest corals became glowing spectacles. I'm going to build one soon. Here is a link to a UV light that is supposed to be rated to 150'.
Two people is the best number for night diving (or any diving for that matter) but a pack at night is horrible.
shellig:
keyshunter
Contributor
A person could glean enough information from this thread to become a pretty good night diver. Just a few comments:
A light stick marking the entrance to a wreck is fine--as long as it is attached to a penetration line. As we used to say "silt happens", and a light is virtually useless in silted conditions.
In a buddy team dive, do whatever you want, but in any group dive which I led, only the dive leader wears a strobe. In an emergency, it is important to know which of the twenty or so lights scattered across the reef is the divemaster. He, hopefully, knows the direct route to the boat if someone has an equipment problem, is low on air, etc.
A strobe is also used on a down line at the boat, or at the entrance point on the beach (in areas where it is not likely to be stolen), if there is no good shore light to use as a guide.
As someone noted, buoyancy is important. Also important is what I like to call awareness in the water. Be vigilant of your surroundings, other divers, currents, topography, depth, gas supply, etc., since it is easy, especially for the inexperienced night diver, to be mesmerized by the experience.
A light stick marking the entrance to a wreck is fine--as long as it is attached to a penetration line. As we used to say "silt happens", and a light is virtually useless in silted conditions.
In a buddy team dive, do whatever you want, but in any group dive which I led, only the dive leader wears a strobe. In an emergency, it is important to know which of the twenty or so lights scattered across the reef is the divemaster. He, hopefully, knows the direct route to the boat if someone has an equipment problem, is low on air, etc.
A strobe is also used on a down line at the boat, or at the entrance point on the beach (in areas where it is not likely to be stolen), if there is no good shore light to use as a guide.
As someone noted, buoyancy is important. Also important is what I like to call awareness in the water. Be vigilant of your surroundings, other divers, currents, topography, depth, gas supply, etc., since it is easy, especially for the inexperienced night diver, to be mesmerized by the experience.
Grajan
Contributor
We always try and put the strobe on a prominent point at about the 20' depth. This makes it a good spot for safety stops and discourages premature removal.
keyshunter:
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