Gear for Diving in Multiple Climates

Hello,

I live in Southern California but have done most of my diving in Central America and will continue going there at least once if not twice a year. I decided that I wanted to at least try not to be a thermal wimp and look at doing some diving locally. Well, I purchased some thicker booties for this climate but of course they are just thick enough to not fit into the fins I have used in the Caribbean. So, I am trying to figure out what to do from the perspective of equipment and $$$. Should I bite the bullet going forward and assume I will need different fins and boots for the two environments or would you recommend using the thicker boots in both environments and getting fins for the thicker boots? Are any of you dealing with this "dual diving reality?" I'd welcome any advice you can give. Diving is the first sport I've enjoyed this much but my wallet is leaking big time... :dazzler1:

Best,

Jeff Levine

I live in a cold water diving location. When I travel to warm water diving, I use the same boots and fins. Just change the wetsuit. All other gear (reg, gloves, hood, mask, lights, etc) remains the same.

Hope this helps.

We only own two suits each: a full length 3mm wetsuit and DUI trilam drysuit.

The wetsuit we wear down to about 73F; after that it's drysuit time.

Meanwhile, the best part about shell drysuits is that you can vary the thickness of the undergarments, which gives you a very wide range of temps in which you can use the suit. For example, when I go dive with the Manatees next week in Homossasas Springs FL (water temp 72F) I'll just wear a sweatshirt or a long-sleeved t-shirt and a pair of bicycle leggings. However, when I dove a quarry out in AL (48F after the 2nd thermocline) I wore a poly shirt (like the hikers wear) under a thick sweatshirt, and fleece-lined bicycle leggings. Worked great.

Fortunately, the fin pockets & straps on my Dacor Tiger fins allow me to use the same fins for both drysuit (DUI Rock Boots) and wet suit boots. Pearce has a pair of Mares Quattros that give him the same flexibility.

However, that's not always the case: my previous drysuit had huge built-in booties that meant I had to use a different sized fin for them vs my wetsuit.

Any way you decide to go, good luck!

I live in Northern Virginia, and the water here can be downright cold sometimes. I have a 7 mil wetsuit for local diving, and a 3 mil for warmer carribbean waters. I use the same 5 mil booties (coupled with Mares Quattro's) for both. I would recommend using the same booties for both. I have never been too hot or cold wearing the 5 mil booties in either waters, as the wetsuit (and hood/gloves - brrrr) are the only things I change.

Mike

Not really possible to use the same exact gear without compromise. I am mostly a warm water person too but in the past I have had 1/4 thick wet suits for colder (to me water). I find that I need a larger fin size and in coldwater tend to prefer something like a Jet fin or my Rockets with adjustable strap. As much as these kill my arches they seem to work better with thick boots. In warm water I like a full foot Mars or the old semi open UDY Duckfeet fin. I have two sizes of Duckfeet, one for barefoot or lycra sock and another for a thicker boot. Even the way I set my gear up, the way I ballast things etc changes so I definitly sypathise with your plight to economise, I just don't think it poosible in all apsects to be happy. In warm water I prefer a lycra skin or a .5 to 1.0 mil suit or even a bathing suit, certainly not a 5/3 mil full suit. I would think that very uncomfotable and unnessary confining. Just me, more than one way to skin a cat! N

obviously by my location I only dive warm water (it's down to a bone-chilling 78 degrees now . . . brrrr) but I wear 7mil boots in an XXL Jet fin - works great here, but looking at my gear on the beach I've had several divers assume I was visiting from a cold climate - so I guess they would work just about anywhere.


for what it's worth coming from a warm water newbie

Aloha, Tim

I'm in the same boat..er ship. Taking a cruise and will be doing a dive in Grand Cayman. I'm a cold water diver (Massachusetts) and have 7 mil boots. Without the boots my fins are downright loose. I've been asking myself whether or not to bring the boots along and Tim's posting has helped with that decision. The other option was to rent some fins there but you're at the mercy of the dive operator. Any thoughts?