this is from our local board, ncdivers.com - there is lots of great info there, but this is such a classic post i'm reposting. thank you, tom!!
I have had a couple of questions about this from folks, mostly divers with no charter boat experience, or divers that haven't been out on charters for a long time. I am no expert, but have been on a charter boat or two......and here is some advice for the New Charter Boat Diver:
Get your gear to the docks early. Put your stuff on the boat, then double check to make sure you have everything. Set you gear up, put your regs on tanks, etc. while still at dock, or in the no wake zone...when the boat is moving slow. This way you can relax if the ride is rough. You start suiting up, as the boat gets within 5 miles of the site...crew will let you know....don't get ready too early, cuz you don't want to overheat...if it is hot out. Keep a bottle of water near your suit up station to quench thirst and put out any flames that flare up under the neoprene....I bring a camelback, and have it handy with cold water. Once the dive master ties the anchor into the wreck, they normally send up a lift bag to let the Captain know its a good hook, but sometimes the Captain just waits for the divemaster to come back up and tell them. (different dive boats use many different procedures) They then give a quick site briefing, and tell you that the pool is open. Find your buddy. Then you and your buddy walk in proximity to the entrance point....depending on the boat, either the side or stern. Some people put their fins on and then walk. I walk with my fins in my hand if I am far away, and then put them on near the entrance point.
Then you and buddy splash. Once you hit the water, right hand patting head or both hands on head let the mates know you are not hurt and are ok. You and buddy then head down one of the side lines. There will be lines at least on one side of the dive boat....one at the bow, and one at the stern, they are attached to each other via a jon line, and that jon line leads to the anchor line. The jon line runs from the stern down line to the bow down line and then all the way to the anchor line horizontally usually at 15-20 feet deep. Some boats have a hard hang bar between the bow and stern down lines. Go hand over hand on the jon line/hang bar to the anchor line to conserve gas....pull and scoot...pull and scoot.....then when you hit the anchor line, ok the line and descend..........do not let go of the line no matter what any other diver says. Modern cave diving skills are great and all, but in the open ocean with currents and so forth......no frog kick in the world can fight against a stout current....so always stay in contact with the line until you get all the way down on the wreck, and can verify that no harsh top or mid water currents are present. (sometimes offshore you could have a 2-4 knot current topside that you have to pull real hard against down the jon line, but once you got like 30 feet deep, it slackened, and then on the bottom there is nothing. I have film of current like that on my Frying Pan Video....you can watch the bubbles rise, and then they hit the top current and go sideways.....then looking at my brother on the hang bar at the end of the tower clips......the hang bar was horizontal, and so were his exhaled bubbles!! That was a no **** 5 knot current in the top layers that day.....no diver can be neutrally bouyant and frog kick and drift against a 5 knot current. Not even superman.
The key here is this: On Ascent and Descent, never let go of the anchor line, lest you want to end up adrift on a sea not so full of bliss, and ruin your day, and maybe your life. Your very life and safety ride on your contact with the anchor line, because in mid water, that is the only thing keeping you attached to the dive boat!!!!! Without the anchor line you are out in never never land, or a dirt dart falling way away from the wreck! Either way, in a current, or even slack water, count yourself lost at sea.....
So then you get to the bottom. If vis is good, take note of topography and wreckage near the anchor. Proceed down one side of the wreck preferabally up current, then drift back down the same side to the anchor(mind your turn pressures). Then you can explore the area immediately around the anchor....IF you know the wreck site well, do what you want....but some of the wreck sites here can be confusing........once you learn them you are ok.......but.....I have been on the Gill over a hundred times, and can still get lost on some sections of the stern on a bad vis day. The wreck formerly known as the WE Hutton (actually the Ario) in Morehead is difficult in bad vis too.....large junk pile really......so in bad vis......reel out from the anchor line....explore, then reel back to the anchor.....
Once you finish your dive, ok the ascent line, and begin a slow ascent (30 fpm would be great.) I cannot stress this enough, but remember the slow ascent. Make your ascent painfully slow, and then slow it down some more. For newer divers, it will feel like you are barely making progress at a 30 feet per minute rate, but slow is key. Don't kick up the anchor line at Mach 5........remember S.A.F.E. ? (Slow Ascent From Every Dive) Cheezy right? Yeah, but it makes sense, but even I go slower than PADI suggests. The 60 fpm was an arbitrary compromise made between helmet divers and scuba divers in the US NAVY. PADI bought that rate since it came from the NAVY, but most modern sanctioning bodies seem to be eluding that a 30 feet per minute rate is much safer for avoidance of DCS. Slow way down on your way up! Make appropriate stops and/or safety stop.......might as well use up that leftover gas at 15 ft. on the jon line, you don't get a refund on that last 1100 psi....so burn it up, and offgas at 15 ft. (don't breathe your tank(s) dry, you will need them on the surface for emergencies/and for your exit, and it is a nono to breathe them dry...but I digress. Then when you are done, make your way to the rear of the boat to the platforms. Some boats have fin on ladders, and some don't. They will tell you before the dive. Cape Fear Divers has fin on ladders, as does Olympus and Discovery..One of Aquatics Boats is fins on (the new one) the other is not. Whichever the case, make your way to the swim platform. Usually there is a yellow tag line and bouy behind the boat, so if there is a line of divers waiting to get out, you just grab onto the tag line, and wait for your turn.....keep your bc inflated, and reg in your mouth. Once you get to the ladder and have hand contact with the boat.....either exit, or remove fins one at a time on no fins ladders. If it is a no fins ladder, hand your fins up one at a time while maintaining constant contact with the dive boat with the other hand.......never let go of the boat. If it is a fins on ladder, just climb out. Once you are on the swim platform, a mate will usually help you get your fins off and hand them to you.....but you keep your rig on your back. Once I am waist dry I will spit out my reg, but it would probably be smarter to keep it in until you are feet dry on the deck of the dive boat.
Also, some people ditch their weightbelts or pouches and hand them up to crew members to make the climb out easier. I would rather hang onto mine, than risk dropping them, and turning them into dirt darts in never never land.....
Below is a picture of the Carolina Rig in use by most NC dive boats. Notice the down lines on the stern (back) and bow (front) attached to the anchor line via a jon line.
(pic didn't move when i reposted - please see original post on ncdivers.com if you want to see pic!)
Some other Rules to follow that have been mentioned in this thread:
1. Don't clutter the boat with your gear....keep your gear organized and out of the way.
2. Try to be early or on time to the dive boat.
3. If you need to rent gear, try to get sized the day before.
4. Analyze your mixtures at the shop if you are using nitrox, and make sure you are using mixes appropriate for the depth of planned dive.
5. Stay down at the 15 ft stop while awaiting your turn to get out on the ladder.....if you have enough gas.......this keeps you much safer in regards to decompression sickness than a direct ascent....you get no refund on the gas left in your tanks after a dive....so use it.
6. Realize that most NC Charters don't include tank rentals, as most local divers have all their own equipment.......
7. Don't forget dramamine or bonine or scopamine if you are proned to seasickness....an ounce of prevention worth a ton of cure here.....being seasick for 8 hours on a dive trip is a bad way to spend your day.
8. Listen to the boat safety briefings and the dive site briefings. Do not carry on conversations while these are happening, the infomation being given is important, and may just help to save your life.
9. Don't forget to bungie your tanks in so they don't fall over.
10. Obey requests of the crew for bottom time limitations.....if the crew prohibits "decompression diving", stick to the NDLs.
11. If you are unsure of how to plan your dive, ask a crew member, tables should be available on the boat, and the crew will be happy to help you plan your dive.
12. If you had a good experience, don't forget to tip the crew. Usually crew members help lug the tanks, ice for coolers, deal with the anchoring duties, getting you in and out of the water.......I had no idea how much work it was until this last summer.........they earn their tips....at least in Wilmington they do.....so don't forget to tip em.........
13. Don't forget once you leave the diveboat to go double check and make sure that you didn't leave any of your personal gear on their boat, or take any gear you borrowed from them.
14. (2008 edit) Limit the size of your dive gear containers. If 20 divers all brought big ass roll on dive boxes...there is no room on the boat to move. Try to limit your gear bag to a size that will fit under your bench on the boat.....PLEASE. This is definitely out of control right now on charters, and I can see it now. Soon we will have "carry on" restrictions
Now if you are diving a private boat, a lot of this is out the window, but on charters...pretty good place to start.
Hope this helps some new divers.
Tom
