Suggestion for referrals - allow name!
Coho - 11/21/2007 5:49 PM
Since I don`t see a "contact us" link (which may in fact be buried somewhere; I didn`t dig too hard), this will have to do to offer a suggestion: It would be helpful to have the option for new members to use either the username of members or their ID. In recommending the site previously, I gave my username but only later realized that it`s not enough to get credit. Also, it`s generally easier for someone you meet to remember a name than to remember a number (even assuming you yourself remember i...
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Mask de-fogging
Coho - 11/08/2007 1:02 PM
I came across this link on another site, and it seems it would be useful to folks here. It concerns how to keep one`s mask fog-free. http://home.gwi.net/~spectrum/scuba_mask.html#cleaning The quick summary - though you would do well to check the link: 1) Outside water is colder than inside air. That`s why, as with a cold drink on a summer day, you get condensation. 2) On a prepared mask, water will condense as a sheet of water, not droplets, so it won`t interfere with your vision. 3) Using a too...
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We went to Folly Cove and met George
Coho - 11/06/2007 1:42 PM
This was an easy but lovely earlier this summer: We had good visibility (for New England) of about 25 feet, with a wall of rocks from the shore to our side and a sandy bottom beneath. A few crabs rested between rocks and kelp. Tiny marble-sized hermit crabs scuttled across the sandy bottom. Under one rock I spied a couple claws which belonged to a lobster. (The claws retreated until only the tip of one claw showed.) There were a few flounder, one in a soup-bowl sized depression it had made to be...
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First recent dive
Coho - 11/03/2007 5:36 AM
I`d been certified years ago but hadn`t dived since. Finally I joined a scuba club. One of their dives was to participate in the Great Annual Fish Count. I rented the gear I needed but already had a mask, fins and snorkel. Our group headed up to Cathedral Rocks in Gloucester. The weather was lovely and perhaps a dozen people were around gearing up for the Count. I buddied up with an old hand from our club. All was well - until we got into the water. My mask leaked. Now this was no ordinary littl...
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Silicone strap repair?
Coho - 11/01/2007 5:11 PM
I cut halfway through my silicone dive mask strap. While I do have a replacement, I`d like to repair the first if possible. It happens I have some two-part molding silicone - would this work? If not, are there types of glue which would hold?...
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Swimming with weight - why is it so hard?
Coho - 10/30/2007 9:59 PM
What do folks know about the mechanics of swimming with weight? A couple days ago I was swimming a short distance to a platform for a pumpkin-carving contest. Because pumpkins float, I had with me a second weight belt, which I hooked over the weight belt I was wearing. I expected it to be a little awkward, but I was surprised that I made very little headway forward, either on the surface or underwater. Why would this be? I eventually got out there (maybe 30 feet from shore), but it took a *lot* ...
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Cobbling together a little more warmth
Coho - 10/23/2007 9:40 AM
As the water is getting cooler, I`m wondering about how to squeeze a little more warmth - or, literally, a little less warmth - out of my wetsuit. Would it make sense, for instance, to add an outer neckpiece (a second hood with the top cut off above the chin?) to decrease water flow down the back? Or perhaps one might additionally wear long dishwashing gloves with rubber bands or velcro straps at the open ends to impede water circulation. I don`t care if I look silly if it keeps me in the water ...
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Pumpkin-carving techniques?
Coho - 10/20/2007 8:07 AM
I`m planning to enter an underwater pumpkin-carving contest. I`ve never tried this before, so am wondering if people might have tips. We can hollow out our pumpkin and draw on it beforehand. We will only be permitted to use a dive knife. I know that pumpkins float, so it will need to be weighted somehow. Are there other things I should be aware of?...
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First dive
Coho - 10/02/2007 2:28 PM
Just for the fun of it, I`ll write a little about old dives from time to time. I don`t have many, so I might as well get more mileage out of what I have done. :) I was certified long ago in Korea. At least at that time, it was cheap to have things made, and our dive instructor had someone come who took all of our measurements to make us wet suits. All well and good, but I was (or so I felt at the time) a little chubby and was self-conscious about it. So I held my breath while being measured. Oop...
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Come dive from Boston!
Pah. I seem to be lacking in dive buddies, or at least those I know seem busy. If anyone is interested in heading up to Cape Ann from the Boston area, let me know......
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Full moon night dive
Well, I did my first night dive last night. The water had only ripples, echoed by the wavelets of sand below. A few crabs rested here and there, moving only to avoid our lights or dig into the sand. One skate circled nearby, repeatedly passing over a tiny flounder below. A group of finger-sized squid floated ahead of us, eyes shiny and the outline of their bodies red in the light. From time to time lobsters moved out of our way. But the thing that made last night special was remembering to look ...
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Surviving when Lost at Sea
Coho - 9/26/2007 12:45 PM
Since someone else just posted a warning about getting lost at sea, it seems worthwhile to post this link to a Surface Survival Primer. It may be old news to some, but better twice than not at all. http://www.tabula-international.com/DIV/SMB3.html...
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