Navigation Line Etiquette in Inland Lakes

Kind of a random, but I was discussing use of navigation line in open water diving with a friend over a few pints.....

Basically, in our Lakes/Ponds/Rivers sometimes there can be a web of nav line run, sometimes there is nothing. Several of the more popular shore sites have nav line run from points at approx 20ft depth to "sights" such as sunken boats/cars/vending machines/trampolines/underwater sculptures/etc. I know that frequently the permanent lines are run by the local dive clubs/shops for training and since often our viz can run down to a few feet it is rather nice to have them in play.

My question runs more along the lines of running personal line for a short duration of time and what the etiquette is for how long to leave that line, specifically for inland lakes and waterways. As an example much of the shoreline along the lake I frequent is public access and I will roam around the lake looking for new dive spots either from shore or boat. Frequently with a boat I will record the stop on my GPS and drop anchor, descend to depth and run a few guide lines and then dink around using my lines as a boundary and seeing if I like the spot or not. If the spot deems a return trip within a few days I will sometimes leave the line and then retrieve it on my last dive, otherwise I will pull it prior to finishing the dive. Also, if I find something that I want to recover but am unable to during the dive I will typically run a line from that object to my anchor point or to 25ft off shore and return for it when I have the correct gear/support. There are a couple of good spots of the shoreline that I have been tempted to run a line and leave it there for an extended period of time but don't as it doesn't seem proper etiquette, and honestly I don't know if there are any laws regarding this. With these sites I will typically run a line perpendicular to the shoreline from my entry point, do the dive, and then return to the line and retrieve it on the way out.

I was never able to find any information in the rules and ordinances (city, county, park or state) for our lakes other than some requiring the use of a dive flag.

So, what are other divers thoughts?

Well . . . I guess you really have to consider what the potential is for creating an entanglement hazard to swimmers, skiers, fisherman, ???

I'm not too worried about entanglement. Of all the crap at the bottom of the lake a line would be the least of my worries. Typically off shore I'll start a line at 15-25ft depth and run it about 1-2ft off the silt bottom so minimal hazard to swimmers, skiers. The shore entries are not ideal swim spots so very few swimmers as they tend to stick to dedicated beaches.
Fisherman may not like it, but there are many more snag hazards from the tire mountains, trash heaps, downed logs, etc. I do notice fishing lures frequently caught on the dive clubs lines but they are often 5-10ft off the bottom. Of course some of the fishermen have the worst etiquette of anyone and will fish off my dive flag if not steal it. Skiers run further off shore in the deep parts of the lakes where I don't dive so no problems there.

Some lakes here in Michigan have lines run between objects of interest. We dove a cold, relatively deep lake one time and followed a line to the middle of nothing. As far as etiquette goes, if you're just practicing running lines for cave training or something, I guess it would be nice if your removed them when you're done. Not really a big deal though.

Unless you know you are coming back within a day or two, remove the line. Goal should always be to leave every place better than you found it.

Also as a fisherman, one often bounces bottom and while there are other snags, why add more? Lures are expensive.

Steve_C:

Unless you know you are coming back within a day or two, remove the line. Goal should always be to leave every place better than you found it.

Also as a fisherman, one often bounces bottom and while there are other snags, why add more? Lures are expensive.

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I do not disagree but at the same time, I think fisherman create most of the line tangles themselves. Monofilimant and such needs to be illegal, it is an environmental disgrace.

N

Nemrod:

I do not disagree but at the same time, I think fisherman create most of the line tangles themselves. Monofilimant and such needs to be illegal, it is an environmental disgrace.

N

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Nemrod, I have been tangled with fishing line too many times. That's why I always dive with a sharp knife. It isn't to thwart attacks from black-suited divers (James Bond ) but rather to cut myself loose from the bottom. Here's one example:


Note the fishing line around my dive computer.

This is what it looked like when I got home:


Saying that, I would remove any line that I strung unless it was for a good reason, like a study area that I was setting up. A friend, Bruce Higgins, and his volunteer divers have set these lines in the Edmonds Underwater Park, Edmonds, Washington. Here's a link to the map of the Edmonds Underwater Park.
[video=youtube;X_dXIbOFsU8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_dXIbOFsU8[/video]

SeaRat