Re: Chris and Seahunt


Scuba Diving on the Great Escape Southern California Live-Aboard Dive Boat

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Posted by Marc Hall on July 19, 2001 at 15:14:51:

In Reply to: Re: Chris and Seahunt posted by seahunt on July 18, 2001 at 22:36:10:

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>Actually, there are some real differences in the >gear as well as the diving, between CA and FL. I >also think that CA diving is far more demanding >than FL diving.... but whatever. I'll add a few >other thoughts as well.

Each location you might dive has its own demands.
For example, Southern California beach diving typically involves dealing with surf but no major
currents involving tidal flows. Puget Sound beach
diving typically has no surf but currents are a
major consideration. The tropics warm, clear waters can result in longer bottom times and deeper diver with greater decompression risk/obligation then in our colder California waters.


>Most basic is that the water is colder here >which requires some adjustment of exposure >protection. While not a huge difference it is >significant in that it demands more physical >toughness of the diver. Cold here can paralyze >you, but is very unlikey to in FL. If you forget >gloves or a hood in FL, you don't need to cancel >a dive. In CA, you probably have to.

Hypothermia can be a problem in Florida waters as
well as in California. Adequate thermal protection
is required at both sites.

>There are minor points of gear. Where as a >snorkel is considered rather passe many places, >it commonly has distinct uses here.

I use my snorkel for free diving. For scuba it
stays at home. This is true in the tropics and
in California.

>Another minor point of gear that I'm not sure of >is the backplate and wings. I'd like to try one >to see if it will work good on long swims and >swims through kelp. I know that most divers with >wings swim backwards on the surface. That is >often not practical in heavy kelp or in surf.

I use my backplate and wings on all my dives. The
DIR setup is very streamlined and makes swimming thru kelp beds much easier. No dangling gear means
less chance of gear getting caught in kelp. The
streamlining of DIR gear is at least in part based
on avoiding entanglements. When diving under thick kelp beds I treat the dive as an overhead
environment and plan my dive accordingly.
Surf entries and exits are easily accomplished in
a backplate and wings.

>Talk about canister lights, diver propulsion >vehicles and a few other things are fairly >irrelevant here.
I use my Pro 4 HID cannister light on all my dives. A number of my dive buddies have purchased
them as well since I returned from Cave training
with one. They are very relevant for diving here.
A powerful light with a focused beam is a great tool for both day and night diving. It is brighter
then Ikelite Super RCD and UK lights I have used in the past but the HID lighthead with Gavin handle has very little mass and is easy to carry
in your hand. Having the canister mounted to the
waist strap keeps it very secure during the dive,
much better then having Ikelite or UK flopping
around when not in use. With the Gavin handled
lighthead you can also use your hand for more then
just holding the light. I am looking forward to
using this setup for lobster season.

>There are then two differences in gear that have >some significance, steel tanks with wetsuits and >using dive computers/consoles, both of which are >considered unacceptable by DIR purists, are >quite popular in CA. (though JW says he has no >problem with the use of steel tanks with >wetsuits if bouyancy is acceptable)

There are DIR purists who believe dive computers
are acceptable for recreational divers.

The only back tanks I own are steel(actually I
do have an aluminum 60something in storage). I
dive a single steel 95 in my wetsuit although
I have yet to dive in my wetsuit this year. When
I do wear a wetsuit I tend to limit my depths
which helps limit the buouyancy swing caused by
neoprene compression. When diving deeper I more
comfortable (ie. warmer, better bouyancy charteristics) in my trilaminate drysuit.

>Frankly, I don't give a dried scallop shell if >George doesn't want to use them. GI says to use >a stage bottle (on his web site I think) if you >want more air than a single AL tank gives. He >says he doesn't know why anyone would want to >use a steel tank. Well, since it should be >obvious that many divers find it makes an >excellent package, combining superior air >capacity with great bouyancy characteristics, >I'll stick with it... on either coast. (Though I >hear that in tropicl waters, steel can rust out >quickly. Just one of those differences).

The buoyancy charteristics of steel tank may not
be all that great in warm water where minimal
thermal protection is required.


>If GI doesn't want to use a computer or console, >in FL or CA, that's fine with me. His system is >largely based around the use of a dive >propulsion vehicle (DPV) and his gear is >configured with that in mind. (He can use that >here too if he wants) DPV's are as rare in CA as >12 pound bugs in CA, but I bet they would be fun >to try even if impractical for most of my >diving. In the past, the DIR proponents have >failed to well support their contentions that a >console is a drag problem and further it is >based on not using a dive computer.... which >seems weird to me. Still, I think his system >would work fine in CA, but I see no reason to >adopt it.
The console is an entanglement problem. The gauges
are better placed on the arm.

>As far as the diving, there are large >differences.
>In Florida, they do not do long surface swims, >let alone through kelp. Almost everywhere I have >dove, including Florida, the boat comes and >picks you up... not Hawaii though.
Sounds like you chose not to shore dive in Florida. I have not yet either but when I lived
in the Bahamas I would do shore dives and some
pretty long swims. There is no kelp in Florida,
but then there is no fire coral in California.

>Also, shore diving, common in CA and perhaps the >most challenging diving in CA, is uncommon in >FL. That is one place where DIR configurtion >might be a problem, but I don't think anyone has >really looked.

DIR configuration works great for shore diving
here in California. I imagine it would work
great in Florida.

>Vis makes a difference here as well. There is >very little difference to diving procedure in >vis say 30 feet to 100 feet, but vis in CA is >often 15 feet or less. In Central CA, 15 feet is >good vis. In San Mateo County (where I did a lot >of diving), vis is good at 6 feet.
Major DIR population of divers in Seattle colder
water and visibility typically less then what
you stated. Seems to be a growing DIR community
in the Central California as well. DIR gear functions well in limited visibility.

>Another difference is the bottom life. There is >a basic rule of diving in Coral areas: "don't >touch". Even minor contact can damage coral >polyps. In CA, it's just not an issue. You have >to be fairly careless to damage the reef or its >life.
I don't see what point you are trying to make
with this statement. You seem to indicate that
in California its cool to be bouncing off the
bottom stirring it up with your fins. I don't
think I would find you to be desirable to follow
over a muddy bottom. Also how do you manage to
swim thru a thick kelp bed. Avoiding entanglement
in kelp is a major issue in Calif. The streamlined
nature of a DIR configuration is a major help.

>Where the differences get bigger is the nature >of the diving.
>California diving was created by and fostered >hunters. That promotes divers that range far >further and interact with the reef structure far >more. Also divers get into the kelp. That can be >a big difference if (like me) the diver likes it >in the deep kelp. Also, solo diving is far more >efficient for a hunter, especially in limited >vis.
Bullshit. Some divers hunt, some don't. I used
to hunt a lot but now the vast majority of dives
are look-see or photo dives. On the So Cal boat
trips I have made this year the number of divers
hunting seems to be way down from even a few years
ago and much less then 15-20 years ago.

>CA diving may be an entire dive in the sand. In >FL, that's usually called 'lost'.
Huh - I have found diving on the sand in both
tropical and temperate location to be fun.

>In CA on a multi day trip, it is common for a >diver to do 7 tanks in a day and never go into a >deco situation.

Don't kid yourself, every dive is a deco dive.

A memory that will always stay with me is the
Type 2 bends hit a tourist diver took on a cavern dive in the Bahamas. Max depth of 35 feet and
a bottom time of around 20 mintutes, just arrived
on the island the day before and no previous dives on this trip. Hearing her scream with pain as we carried her from the VW Van into the onsite chamber kinda sticks in the memory banks.


>As far as I can tell, this is unheard of >anywhere else. This points out an important >difference. The DIR folks hate computers because >they want better bottom times, they claim tht >are not good for deco, etc.. Here a computer is >mostly used not for deco, it is used to stay out >of deco and it works great for that in CA waters.

Every dive is a deco dive.

Marc Hall
svcfish@yahoo.com



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