Posted by Jason on August 31, 2002 at 01:41:54:
In Reply to: Re: shore diving posted by Melvin on August 27, 2002 at 07:22:04:
Melvin - if you remove your rig and your ballast, you are unsinkable, and pretty damn near undrownable in any conditions that had you getting in the water in the first place. You don't need an air supply.
It sounds like you've been at Monastery - you refer to the crawl. If conditions got nasty, you could easily attach your rig to the edge of the kelp line and then snorkel your way in with ease. The surf zone is tiny there and you don't need to duck under the waves. If I were at the end of 2 hours in the water (60-70 under, along with swims in and out), I might not have the energy to exit immediately with the gear. It would be wiser for me to postpone, get in, eat some food and drink, and then go back. I've abandoned abalone floats under similar circumstances on the north coast.