Solo dive - true confessions

[Wibble]

The very first thing you need to get out of your head if you plan to dive solo is that someone might help you. You're 100% on your own and if you get it wrong you'll just have to do the decent thing and drown. Try not to drift off and make it hard on searchers.

Of course. Which is why redundancy is so vitally important (I should have made that point above).

Diving alone on a lake with no other divers needs to be done with proper redundancy. Sidemount, rebreather+bailout, or twinset. Oh, or a single + pony.

 

[Celt]

Of course. Which is why redundancy is so vitally important (I should have made that point above).

Diving alone on a lake with no other divers needs to be done with proper redundancy. Sidemount, rebreather+bailout, or twinset. Oh, or a single + pony.

Availability of the surface is redundancy. Instead of switching to a bailout I'll surface.

 

[Wibble]

Availability of the surface is redundancy.

It is... but...

It's a personal thing; I like to know my gas is available and when it's not I like to use my backup/redundancy. It's learning one thing: reach for the backup regulator (which you know works because you've tested it during this dive) and breathe.

Of course it's simple to do a bolt to the surface if it's within 10m/30ft. Just doesn't suit everyone -- I spend my entire dive life ensuring I can hang around under the surface for that invisible decompression ceiling, so making an exception for "just bolt to the surface" as I'm shallow is a big big step!

 

[Celt]

It is... but...

It's a personal thing; I like to know my gas is available and when it's not I like to use my backup/redundancy. It's learning one thing: reach for the backup regulator (which you know works because you've tested it during this dive) and breathe.

Of course it's simple to do a bolt to the surface if it's within 10m/30ft. Just doesn't suit everyone -- I spend my entire dive life ensuring I can hang around under the surface for that invisible decompression ceiling, so making an exception for "just bolt to the surface" as I'm shallow is a big big step!

Why would I be bolting, a leak a freeflow I'd make a normal assent, I never do so called safety stops. For me it's just 3 minutes possibly drifting in the wrong direction and away from my boat.

 

[rx7diver]

Did my first dive after certification today.

Yeah, solo. ...

I just finished a very nice solo dive. ...

@Cthippo and @Dark Wolf,

Do you know about this thread on the Solo Divers Forum: Where did you solo dive today?.

I think it would work better if you posted about your solo diving outings there.

rx7diver

 

[Dark Wolf]

@Cthippo and @Dark Wolf,

Do you know about this thread on the Solo Divers Forum: Where did you solo dive today?.

I think it would work better if you posted about your solo diving outings there.

rx7diver

Crap, I apologize to all! That was the thread I meant to post in. I don't "watch" a whole lot of threads, but sure screwed it up!. If a mod wants to delete my AM post, I would appreciate it. And thank you rx7diver for letting me know!

DW

 

[Wibble]

Why would I be bolting, a leak a freeflow I'd make a normal assent, I never do so called safety stops. For me it's just 3 minutes possibly drifting in the wrong direction and away from my boat.

Yes. Most of the time.

I like to plan for when the crap really hits the fan. Agreed it's very unlikely, but having a proper redundant kit config is easy, so there's no reason for not diving with redundancy.

The big thing is what kind of diving... Haven't dived a single in goodness knows how many years.

 

[Celt]

Yes. Most of the time.

I like to plan for when the crap really hits the fan. Agreed it's very unlikely, but having a proper redundant kit config is easy, so there's no reason for not diving with redundancy.

The big thing is what kind of diving... Haven't dived a single in goodness knows how many years.

Sure hope I'm not wrong but I'm talking about shallow single tank diving here.

 

[Wibble]

Example: Couple of years ago, en-route back from diving in Scapa Flow, I jumped into Loch Ness for a quick bit of Nessie bothering. There was no way on earth I'd do that on a single! I could have used a twinset, but the route down was awkward and the fore shore very rocky.

So I chose the tool for the job, a pair of 8.5 litre (55 cubits of air in long thin) steel cylinders in sidemount configuration.

Only went to 10m/33ft. It was spooky as hell; pitch black like an overhead, but the bright torch (had a backup) just wouldn't cut through the tannin-rich water. Was absolutely nothing down there as the absence of light meant absence of vegetation.

Point being that I had full and complete redundancy of gas supplies. If anything happened, there's no problems as would switch to the other side.

30 mins was plenty of time. Certainly enough of listening to my idiot brain: "Nessie's going to get you...". Surfaced to a group of tourists who even carried my fins and tins up to the car

 

[Celt]

Example: Couple of years ago, en-route back from diving in Scapa Flow, I jumped into Loch Ness for a quick bit of Nessie bothering. There was no way on earth I'd do that on a single! I could have used a twinset, but the route down was awkward and the fore shore very rocky.

So I chose the tool for the job, a pair of 8.5 litre (55 cubits of air in long thin) steel cylinders in sidemount configuration.

Only went to 10m/33ft. It was spooky as hell; pitch black like an overhead, but the bright torch (had a backup) just wouldn't cut through the tannin-rich water. Was absolutely nothing down there as the absence of light meant absence of vegetation.

Point being that I had full and complete redundancy of gas supplies. If anything happened, there's no problems as would switch to the other side.

30 mins was plenty of time. Certainly enough of listening to my idiot brain: "Nessie's going to get you...". Surfaced to a group of tourists who even carried my fins and tins up to the car

Of course people should do what's comfortable for them. I used to clear the inlet flapper valve for the council water scheme in a mountain lake, not one ounce more than I needed would I carry up that mountain.