Do you remember your first time?

[Codiak]

Today was mine... got home from work early, beautiful 72 degree evening and the surface water in my back yard looked like glass. I live on a 370 arce lake that typically has 10-15 foot visibility. I waited for the wife to get home before loading up the boat and heading out...
Dropped the anchor, got BC on did my ABCs, tripple checked my pony bottle and dropped in... Of course by now the sun was down and I was too pumped to worry about it... I have my flashlights and tank lights on several night dives blah blah...

Descent was good and I stopped at the 30 foot thermal.... worked on boyancy control for a while, this was a 20 minute planned dive.... after what felt like an eternity I checked the time: EEK! 15 minutes to go!

What to do what to do...
Took an eastern heading, kicked for 5 minutes and found the dam... 3 more minutes of bouyancy control, take a new bearing due west for 5 minutes and came up 5 feet from my boat.

Wasn't planning on a night dive... but whata rush!

Wife was more then happy to assist me with my fins.

It won't be my last sole dive! Though I'm gonna stick with daylight for a while!

 

[captain]

Too long ago. I can't even remember where I left my reading glasses yesterday.

 

[*Floater*]

Don't know if it counts, but the first time I dove without a buddy was a little over a year ago at shallow shore waters just to practice valve drills and a few others things. I did a bunch of dives like that. I had doubles and a deco bottle with me and was diving at around 10-20'.

 

[shadragon]

Too long ago. I can't even remember where I left my reading glasses yesterday.

Memory is the second thing to go. I cannot remember what the first thing is...

 

[uspap]

My first time being truely solo was at Monastery in Carmel. The beach was deserted and I had no surface support. I did call my freind and said I'm going in and I'll call you in an hour and a half. I was at about 28 feet max. I was looking for a UK100 HID light I had lost the week before. Eventually found it with a buddy a month later. It works great.
I loved being solo. I would much rather KNOW I'm solo than THINK I have a buddy.

 

[Walter]

Too long ago. I can't even remember where I left my reading glasses yesterday.

I'm glad it's not just me.

 

[Doc Harry]

My first time, if I recall, was a solo night shore dive in Cozumel.

The theme from "Jaws" played in my head the entire time. It got to the point that every time a piece of garbage brushed against me, I practically spit out my regulator and crapped in my pants. I called the dive 'cause I just got too scared!

 

[spectrum]

My first time was at the request of my AOW instructor! We were doing the first dive and he needed to do some cold water orientation work with 2 other divers. He told me to go swim around for 15 minutes so off I went.

The 1st real solo dive was a time where my wife decided at the last instant that she did not like the entry conditions and said to go ahead, so I did.

 

[budgy]

My first solo dive was also my first dive. It was in a shallow artificial lake, in the suburbs of Johannesburg.

 

[wildin]

Hi,
1965 New Orleans, got the bug, bought the gear, read the book (same one used in NAUI course taken in 71 when air got hard to get without card). Went out to Pontchartrain with my new speargun and bagged a sheepshead that happened to swim into my 4' range of vision. I was amazed when I realized he wasn't 3' long.

Now planning trip to Bahamas with non diver wife aboard our sailboat and will be diving solo mostly. Hope to pick up a few pointers here.

Bill