catalina dive: should i or shouldn't i???

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

cky450mm

New
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Location
granada hills ca
# of dives
So im going to catalina next week for my birthday. i just got OW certified in aug and have only done 2 outside of the cert. dives. i was planning on diving casino point but my only problem is i do not have a buddy. do you guys think it would be a bad idea to make 2 solo dives being this new to scuba? im not so much worried about making a solo dive in terms of being worried because its a place that i have never dove before. what im worrying about is what im sure all solo divers worry about the "what if something goes wrong" situation.

As i said next week will be my birthday but it will also be the 5 year anniversary of my moms passing.
when i was little my grandparents had a sail boat and some of my best memories of my entire life were sailing out to isthmus and spending the weeking there on the boat. After my grandparents both passed away my mom spread some of there ashes on catalina. now that my moms gone it only feels like the right thing to do to put a part of her with her parents in a place that was such a huge part of all are lives.

I have a 2inch urn and i wanted to put a little of my moms grandmas and grandpas ashes in is and leave it in the water somewhere. part of the reason i want this to be a solo dive is because this is something really special to me, i was really close with all of them and this is just something i feel like i should do alone.

please let me know how you all feel about my idea of the solo dive and also the leaving of the urn.
 
I would not be supportive of the solo dive.

However, you could just hire a DM. Tell them what you want to do. They could hang back a respectful, but still close enough to help distance. Note that casino point is a Marine Sanctuary so if you leave something in the park that could be both illegal and likely to be removed if some one finds it. You may need to do placement outside the park but the problem of someone else taking it remains.
 
No solo, bad mojo. The Catalina dive shops have DM's ready to go, and are surprisingly inexpensive to hire.
 
+++++1 on hiring a DM as well. A friend of mine did something similar with his fathers ashes on Cozumel. It was a very loving gesture to his father. But, seriously hire a Dive Master and discuss the plan with them.
 
+1 for hiring a DM! While I'm not on your side of the big rock we call home, if someone approached me with a request like yours I'd likely not charge a dime. Also, the marine sanctuary thing may be an issue like said above.
 
I TOTALLY get your motivation to do this as a solo dive, and it's a great reason. This is not the right time though.

Please spend some time planning this out as it is obviously important to you. Spend time learning where you can legally deposit remains, where doing so might keep them safe from theft or removal, and where it would be meaningful to you and your family.

Spend some time gaining the skills and experience needed to do so safely as a solo diver. You can then also use this time to save up to charter a boat for this purpose alone.
 
I would hire one of our local dive guides rather than do this solo. Not sure about the rules regarding urns of ashes in the dive park (an MPA) but there certainly have been a number of memorial tributes to others there. I just hope I never encounter one to me while I'm diving!
 
By all means dive there, but not solo. Post in the SoCal forum and ask for a buddy; you might find somebody who would enjoy a day at Catalina. Failing that, hire a DM. The dive park is SO worth doing -- beautiful, and full of critters. But you are way too new to do it by yourself.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

Back
Top Bottom