Boat diving is one of my favorite diving activities. Most of the time you have to dive from the shore and do long surface swims to the location to get any depth. During your diving experiences you will want to dive from a boat. On a boat you can get to many great dive locations that you possibly have never thought of and also may have the opportunity to meet new dive friends and check out all their great equipment. 

 Boat diving is not much different then entering the water from the shore, except that you get the splash, and there are some rules that you have to follow. You want to make sure that you have all your equipment on board before you leave. It’s a long swim back to the shore to get it if you leave it on the dock. Take spare parts in your save a dive kit so you won’t miss a dive. 

 While boating to the dive location it is also a good time to talk over with your dive buddy the dive plan for each location and do your equipment checks. Because there is so much equipment, and a lot of it looks alike, save on confusion by marking your equipment. Should you leave it on board after the dive, the Captain can return it to you. A dive buddy and I were on a boat in Canada and in 80 foot of water, he dropped his light canon over board and down it went. We searched for it, but we were not successful. Two weeks later he received a call from the Captain who told him that they had found the light. Marking your equipment like a scooter is a good idea. 

 On the boat you have less room to store your equipment so take only what you are going to use for the dives. With the divers I dive with we call it a two or three tanker; meaning we will do two or three dives depending on the location and the depth. We generally only do one dive in one location and then move to another location. That allows you time to get ready for the next dive and take the required surface intervals between dives, plus have a little lunch and tell a bunch of dive stories. And all of them are true. Sure they are !!!

 When you get on board and the equipment is stored, the Captain or Dive Master of the boat will give you a safety briefing and tell you about his boat. He will also tell you the location of the safety equipment, the head, the bathroom, and the off limit areas. Some will advise you about wet areas and the dry areas. It is important that you respect these places. You should pay close attention to the briefing for the obvious reasons. He will also give you a release statement to sign. 

 If you have not been to sea, you may want to consider sea sickness medication before you go.  There is nothing worse then being sea sick; it will really mess up a dive. I have not been sea sick, but I have had some of its miserable effects in rough seas. I have found it helps to look at the horizon or a fixed object on shore. I like to move about the boat and stay in the fresh air, both of  which are big helps too. 

 One safety tip that I think all divers should do is suit up and zip up as soon as possible. A wet or dry suit will feel real good should you go over board in cold water. No horse playing is one of those rules you must observe at all times when on the boat; accidents can and will happen.  You really don’t want to walk the plank while several miles out to sea. It’s in your best interest to just be safe.

 Next Week, Boat Diving, Part II

© 04-12-2005 G. McK.