http://www.divebuddy.com/forum.aspxScuba diving forum for members of DiveBuddy.com.http://www.divebuddy.com/forum.aspxhttp://www.divebuddy.com/images/divebuddy_db.png240LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=27961Thu, 23 May 2013 06:37:00 CDTPhotographyAnother good link to add to your toolbox http://www.backscatter.com/learn/article/index.php?CAT=10]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=27896Sun, 19 May 2013 13:45:00 CDTTravelHere is a usefull link http://www.latimes.com/business/orl-travel-florida-scuba-div...4,3207168,full.story for Florida bound divers, it list a few dive sites in each area and what dive ops go to them. Not a complete list but it will get you started. For more info use those sites named in a search above in "Dive Sites" to see what other sites are in the area or place "Scuba Earth" on the area you are interested in.]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=27576Fri, 03 May 2013 06:16:00 CDTGeneralHere is a link you’ll want to add to your favorites http://www.mares.com/downloads.php?cat=maps®ion=eu Maps and dive site drawings from all over the world :)]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=26627Fri, 08 Mar 2013 05:20:00 CDTHealth & SafetyReprinted from D2D and Undercurrent "A Lost–at-Sea Diver Tells His Tale a 14-hour swim from Gordo Banks back to the mainland from the March, 2013 issue of Undercurrent ( http://www.undercurrent.org ) When you’re diving in underdeveloped countries and somehow get into trouble during a dive, your first line of rescue is the dive boat. Many times, that’s your only line of rescue. In remote places, such as eastern Indonesia or the Maldives, you must depend on your boat and perhaps other dive boats in the area, because you’ll typically be far away from any government authority and its rescue vehicles if they have any at all. Lost-at-sea dive stories also happen closer to home. On July 12, three divers on a trip with Baja California dive shop Cabo Eagle Divers, along with two dive guides, went missing near Gordo Banks, a popular site for hammerhead shark sightings four miles south of San Jose del Cabo. It was not until well after midnight that all of them turned up alive, having swum back to San Jose del Cabo. We asked Mick Kiernan, one of the divers lost at sea, what happened on that Gordo Banks dive. It took a while to get all his information, but he ultimately told us about what went wrong, and what divers should do to ensure they don’t end up in a situation like he did. "I’ve been diving for 12 years, with more than 300 dives logged, and I’m a rescue diver and chairman of my local scuba club in Kent, England. My 18-year-old son, Daniel, has been diving for seven years and is a PADI advanced openwater diver who has logged more than 100 dives. We’ve dived in various places, such as the Caribbean, Egypt, Greece, Malta and the Canary Islands. We decided to go to Mexico for our annual holiday, mainly for the diving and to see the hammerhead sharks that frequent these waters. This was our first trip to this country. "The boat trip took two hours and 30 minutes from Cabo San Lucas to Gordo Banks. On board were six people myself, Daniel, Rene the divemaster, Neil, a rescue diver from Australia, Lucia, a divemaster student from Germany and the skipper, who was a friend of Cabo Eagle Divers’ owner, Rodrigo Alcacer. I and the other divers concluded later that the skipper seemed totally inexperienced as a dive boat captain, and was unable to follow our air bubbles or our surface marker buoys, even when we reached the surface. "At Gordo Banks, we entered into a strong current and waited at the anchor line until all five divers were together, then we descended down the line to the reef at 130 feet. The current was so strong it nearly pulled us from the line until about 60 feet down. By the time we reached the reef, I had used about 450 psi from an already poorly-filled tank of 2,775 psi. The visibility was poor on our descent and not much better on the reef. Needless to say, the hammerheads failed to make an appearance. We left the reef after 10 minutes to do a drift dive as planned. Rene and Lucia both sent their surface marker buoys to the surface from about 50 feet. But when we reached the surface after the safety stop, to our shock and horror, the boat was nowhere to be seen. "We waited for approximately 15 minutes before we caught a distant sighting of our boat. The skipper failed to notice us, despite our attempts to signal him and catch his attention with high-pitched whistles and three SMBs. We assumed he would eventually come to our rescue, but after two hours, we had drifted 12 miles out to sea, according to Rene. It was about 2 p.m. when we decided to start swimming back towards land on a compass bearing we had taken earlier when we could still see the Baja coastline. "My feelings at this stage oscillated between being very angry at the skipper and a little disappointed in Rene for putting us into this situation. As a father, I felt my only duty was to protect my son by offering whatever advice and support I could give. I remember saying to him, ’Don’t worry, son. Mom will probably think we have gone for a beer or two as we normally do following a dive.’ Dan said to me, ’Dad, do you remember that film Open Water?’ I immediately said, ’Don’t go there, son. That was only a film. It couldn’t possibly happen. could it, I thought to myself. "As we started our mega-swim, I can remember Rene saying we needed to get as close to the shore as possible, with the hope of picking up a fishing boat or even a rescue boat with the daylight we had left. The sunset was due at 8:30 p.m., and at 3 p.m., we were still 10 miles offshore. The sun was beating down, and the sea conditions were moderate, with a swell and surface current that was carrying us farther down the coastline. We kept together as a group, using our SMBs as buoyancy floats to hold onto while we swam. As night descended, the thought of sharks did enter my mind and scenes from the film Dan mentioned did start to scare me. "At 8 p.m., it was entirely dark and we were about six miles offshore, but we could see the twinkling lights from the hotels in the distance. Then at 1 a.m. Friday the 13th, ironically we finally hit the shore after a 14-hour swim. Of all the hotels we could have reached, the award went to the Hilton. There we were met by two security guards, who gave us some much-needed water and a friendly welcome, as most of the hotels had heard about the missing divers on the national TV newscasts. "We could hardly walk, due to the burning pains in our legs. I crawled up the beach, totally exhausted and very sore from sunburn. We were advised to go to the hospital as a precautionary measure, due to the dehydration and cold we were now feeling, but all that Dan and I wanted to do was get back to our hotel and see Tina, my wife and Dan’s mom. The doctors were waiting for us there. Once they were satisfied with our medical conditions, we were finally reunited as a family. It was one of the most emotional times I can remember, seeing Tina, and equally so for Dan. "The next day, we could hardly move, due to the pain from our aching muscles and from the sunburn on our hands and faces, the only parts of our body that were exposed to the sun and elements. "I never thought it would be necessary to check the boat skipper’s level of qualifications and experience, or if the country you’re visiting has search-and-rescue procedures in place. I discovered that no helicopter was available to aid in a rescue. I now know to never take for granted that the dive company you’ve been recommended has suitable procedures and safety arrangements in place. I would strongly recommend that the dive leader is equipped with a GPS/EPIRB tracking system, especially in remote waters such as Gordo Banks. And I will always dive with the essential safety equipment such as SMB, flashlight and whistle. "This experience has definitely shaken up my son, leaving him with horrible memories, not those normally associated with the lovely dives we have done together. It is going to take me some time to get Dan back in the water. I don’t want him to give up this fantastic sport because not only is he my son, he is the dive buddy who got me through this ordeal." Rodrigo Alcacer of Cabo Eagles Divers told Undercurrent that the accident was due to "strong currents and waves, which left no good monitoring of the divers and the buoys." Obviously, he doesn’t think the skipper was at fault. To prevent similar incidents, he bought new equipment, including a VHF radio for the boat and Nautilus Lifeline GPS systems for each pair of divers to use. "We changed the basic GPS on the boat to a more advanced one, which can receive the distress call of the divers and their location coordinates." He also has an agreement now with other dive shops for mutual support in search-andrescue efforts, and a contact list of other search boats and aircraft. No matter where your dive destination, when you are diving with a small operation or any operation for that matter find out its search-and-rescue procedures, and learn whether the country itself has any capacity. One would sure think that Cabo San Lucas, home to thousands of pleasure craft, would have some public search-and-rescue capacity. These divers learned differently and have taught the rest of us a valuable lesson. - - Vanessa Richardson"]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=26459Fri, 01 Mar 2013 09:06:00 CDTUnderwater Hunting]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=25822Sat, 26 Jan 2013 06:43:00 CDTTrainingGreg, I just found your "Lift Bag Size/Volume Calculator", what we really need is a "How much does that thing on the bottom really weigh?" calculator :) Back in the 70’s our dive club tried to raise an anchor with five 55 gallon drums, they were not enough. As long as the boat was moving they stayed near the surface but the Captain was affraid when he slowed in the inlet it would dig in so we cut it loose just outside the Beach Haven inlet. Someone is going to find it and go nuts trying to tie it to one of the wrecks :) Anyone else got an idea for another calculator or fooled around with a historical site? ie, I think a local NJ dive shop or diveboat has been seeding old coins on the Spanish Wreck to build up travel to the site.]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=24904Sat, 17 Nov 2012 07:43:00 CDTVideographyhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLyoIb9fLCI&sns=em&n-+++-bsp;and the diving footage is great too :)]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=24781Fri, 02 Nov 2012 03:49:00 CDTUnderwater Huntinghttps://www.facebook.com/?ref-+++-=hp#!/pages/Northwest-Diving-Institute/179211822166510 Northwest Diving Institute 14 hours ago As many of you have been following, Dylan Mayer and Jake Whitbeck killed a female Giant Pacific Octopus at Cove Two yesterday. This is especially difficult as catching a glimpse of a GPO is often the highlight of any dive there, for new divers and experienced divers alike. As such, these gentlemen have been banned from our shop for life.]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=24455Wed, 26 Sep 2012 05:51:00 CDTEquipmentPrincetonTec which is really in Bordentown NJ but just wouldn’t sound right being called BordenTec is my favorite dive light maker and is insourcing, bringing back jobs to NJ from China. The video shows the workers making lights, I know management dives but none of these workers look like divers :( http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=new-+++-s/local&id=8811709]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=24380Thu, 13 Sep 2012 11:48:00 CDTGeneralThey have about a 100,000 seafloor images that need to be classified, sand, gravel, shells, fish in the picture? http://www.seafloorexplorer.org/]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=24195Thu, 30 Aug 2012 08:40:00 CDTTravelSomeone posted this on FB and I’m guessing it’s on the Med side of Spain but I can’t figure out their website. So is this the dive op, hotel or the DM’s home :)]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=23960Mon, 13 Aug 2012 17:37:00 CDTTrainingFound this on the NJ DEP site and thought they might be useful, if you would like the link or to store it on your computer here’s the PDF: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/pdf/2010/digmar16-17.pdf]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=22958Tue, 19 Jun 2012 12:59:00 CDTTravelDoc V posted this elsewhere and thought I’d share the link here: http://blog.tsa.gov/2012/05/its-time-to--+++-go-scuba-diving-travel-tips.html]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=22881Fri, 15 Jun 2012 10:33:00 CDTTravelMarine Traffic dot com allows you to search for ship name, get details about ship and click on "map" to see where it is. In this case the dive liveaboard M/V Spree http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shipdetails.asp-+++-x?mmsi=366843270 Now only if the old treasure ships had been equiped with transmitters :)]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=22252Thu, 10 May 2012 07:35:00 CDTGeneralNot real time but does show you what to expect and how the currents effect local weather in some areas. http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a003800/a003-+++-827/index.html]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=22130Fri, 27 Apr 2012 11:09:00 CDTPhotographyAnyone who has opened or seen the covers of pretty much any dive magazine or National Geographic has seen David Doubilet’s work. I had the pleasure of diving with him once but none of his talent rubbed off on me :( My best over-under was an accident, I think a wave tripped the shutter! I’d be happy if I could just dive most of the locations he’s been to but him being married to a National Geographic staff photographer probably helps. http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2012-+++-/04/25/photos-that-move-and-flow-underwater/]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=22029Wed, 18 Apr 2012 08:32:00 CDTTrainingAnd for some of us who haven’t been on any winter dive trips it’s time to practice our skills before heading out to deeper waters. Some go to Dutch or Willow Springs but for me there are some nice inlet dives a lot closer. Before even getting wet go over your buddies gear, How do you release their weights? Where is their knife/shears? How do you inflate/deflate their wing/BC and drysuit? Check the drysuit zipper, no a 1/4 way back like on the K-valve is not a good idea! That’s not even accepted as a good idea on the tank valve anymore. Gas management, if you need to open or close a valve, which way may seem like a dumb question but if they are wearing independent doubles with both valves facing out someone, even DM’s and deckhands have been known to turn off a divers air as they step off the boat! Remember, look at the valve knob and think, righty tighty, lefty losey! H-valve or Y-valves? if you are not familiar with these now is the time to ask questions. Air sharing, 2nd., long hose, combo or pony? What do they want you to go for? Many pressurize the pony reg and then turn it off, will you need to turn it on, yes or no? If they are carrying pony AND deco bottles know which one is hanging where so you don’t take o2 at depth! When practicing skills sign other divers that you are okay. WreckWench here once took flak on another forum for spending almost the entire dive on some guys long hose. He had 5 tanks so it’s not like they were going to run out of gas but everyone kept signing for them to go up. Mark from Nazareth PA wrote in another thread: Another important skill to practice is monitoring your gas source. Also, practice switching to your secondary gas source (pony, buddy’s reg, etc.) All of these skills will allow you to make a nice controlled ascent. Once at the surface, just orally inflate, or if you still can’t stay afloat for some reason then drop your weights at the surface (try not to drop them on another diver’s head below). This should be an absolute last resort. As for checking everything ahead of the dive, I’m all for it. If your regs & BC are working properly and your buddy’s are too (and especially if you both have your own gas redundancy and the ability to share each others), there should be no reason to ever get in a situation where you feel the need to "dump" weight and rocket to the surface.]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=21934Tue, 10 Apr 2012 05:34:00 CDTTechnical DivingLet’s put things in perspective :) http://xkcd.com/1040/large/]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=21732Tue, 13 Mar 2012 04:57:00 CDTEquipmentWhen my daughter got a new Oceanic BC with weight pockets we went to Emerald Lagoon in Key Largo and she tried dropping her weights over a training platform and found they came out easier if she pulled accross her body, ie left hand for right pocket, right hand for left pocket. Even weight belts can be a problem, I saw a diver drop his belt only to have it catch on his dive knife which was straped to the outside of his leg, that’s why they teach you to put it on the inside of the leg! Here is a tragic case where the diver should have practiced first and also remembered that his dry suit could provide lift. I know I’m going to get flamed for this but I’m not impressed with most Public Service Diver’s skills, if they only dive during drills they don’t dive enough to be good at it. http://hamptonro-+++-ads.com/2012/03/questions-linger-about-chesapeake-officers-dive-gear-after-death]]>LatitudeAdjustmenthttp://www.divebuddy.com/forum_topic.aspx?ForumID=20815Tue, 03 Jan 2012 11:40:00 CDTVideographyhttp://io9.com/5872515/ice+fis-+++-hing-in-scuba-gear-in-finland-is-a-trippy-experience]]>