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Sometimes you don't have a choice. The only charter going the day you can go is to a deep site. Also, as a shell collector, there are things deeper that you can't find at 30 feet.
Why so Deep?
- Thread starter SolarStorm
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fnfalman
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If there's a reason to go deep, then go deep. But to go deep just for the hell of it is a rather silly notion unless one is an "extreme" athlete or something.
I've gone to 100-ft plus a few times just because of cool things like purple hydrocoral that tend to exist in deeper water of Southern California's coastline and Channel Islands. I would not go down to 100-ft plus just to see the same fish and marine life that I can see at 60-ft.
I've gone to 100-ft plus a few times just because of cool things like purple hydrocoral that tend to exist in deeper water of Southern California's coastline and Channel Islands. I would not go down to 100-ft plus just to see the same fish and marine life that I can see at 60-ft.
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It depends on the location. Around Saba the pinnacles are all around 70-100' and some of the really cool stuff is down in the 110-120' range. There are lots of deeper wrecks. I've done a few deeper dives to see some cool geological features. There's a quarry near me that has some abandoned equipment starting at the 200' mark or so (haven't seen that stuff yet, but will one day). The list goes on and on.
"Deep" is relative as well. To a recreational diver, or a beginning tech diver, 150' is pretty deep. To someone who's been doing trimix for years, 150' is closer to trivial (as far as tech diving goes, anyway).
The real rule of thumb is two fold:
1) Never dive beyond your training and experience
2) Create a dive plan to meet your dive goal
If you want to dive to 130' to see something, go for it -- but get a buddy who's done those types of dives and knows how to plan and execute them safely.
If you want to see a wreck at 150' then learn the ins and outs of going to that depth and returning safely. Find people to dive with who can get you the mentoring you need to be safe.
I'm not a big fan of a dive goal being "get to x depth." But I do recognize that some people have such goals. Me, I want to see things. But for some folks, it's the doing of the dive rather than what they see that matters. And that's ok too.
"Deep" is relative as well. To a recreational diver, or a beginning tech diver, 150' is pretty deep. To someone who's been doing trimix for years, 150' is closer to trivial (as far as tech diving goes, anyway).
The real rule of thumb is two fold:
1) Never dive beyond your training and experience
2) Create a dive plan to meet your dive goal
If you want to dive to 130' to see something, go for it -- but get a buddy who's done those types of dives and knows how to plan and execute them safely.
If you want to see a wreck at 150' then learn the ins and outs of going to that depth and returning safely. Find people to dive with who can get you the mentoring you need to be safe.
I'm not a big fan of a dive goal being "get to x depth." But I do recognize that some people have such goals. Me, I want to see things. But for some folks, it's the doing of the dive rather than what they see that matters. And that's ok too.
OP
SolarStorm
Contributor
So far the answers have been what I thought. Dive for the goal, not the depth. It does just seem though that there are a significant number of "Ive been to 20 fathoms crowd". Thanks for the replys.
Most of my diving is in the Great Lakes. At 30 feet, there is little to see or do - the winter storms pound everything at that depth to shreds and there just isn't an abundance of reef life to marvel at. 
It bears repeating/emphasizing/repeating again: Deep diving is not and should not be for everyone. Deep diving is more challenging, the training and equipment more intense and the dangers far greater than shallow diving. There tends to be a presumption that divers who explore the deep are somewhat daft and there maybe some truth to that. As individuals, divers who routinely dive deep can be arrogant and irascible. Certainly the folks doing deep dives tend to be less tolerant of sloppy habits and poorly thought out practices but that attitude is what keeps us safe in an unsafe environment. Remember: when things go bad in 30 feet of water, it's rarely a big deal - and the CESA is always an option; when anything goes bad in 300 feet of water, it's a very big deal - and there may not be any options.
The challenge is part of the adventure - as crazy as that may sound. I like the discipline, the intensity, the focus required to dive beyond recreational depths. Beyond the Zen aspects of deep diving, however, are the shipwrecks, the living history of the past couple of centuries. Because the water here is cold and fresh, wrecks in the deeper water can survive for ages. Dropping down on an 150 year old wooden schooner with a mast or two still standing, the deck still intact and the cargo still in the hold, is a magic experience. I like a good warm-water reef dive as much as the next fellow, I suppose, but the wrecks are what got me started diving ages ago and are still the primary reason I dive.
If you've made the decision that deep diving isn't for you, you've made a good choice. Ego does push a lot of divers into deep diving, where the first thing they should learn is to leave their egos at the waterline. If you're contemplating diving deeper, get serious, get the training, get the gear, get lots of practice and proceed with extreme caution.
If you're interested in seeing what deep diving in the Great Lakes looks like, here are links to a couple of YouTube videos. The first, the Eber Ward, is a "shallow" deep wreck at about 140ft of water in the Straits of Mackinaw between Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas. The second, the Carl Bradley, is a "deep" deep wreck at about 355ft of water off the NW coast (the "pinkie") of Michigan. There are hundreds and hundreds more wrecks like these two out there.
It bears repeating/emphasizing/repeating again: Deep diving is not and should not be for everyone. Deep diving is more challenging, the training and equipment more intense and the dangers far greater than shallow diving. There tends to be a presumption that divers who explore the deep are somewhat daft and there maybe some truth to that. As individuals, divers who routinely dive deep can be arrogant and irascible. Certainly the folks doing deep dives tend to be less tolerant of sloppy habits and poorly thought out practices but that attitude is what keeps us safe in an unsafe environment. Remember: when things go bad in 30 feet of water, it's rarely a big deal - and the CESA is always an option; when anything goes bad in 300 feet of water, it's a very big deal - and there may not be any options.
The challenge is part of the adventure - as crazy as that may sound. I like the discipline, the intensity, the focus required to dive beyond recreational depths. Beyond the Zen aspects of deep diving, however, are the shipwrecks, the living history of the past couple of centuries. Because the water here is cold and fresh, wrecks in the deeper water can survive for ages. Dropping down on an 150 year old wooden schooner with a mast or two still standing, the deck still intact and the cargo still in the hold, is a magic experience. I like a good warm-water reef dive as much as the next fellow, I suppose, but the wrecks are what got me started diving ages ago and are still the primary reason I dive.
If you've made the decision that deep diving isn't for you, you've made a good choice. Ego does push a lot of divers into deep diving, where the first thing they should learn is to leave their egos at the waterline. If you're contemplating diving deeper, get serious, get the training, get the gear, get lots of practice and proceed with extreme caution.
If you're interested in seeing what deep diving in the Great Lakes looks like, here are links to a couple of YouTube videos. The first, the Eber Ward, is a "shallow" deep wreck at about 140ft of water in the Straits of Mackinaw between Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas. The second, the Carl Bradley, is a "deep" deep wreck at about 355ft of water off the NW coast (the "pinkie") of Michigan. There are hundreds and hundreds more wrecks like these two out there.
I gotta say, RhoneMan, 160m seems a long way to go for "lavatory equipment"! We'll be looking for your trip report.
Most of my dives are on ships off of the Keys lately. I kind of get bored buzzing around a reef unless it is really loaded with wild life. On these shallow dives, if it is a good one, I like to look for lobsters while noticing the eels, turtles, nurse sharks and all the fish and stuff. If it is a lousy reef, and there are a few of them down there, I usually give up, go up and talk with the Captain. I enjoy the deep dves more than the shallow ones because of the added danger and 'cool'. If I am going to fly a thousand miles and drive another one hundred and go to the expense of renting a car and motel I want something for my money and reefs don't seem to do it for me any more.
SkimFisher
Contributor
To each his own 
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