Wall Dive?

[CamG]

Greetings MEDICJOJO and it is exciting to be pondering wall diving. I wonder if you have any experience diving in mid-water? This is water that you cannot see the bottom but you maintain a constant depth say 30' or so. It is not uncommon to feel a bit disoriented and even slight vertigo at times. If you have a quarry or other deeper dive site with 100' or so practice going to half depth or less to loose a visual of the bottom to create this mid-water experience. I suggest doing this with a trusted dive buddy and that both of you are comfortable with these dives. Once you feel confident in your buoyancy and vigilant monitoring of depth via. gauges or computer as well as visual references " the wall" you will find the dives to be very enjoyable. If you are not able to practice then be upfront with the dive op and they will put you with a DM who will do some warm up dives to help you gain confidence.
I am taking the time to explain what I have trained after experiencing several wall dive early in my dive career. One of which was not as it should have been and the other which was magnificent lead by a instructor on a very deep wall. Both were wall dives but different in the approach taken by the dive op's. The issue really is having the level of awareness, to monitor depth and control buoyancy at all times while enjoying the dive. It is not rocket science but just training and comfort levels that dictate the dives we should embark on. Your questioning is good because it tells me you are examining your training and skill levels, one should always use sober judgement to evaluate our dive skills. This is to be fun after all.
The bottom line is you can call a dive at anytime for any reason, no questions asked!
I have done so and not sorry for doing just that. I have had some really great dives and some that were miserable you will have both if you dive enough. There have been times that I knew I was better to rest and recover and wait for another dive.
Trust your training and comfort levels and use good judgement! Then enjoy the dive!
CamG Keep diving....keep training....keep learning!

 

[FBIBOB]

Here is a wall dive I just completed the other day, I dont suggest doing this depth thought, plenty to see at 50 to 80 foot. This is the wall at Clifton Park nassau

YouTube - Nasau Bahamas wall dive

 

[Booyakasha]

A lot of people bring up good points. It is very easy to forget about your depth in very clear water. I set the depth alarm on my computer to remind me. Being in 6000 feet of water is really no big deal, unless you have real big boyancy issues. The other thing on most wall dives you don't have to go as deep as everyone else. When I dive with my son we have always stayed up in the 60 ft range and just watch the divers below and follow the bubbles. Now I imagine that there are some wall dives with a swim through where this might be difficult but you can always ask. Wall dives are fun becuase you do have the chance of seeing some big pelagics but I prefer the shallower reef dives for more biodiversity and longer bottom time.

 

[elan]

But still every other dive I’ve ever did I could at least see the bottom even though it may have been out of reach of my training you could still see it. May sound stupid to some but was wondering from more experienced divers how you approach those types of dives I mean do you stay real close to the wall, is it best to kind of follow a reference point or follow the computer/console? Or am I being overly concerned? You tell me.

Do not follow the references for the depths they can be deceiving, always check your depth on the depth gauge. Look at the wall instead of the bottom, that would help. Watch for the currents.

 

[Amphiprion]

If I may provide my 2 psi, wall dives are some of my favorite dives. Yes, you have to watch your depth, but as we all know buoyancy is easy when you are deep. I've found that I can pretty much set my bc and glide with the current at 80'.

Things for which you need to take care:

1) being dropped off too far off the wall and expecting a ledge or bottom... there isn't one.

2) up currents and down currents. If you notice this you can stick close to the wall and if all else fails grab the wall. Please make sure it is rock and not coral or anything that would be hurt, but your safety is still a priority.

I did my first wall dive during my open water checkouts in Cozumel when I was a kid and have not had a problem for what its worth.

 

[FBIBOB]

Here is the wall in Nassau. I dive all the time here are two videos of the wall at the southwest end of the island.

YouTube - Nasau Bahamas wall dive wall dive


YouTube - Bahamas dive 6-16-10 this is the planes and wrecks right on top of the wall but some wall fottage. these are on tank dives that i video.


enjoy and subscribe to my youtube i am here for 6 t0 8 more weeks working and there will be plenty more

 

[dogglebe]

Six days after receiving my OW, I was diving with friends in Turks & Caicos. Half of the group (including myself) followed our guide. As we approached the wall, I was distracted by a bunch of little fishes swimming above me. When the fishies swam off, I looked down and saw that I was about fifteen feet from the wall.

And there was nothing below me. HOLY ****!!

My first thought was to get back to where there was a visible bottom but I, instead, swam to the group (which were only thirty feet away) and stayed close to the guide. I figured that, if anything wrong were to happen, she would save my butt. Fortunately, nothing happened and it was amazing.

I had incredibly weird dreams that night, but that's a story for another day.


Phil

 

[Nords]

Six days after receiving my OW, I was diving with friends in Turks & Caicos. Half of the group (including myself) followed our guide. As we approached the wall, I was distracted by a bunch of little fishes swimming above me. When the fishies swam off, I looked down and saw that I was about fifteen feet from the wall.

And there was nothing below me. HOLY ****!!

My first thought was to get back to where there was a visible bottom but I, instead, swam to the group (which were only thirty feet away) and stayed close to the guide. I figured that, if anything wrong were to happen, she would save my butt. Fortunately, nothing happened and it was amazing.

I had incredibly weird dreams that night, but that's a story for another day.


Phil

I had a similar experience.

I passed OW on a sunday, and that wed morning I had my first real dive at that wall. My first experience diving was descending 30' to the sand, then a minute later soaring over that ledge and seeing a nice sized reef shark down below me. It was an amazing experience, and probably as amazing of a first dive as possible

 

[Booyakasha]

I had a similar experience.

I passed OW on a sunday, and that wed morning I had my first real dive at that wall. My first experience diving was descending 30' to the sand, then a minute later soaring over that ledge and seeing a nice sized reef shark down below me. It was an amazing experience, and probably as amazing of a first dive as possible

I would agree!