mikeguerrero
Guest
These are the words that best describe the Break Water, as I arrived at 7am on Saturday. I wanted to get there early since I wanted good parking and organize for the team.
I was meeting, Matt, Brian, Kristina and Vassili. We were going to be testing a lot of new gear and figured where else can you get best conditions for this, BW was the clear winner.
Gearing up was easy and getting the dive planning in order was clear, Brian decided we would dive around 30+ feet to get in some hoovering skills and practice trim, all were in agreement.
We all entered the most inviting, flat, calm waters I have seen in a long time at the Break Water.
I was diving doubles with Brian and the invitation was so soft, my body felt I was diving singles. I stayed close to Vassili since he was in some new gear, he then followed closely as we made it to our drop site.
We gathered again and Brian let us know, viz looks bad but hopefully at the bottom it will open up. We all made sure if we separate from the group we are to come up after a 1 minute search.
So, I pair up with Vassili and Brian keeps Kristina and Matt. Vassili, is fighting to get down, he is with some thicker undergarment on his new bullet skin from Fusion. Even though he has put on 2 extra lbs he is not dropping, so he inverts and kicks down as I make sure to follow him and not lose his sight.
Brian and I both fired both our torches so we could be located if separation occurred, I could see that my light was breaking through all the scum and darkness pretty good.
I'm dropping alongside Vassili and I can feel my descent, but there is no bottom and it's getting darker and murkier by the second, finally the ground appears, as I try to slow down my descent.
It's 1 foot of viz if that and I feel already I have lost my partner, but he catches glimpse of my light and we are together, after the okay signals we look for the other group and nothing.
As I turn to the left I cannot see Vassili anymore, so I start my search and he taps me on my shoulder, he was slightly above me the whole time.
Okay, I call the dive and tell him it's time to ascend and regroup.
After our 2 minute safety stop we break the surface and there are the other divers waiting for us.
After a quick reunion Brian decides lets get closer to the rocks, so we will have a reference point to follow back to the beach, we all agree.
I suggest this time that Kristina pair up with Vassili and drop together first, so we can follow, since his suit is much more buoyant. They begin their descent and Brian and I follow.
As I try to follow them down, I can only see their bubbles and I fixate to that location as I let out more air to catch them, not a good idea on doubles.
Here they are at the bottom and out of no where comes Guerrero like an anchor, I don't know where that ground came out of, but it was there saying NO PARKING!!!
I immediately, simultaneously inject air to my drysuit and wing, do I stop, yes I do! But not because I injected air, I hit and bounce off the sand, LOL, I haven't done that since my Open Water class. :shocked2:
Kristina, later said? Hey Mike and you are suppose to be our role model for proper descent, it was so funny, hey Kristina, that was a model on how not to do it...
Okay so the whole group unites down there at 1 foot of viz and Brian is trying to talk to me with his hands, what the hell is he saying, I see fingers and think he's asking me for gas, but why, I'm on doubles and we are in 20 feet of water?
Later he tells me he was asking me, I see divers 1-3 where is Vassili number 5? Oh, okay so now I get it.
So back to the story, I see him speaking French and I don't understand what is going on, so I pull out my wetnotes in 1 foot of viz and this is funny.
I write down, where is the wall? As I show it to all the divers, they all simultaneously look at their compasses and then all point forward at the same time to the same place, Oh okay, I figured that but wanted to make sure you all were with me, YEAH RIGHT!!!
I start to lead towards the wall, but the viz is really making it impossible to keep the team together so we unite and tell all divers to ascend.
We regroup at the surface and we all decide to do a surface swim back to shore.
I later try to convince Vassili to go back with me on singles to dial in his suit, he looks at me and says, how about we go eat with the team. I think that really means, you are crazy, no way!!!
We have an awesome lunch and talk about the zero viz day, whale snot, won ton soup conditions.
It was so great to be in the water even though viz was bad, nothing like diving in a drysuit that remains dry the entire dive. I came out refreshed and feeling great.
Calm, flat, inviting and yes Break Water can be deceptive...
MG
I was meeting, Matt, Brian, Kristina and Vassili. We were going to be testing a lot of new gear and figured where else can you get best conditions for this, BW was the clear winner.
Gearing up was easy and getting the dive planning in order was clear, Brian decided we would dive around 30+ feet to get in some hoovering skills and practice trim, all were in agreement.
We all entered the most inviting, flat, calm waters I have seen in a long time at the Break Water.
I was diving doubles with Brian and the invitation was so soft, my body felt I was diving singles. I stayed close to Vassili since he was in some new gear, he then followed closely as we made it to our drop site.
We gathered again and Brian let us know, viz looks bad but hopefully at the bottom it will open up. We all made sure if we separate from the group we are to come up after a 1 minute search.
So, I pair up with Vassili and Brian keeps Kristina and Matt. Vassili, is fighting to get down, he is with some thicker undergarment on his new bullet skin from Fusion. Even though he has put on 2 extra lbs he is not dropping, so he inverts and kicks down as I make sure to follow him and not lose his sight.
Brian and I both fired both our torches so we could be located if separation occurred, I could see that my light was breaking through all the scum and darkness pretty good.
I'm dropping alongside Vassili and I can feel my descent, but there is no bottom and it's getting darker and murkier by the second, finally the ground appears, as I try to slow down my descent.
It's 1 foot of viz if that and I feel already I have lost my partner, but he catches glimpse of my light and we are together, after the okay signals we look for the other group and nothing.
As I turn to the left I cannot see Vassili anymore, so I start my search and he taps me on my shoulder, he was slightly above me the whole time.
Okay, I call the dive and tell him it's time to ascend and regroup.
After our 2 minute safety stop we break the surface and there are the other divers waiting for us.
After a quick reunion Brian decides lets get closer to the rocks, so we will have a reference point to follow back to the beach, we all agree.
I suggest this time that Kristina pair up with Vassili and drop together first, so we can follow, since his suit is much more buoyant. They begin their descent and Brian and I follow.
As I try to follow them down, I can only see their bubbles and I fixate to that location as I let out more air to catch them, not a good idea on doubles.
Here they are at the bottom and out of no where comes Guerrero like an anchor, I don't know where that ground came out of, but it was there saying NO PARKING!!!
I immediately, simultaneously inject air to my drysuit and wing, do I stop, yes I do! But not because I injected air, I hit and bounce off the sand, LOL, I haven't done that since my Open Water class. :shocked2:
Kristina, later said? Hey Mike and you are suppose to be our role model for proper descent, it was so funny, hey Kristina, that was a model on how not to do it...
Okay so the whole group unites down there at 1 foot of viz and Brian is trying to talk to me with his hands, what the hell is he saying, I see fingers and think he's asking me for gas, but why, I'm on doubles and we are in 20 feet of water?
Later he tells me he was asking me, I see divers 1-3 where is Vassili number 5? Oh, okay so now I get it.
So back to the story, I see him speaking French and I don't understand what is going on, so I pull out my wetnotes in 1 foot of viz and this is funny.
I write down, where is the wall? As I show it to all the divers, they all simultaneously look at their compasses and then all point forward at the same time to the same place, Oh okay, I figured that but wanted to make sure you all were with me, YEAH RIGHT!!!
I start to lead towards the wall, but the viz is really making it impossible to keep the team together so we unite and tell all divers to ascend.
We regroup at the surface and we all decide to do a surface swim back to shore.
I later try to convince Vassili to go back with me on singles to dial in his suit, he looks at me and says, how about we go eat with the team.
I think that really means, you are crazy, no way!!!We have an awesome lunch and talk about the zero viz day, whale snot, won ton soup conditions.
It was so great to be in the water even though viz was bad, nothing like diving in a drysuit that remains dry the entire dive. I came out refreshed and feeling great.
Calm, flat, inviting and yes Break Water can be deceptive...
MG
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