qballd
Registered
Tomorrow I will take my deep dive and wreck dive to finish up my AOW. Does anyone have any tips for the deep dive that are different than dives at 60'? I will be diving in a lake and the visibility is about 3'.
Finishing AOW tomorrow any last minute tips
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With 3' of visibility I would hope your buddy is your instructor and no one else is in the class. With those conditions awareness is crucial.
Be sure to read and understand gas planning. You're going to use more gas than you normally would, unless you only go to 61 feet.
Be sure to read and understand gas planning. You're going to use more gas than you normally would, unless you only go to 61 feet.
Try to relax and breathe slowly. My guess is it'll be cold so wear the appropriate exposure suit for the minimum temperature because being cold will make you breathe faster, and don't forget your light. Stay close to your buddy/instructor and remember what you learned so far about if you become separated. Scott is right in that you will use more gas than normal, but your instructor should help you in that sense in not planning a long deep dive. I think I only went to 85-87 feet for about 5 minutes, checked the color chart, and then we slowly started a calm ascent.
OP
qballd
Registered
Yes, it is just myself and the instructor. I got OW in the ocean but I have been in the lake for about 3 dives and it is completely different! Visibility has never been greater than 7' and the water temp was around 56 F the last time I dove there in June. I will take my 5mil and 7mil exposure suit. I appreciate the comments and suggestions.
You may encounter a thermocline, with a very sharp drop in water temperature and also a marked decrease in visibility. Be prepared for it, and it won't startle you as much.
The point about gas consumption is very important, and realize that narcosis may either make you hypervigilant, or kind of slow . . . if you have the latter reaction, you need to be VERY careful to monitor your gas.
It will likely be very dark down there, too.
The point about gas consumption is very important, and realize that narcosis may either make you hypervigilant, or kind of slow . . . if you have the latter reaction, you need to be VERY careful to monitor your gas.
It will likely be very dark down there, too.
Three feet of visibility at 100 feet for the first time...
I would keep a death grip on the anchor line at the bottom and then demonstrate to my instructor that I am not narced by pulling out my dive knife if he tries to coax me away from the upline.
Actually compared to something unpleasant like navigation your deep and wreck dives will be easy. Go down, look around, notice there is no red, orange or yellow stuff, admire stuff crushed by the pressure, note that narcosis can be pleasant and addictive like allergy medicine and then head back up. A simple rule if you stay near the line and are on an AL 80 is to be sure to head back up when your pressure in psi is your depth in feet plus a zero. (75'-750psi, 100 feet-1000 psi, etc). If you are away from the line use 2/3 for your turn point.
What kind of wreck is in the lake?
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I would keep a death grip on the anchor line at the bottom and then demonstrate to my instructor that I am not narced by pulling out my dive knife if he tries to coax me away from the upline.
Actually compared to something unpleasant like navigation your deep and wreck dives will be easy. Go down, look around, notice there is no red, orange or yellow stuff, admire stuff crushed by the pressure, note that narcosis can be pleasant and addictive like allergy medicine and then head back up. A simple rule if you stay near the line and are on an AL 80 is to be sure to head back up when your pressure in psi is your depth in feet plus a zero. (75'-750psi, 100 feet-1000 psi, etc). If you are away from the line use 2/3 for your turn point.
What kind of wreck is in the lake?
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OP
qballd
Registered
A sunken House boat I think Max, I haven't been down to see it yet. I got to actually explore the General Sherman and the Charleston Tug in Myrtle Beach S.C. during my OW class last year. Yes I really enjoyed the wreck diving there, it was great seeing those for the first time. Thanks again for the great tips guys, I'm sure we will not go to a depth of 100' because we are at altitude here and 90' actual will put us at 97' theoretical. I haven't experienced the narcosis so that is the one thing I'm anxious and not so anxious about because I'm not sure how my body will react.
Three feet of visibility at 100 feet for the first time...
I would keep a death grip on the anchor line at the bottom and then demonstrate to my instructor that I am not narced by pulling out my dive knife if he tries to coax me away from the upline.
Actually compared to something unpleasant like navigation your deep and wreck dives will be easy. Go down, look around, notice there is no red, orange or yellow stuff, admire stuff crushed by the pressure, note that narcosis can be pleasant and addictive like allergy medicine and then head back up. A simple rule if you stay near the line and are on an AL 80 is to be sure to head back up when your pressure in psi is your depth in feet plus a zero. (75'-750psi, 100 feet-1000 psi, etc). If you are away from the line use 2/3 for your turn point.
What kind of wreck is in the lake?
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In a poor quality AOW class this is sadly true.
House boat will make it easy to navigate back to the upline. Just don't get distracted looking for forgotten beer in the fridge and forget to check your air and runtime. After you gain a bit of experience a sunken houseboat affords the opportunity to hide in a closet and then scare the regulators out of other divers...
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Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk 2
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