Semi-Cave: Is this dangerous?
- Thread starter Boyan
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htatton
Contributor
Each diver should decide well in advance what there own rules are.
Here are mine for swim through
1. Can I see the exit point.
2. Is it big enough to allow and easy passage. I'm too darned old for wiggling in tight spaces.
3. Are the divers in front of me using good non-silting finning technique
If all three are yes and it looks like I will enjoy the trip I'll make the swim through. If not, I'm perfectly capable of doing a swim over or thumbing the dive.
By the way I would ignore anyone who told me to ignore my gauges. I bought them, I payed for them, I keep them maintained and I'm going to use them.
Here are mine for swim through
1. Can I see the exit point.
2. Is it big enough to allow and easy passage. I'm too darned old for wiggling in tight spaces.
3. Are the divers in front of me using good non-silting finning technique
If all three are yes and it looks like I will enjoy the trip I'll make the swim through. If not, I'm perfectly capable of doing a swim over or thumbing the dive.
By the way I would ignore anyone who told me to ignore my gauges. I bought them, I payed for them, I keep them maintained and I'm going to use them.
If a diver can determine these things while at the entrance to the passage and has a clear alternative plan, then the decision is easy.
What I find frustrating is trying to get this sort of information out of a divemaster during a briefing. I start with "How long is it?" The DM replies, "About 20 feet ... well, it's not a straight path--there is a bit of a bend--so maybe a little more." I ask, "Okay, if there's a bend, will I be able to see the exit?" The DM replies, "Depending on today's vis, you may see it clearly or just see the light coming from it." And so it goes. I don't want to grill the DM TOO much for fear of annoying him.
By the time the diver is there at the entrance, the diver may feel pressure to proceed even if things don't look quite as good as he had envisioned. Maybe someone in front stirred up just a little silt. Maybe the way around the swim-through isn't apparent or would take much longer to swim, making linking up with the rest of the group uncertain. Thumbing the dive is pretty drastic--again, the feeling of not wanting to be the odd man out (or odd buddy team).
I think there's something to be said for erring on the conservative side. If there's any question--say, divers of unknown skill level in the group--I usually just say "no thanks" to the swim-through.
This is correct. On our particular dive there wasn't even any mention of this swim through so it was complete surprise.
I was the last diver in the group of 8 divers and the DM and his assistant were way in the front. So I fugured it would be more dangerous for the group and me if I suddenly decided to go another route, back to the boat and didn't show up after the cave.
After the swim through, the next time the instructor checked if everyone is here was 5-10 min later, so if I wasn't there this would have caused a situation as well.
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Did you have designated buddies, or did you just follow the DM like a flock of sheep?
It may be due to my club diving background, bit I don't dive without a designated buddy. With a buddy, declining the swim-through won't affect your safety, because a real buddy will respect your choice not to go into an overhead environment and stay with you. So you'll have the necessary redundancy as you swim over or around instead of through the piece of rock.
That is kinda like being just a little pregnant. You are either buddies or you are not.
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Dizzi Lizzi
Contributor
It seems to me that a better practice would be to have 1 at front and 1 behind. (DM and Assistant)
I don't think that's true. It's like saying you're either friends or not, happily married or not, etc. The dynamics of human relationships tends to be more complex than this. We can pretend it's black and white, but all it does is distort our perception of reality, and absolve ourselves of responsibility. When we are paired up with a buddy on a boat, we are handed a prospective buddy material. Usually a well-intentioned person, who means well, but may have completely different objectives, background, and different ideas on how to dive. The more effort we put in to discuss and agree on things beforehand, the better buddy we will be. In between "is a buddy" and "isn't a buddy" there's a continuum of possibilities. Getting from one end to the other is a process...
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