Diving without a buddy?

[kanonfodr]

I've done some solo diving myself, but it doesn't give the warm fuzzy that having a good buddy (or any buddy, really) does. I have only solo'd to accomplish certain diving goals that other folks I know would either not do, or be a serious liability in the accomplishment of. I've also had some very productive buddy diving and loved that I could share the experience with someone else.

Peace,
Greg

 

[seacreatures]

Seacreatures don't school well, we have attendances to eat those close to use, so I end up Solo most of the time

 

[elmer fudd]

I solo dive from time to time. I've done it twice in the past two weeks. When I solo dive though, I am extremely risk averse. I stay in shallow, I carry redundant air and I totally avoid anything that I might get entangled in, to the extent of avoiding some areas entirely. I also try to stay out of all but the smallest currents. 60' would be a deep solo dive for me and typically I'm keeping it to 35' or less.

When I dive with a buddy I go ahead and do all the other stuff. Dive down to 100'+, do the wall dive in current or take a look inside the wreck.

 

[Rhone Man]

I really empathise with the freedom that comes from lack of responsibility for others. When I dive with others, with one notable exception, I am normally the baby sitter. Being alone is far more relaxing when the only person I need to worry about is me.

 

[kaerius]

Went on a staff dive the other day, and found it slightly odd to have that "I'm being looked after by competent dive buddies" feeling, since most of my dives otherwise are with less than reliable divers(DSDs, out of practice OW divers, etc, IE: customers). Only time I've actually gone solo was to put a buoy on a chain in 20ft of water, but I definitely see the appeal and will do the course eventually.

 

[Doc Harry]

I paid $350 to fly to Florida for a few days of diving, spent another $400 on hotels and food, and another $400 on diving fees. I got paired up with another diver on the boat who said he was an advanced diver. We went out to a 70-foot wreck and in less than 15 minutes he was down to 700 psi and we had to surface.

Does this answer your question?

 

[mksmith713]

I find that when shooting photos, being buddiless is desirable.
When I dive with my wife, she gets annoyed when I stop to shoot 30 or 40 photos of an octopus or batfish or whatever.
I can appreciate that she didn't plan on spending the entire dive watching me shoot photos....she want to see all the pretty fishies.
I'd spend the entire dive shooting photos of her but she finds that more annoying than shooting critters.

 

[Peter Guy]

Is it just me or does there seem to be a pretty strong correlation between not wanting to dive with a buddy and having experiences with buddies that don't match?

I don't solo dive and never have (excepting short shallow dives to do a specific thing like scrub a boat bottom).

I also very rarely dive with somebody who is not an excellent diving companion. What makes them an excellent diving companion? We are both (all) on the same page/wavelength. It doesn't matter if I'm diving to take pictures (perhaps we all are) or if I'm just swimming around looking at whatever. If I'm taking pictures, my non-camera companion(s) will be hanging around, looking for other stuff to shoot or just hanging -- no problem with how many shots or how long I take to set up a shot. (Often times the biggest problem here is that the companion will find something else to shoot and signal me while I'm still trying to get "the shot" of what I'm focused on at the time -- almost an embarrassment of riches sometimes.)

I also don't find that my typical diving companion makes me feel "responsible" in any way that is at all restricting -- but then they are very "responsible" divers themselves and dive in a "responsible" way.

I've never had a bad experience with an insta-buddy but again, the few times I've had one we've gone over our expectations and made sure they matched before getting into the water. OTOH, I've had awful dives with some people and won't dive with them again -- just because they were rotten diving companions (i.e., they were either unable to stay within the agreed parameters of the dive or unwilling to do so). But did those divers make me want to shed the "buddy experience?" Nope -- to the contrary, they just made me make sure I dive with GOOD buddies.

 

[JerseyMike]

I wonder how many experienced divers choose not to have a buddy when doing recreational dives. I don't think I've had a buddy for 7 or 8 years. When I do have someone with me I'm usually instructing the other. A buddy gives me nothing like a warm & fuzzy feeling, and I feel happier without the responsibility.

Sometimes you wonder what good a dive buddy does you when he doesn't pay the slightest attention to you. I have had some of those. Its like diving solo.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I'm fortunate to have an excess of great dive buddies to choose from. But sometimes I just enjoy the solitude and freedom of diving alone.

Solo diving shouldn't be viewed as an alternative to a lack of buddy skills, or because you've had bad experiences with inadequate dive buddies. Those are completely separate things, and should be considered for different reasons. And if you're going to dive alone, make sure you have the skills, the equipment, and mentality to do it responsibly. People tend to overestimate their abilities, and it's only when you have to deal with an unexpected issue that you find out what they really are ... keep in mind that when solo diving, there isn't likely going to be anyone around to bail you out if you've miscalculated your ability to deal with it. So make sure you've thought through why you're doing it, how you're doing it, and what you'd do if the dive didn't go as planned ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)