Possible to buddy dive from own boat?

[gatorblueyes]

Well it appears that all good suggestions have been made here so I just wanted to share our recent experiences. To keep it short, in some swift top current we had an anchor pop and that was scary but thankfully we had a lot of anchor line out and were right there to resecure the boat however, that could have been really bad and over July 4th in the Keys, we had our boat drift off a mooring ball on the Thunderbolt. Not sure what happened as our usual person did not tie off to the ball but when we came up to do our saftey stop we looked up and the boat was gone:shocked2:. It was FAR away. We had to deploy our saftey sausages and sit there. Luckily the friend that was spearfishing WAS on the boat but hadn't yet realized he was off the wreck as the boat was secure when he got on. We had no idea he was even on the boat as it was so far away. We could only assume he was swimming to the boat. Please, please be very careful. We have had to learn the hard way.

 

[Spikester54]

Thanks all for the suggestions and ideas. I will consider all. Maybe best to continue to dive with local dive operators, and use my own equipment and tanks, and pay for their boat, and divemaster if needed. Probably the safer approach.

 

[charlesml3]

No doubt is it safer to have someone on the boat topside.

That said, my brother and I have made many dives where we left the boat and went down together. We'd always set the anchor hard and then do the dive.

We always used to laugh at the idea that we'd swim back to the anchor one day and find the boat sitting on the bottom right beside it.....

-Charles

 

[archman]

I suppose I should add the caveat that even though I commonly leave my boat unattended, I tend to stay in visual sight of the anchor and/or anchor line. I think a lot of divers do this anyways...

For crowded dive sites in the Keys (e.g. Looe Key), I've seen folks tie safety wieners and other colorful identifiers to the mooring ball chains so they know which boat is theirs.

Another caveat: Probably good idea not to leave your unattended if you're night diving. I don't think I've EVER seen unattended dive boats at night.

 

[Scott M]

Of course there would be little that could substitute for having someone actually on the boat but with that said many do dive and leave their boats. We leave our boats up here all the time, granted we are on a lake but this lake can get nasty and it can get there quick so we do face the issue of anchoring. I use an anchor a lot bigger than what is required.....a lot bigger as in a 45 lb plow for a 24' pontoon boat, if memory serves the suggested anchor for this boat is a 16lb fluke style. I have a huge lead chain 3/8" and twice the recommended length, I use a longer than recommended amount of line also. When we splash we drop down the anchor line and set the anchor before starting out. Still no guarantee but we have taken as many precautions as possible. Even if the lake does turn the boat is not going to get to far. Current is another issue but in a lake that is managable.

This lake is also very transient as we have a lot of people cruising the lake from parts unknown so it would not be hard to zip in steel some stuff while we are under and zip out. To date we have never had anything taken. My boat would be a little bit of job but my buddies have a small whaler that sits practically at arm level if you were on a seadoo so it is ripe for the pickings with mounds of gear on it. They do 100-150 dives a year in the lake and have never had an issue.

Hopefully some of these things will assist you in using your boat in the same way. I would hate to think I had a boat, a dive buddy and still not able to go diving.

Regards

 

[Walter]

This is in Florida and the Caribbean, though. Diving there is cake.

This type of thinking gets people killed.

Just post a dive flag, deploy your ladder, and follow your anchor down to check that it's secure. Some folks leave their marine radios on...

Extremely poor advice.

 

[boulderjohn]

If you are leaving Colorado for 6 months in the Keys, I assume you are talking about the winter months. The smartest thing to do, IMO, is to have a fellow Coloradoan who is tired of winter come down and tend the boat for you while you dive. Just pay the plane fare, room and board, etc., and your problem is solved.

I can be available starting in November. Just let me know the dates and send me the ticket.

 

[captain]

If you decide to do it I would not depend on knots or cleats to keep the anchor and boat together. Eye splice on both ends of the anchor rode with the boat end shackled to a strong point on the boat. I also safety wire the shackle bolts in place. If you tie off to a mooring buoy shackle to it also.

 

[DRsharky]

This type of thinking gets people killed.

I agree with Walter, diving it fun but you have to be responsible, so no matter where you dive, make sure you are safe.
I would never leave my boat unattended, it's dangerous

 

[archman]

This type of thinking gets people killed.
Extremely poor advice.

Well, the outfit I worked for in the Keys has been doing that for decades, and countless thousands of trips. Nobody ever got killed from the practice, nor lost at sea. Dragged anchors are bloody rare. I see the same practices in the Bahamas where I've also worked. Little to no problems there either.

If one takes reasonable precautions, risk can be easily managed to a statistically insignificant level. Judge your boat, judge your environment, and judge your divers. That's a far better estimate of risk management than black-or-white proclamations as to what's "always dangerous".

All that said, I will agree with the naysayers in that if one has no judgement where boat diving is concerned, leave a (alert and trained) tender aboard. Or put more simply, use common sense.