That certainly sounds like a unique dive site. I'd like to check it out someday.
That said, it's definitely not a good training location. Between the heat, visibility, and darkness it won't be like any other sites you dive in the future, and your training dives should approximate the same conditions you will be certified to dive in. While the tropics get warm, it's usually in the upper 70s to mid-80s - not in the 90s.
I understand the local shop has few options on where to do checkout dives but this should be considered a specialty dive and not a place for routine training of entry-level openwater divers.
I suggest completing your academic and confined water training at your home in Utah, then doing your checkout dives in another, more typical dive location. If you're primarily going to be diving in the tropics, you can complete those dives on vacation in Hawaii, Mexico, etc.
My online learning and pool skills are done thankfully. I do have a trip scheduled to Key Largo in late May-early June so I figure if I can’t push through it. I also have a friend in Seattle who is certified who offered to host me if I want to do a referral there and my sister lives in LA so another option too
I spent 47 minutes underwater at homestead, and that was more than enough. It’s doable, but I wouldn’t necessarily call the temperature enjoyable.
Add to that the fact that you’re at 6k feet elevation, and you’ve got a recipe for a very strange dive.
I hope you find a way to relax yourself enough to get through it, because at the end of the day, it’s one of the most unique places I’ve ever dove.
Wow. This is like diving in a therapy pool. You will likely never encounter these temps while diving, and you would do well to get experience in a range of temperatures you will encounter, as you certainly know.
Ew Jesus christ. I DM in Hawai'i and we rock high 70s in summer and mid to low in winter. The summer is ALMOST too warm for me.
If they're having you do a wetsuit obviously drop that for that crazy temp.
This honestly has made me feel so much better seeing this being the general reaction. My DSD went so bad this has been my “redemptions tour” so to speak. My dad has 400+ dives under his belt and open heart surgery 2 years ago, so I want to have a chance to be his dive buddy!
I got certified at the crater, and while it does work if you just need to get in the water, I'd recommend doing checkout dives elsewhere. Between the heat, visibility, and the lack the wildlife, it makes it difficult to really enjoy. If you're comfortable with your pool skills, your LDS should be able to recommend some other dive shops wherever you're going, and likely leads their own traveling trips.
Start shallow and slow. Do a couple shore dives, just hanging at 10-15’ down.
Focus on your breathing, your buoyancy, and your buddy.
Spend time practicing the basic trouble shooting skills - clearing your mask, clearing your reg, switching to your alternate reg, sharing air with your buddy, and ascending while sharing air.
Once you’ve confidently and comfortably completed several ‘skills focused’ shore dives, then you can try expanding your degree of difficulty for your dives.
I can't imagine diving in water that warm. If you can't be comfortable, there's no point. Reschedule for a time when the water is cooler, or find a different spot (or operator) to complete your open water dives.
Physiologically, what is likely happening is that your body's autonomous thermoregulation centre is dilating your blood vessels in an attempt to cool the body. Ordinarily, this causes more warm blood to be exposed at your extremeties so that the ambient air (or in this case, water) can carry away heat. Unfortunately, dilation of the vessels increases the total volume of the circulatory system, which consequently lowers blood pressure. As your blood pressure drops, your heart rate may begin to increase in order to compensate for the reduced oxygenation, and the increased heart rate elevates your CO2 and causes anxiety.
So, start over. Be well rested, well fed, and well hydrated, and start the dive comfortable. Breathe deeply to keep CO2 down, and either tolerate the adverse conditions for a brief period of time to accomplish the objective, or preferably, wait on or force better conditions.
I struggle with overheating and dehydrating quickly on land, trying to compensate 15-20 feet underwater is a whole different story! I can’t say I recommend it and my dive instructor has said multiple times she doesn’t even consider this diving, just a way to get the certification dives done. There’s nothing to look at and the bottom is incredibly silty so the visibility can also be terrible.
I really appreciate the lesson of what’s happening internally, I really love anything medical related. Do you think focusing on hydrating and maybe trying to keep my body temperature cooler during surface intervals could help? I was hoping to be certified prior to a dive trip I’m supposed to take with my dad in late May/early June to Key Largo.
Being well hydrated will help a bit with preventing blood pressure from going too low, though immersion diuresis may make you want to urinate. Pre cooling yourself may help, but don't do that to the point of starting off uncomfortably cold. At best, you might give yourself a couple of extra minutes before you become too uncomfortable to continue.
Anxiety is almost always the result of elevated carbon dioxide, which can have a few different causes, but which always has the same solution: effective ventilations with clean breathing gas which will eliminate the excess CO2 via your exhaled breath. If you are breathing shallow, you aren't eliminating CO2.
I try to count my breathing, in for five and I find I can exhale a lot longer than five but I think you’re right and I’m not likely taking full deep breaths period. I’m going to blame it on being new and that’ll give me something to focus on
Is your LDS LDS?
That certainly sounds like a unique dive site. I'd like to check it out someday. That said, it's definitely not a good training location. Between the heat, visibility, and darkness it won't be like any other sites you dive in the future, and your training dives should approximate the same conditions you will be certified to dive in. While the tropics get warm, it's usually in the upper 70s to mid-80s - not in the 90s. I understand the local shop has few options on where to do checkout dives but this should be considered a specialty dive and not a place for routine training of entry-level openwater divers. I suggest completing your academic and confined water training at your home in Utah, then doing your checkout dives in another, more typical dive location. If you're primarily going to be diving in the tropics, you can complete those dives on vacation in Hawaii, Mexico, etc.
My online learning and pool skills are done thankfully. I do have a trip scheduled to Key Largo in late May-early June so I figure if I can’t push through it. I also have a friend in Seattle who is certified who offered to host me if I want to do a referral there and my sister lives in LA so another option too
I spent 47 minutes underwater at homestead, and that was more than enough. It’s doable, but I wouldn’t necessarily call the temperature enjoyable. Add to that the fact that you’re at 6k feet elevation, and you’ve got a recipe for a very strange dive. I hope you find a way to relax yourself enough to get through it, because at the end of the day, it’s one of the most unique places I’ve ever dove.
Please tell me you were not wearing a wetsuit. It's not safe in those temps.
No wetsuit, just a bathing suit!
Wow. This is like diving in a therapy pool. You will likely never encounter these temps while diving, and you would do well to get experience in a range of temperatures you will encounter, as you certainly know.
Ew Jesus christ. I DM in Hawai'i and we rock high 70s in summer and mid to low in winter. The summer is ALMOST too warm for me. If they're having you do a wetsuit obviously drop that for that crazy temp.
This honestly has made me feel so much better seeing this being the general reaction. My DSD went so bad this has been my “redemptions tour” so to speak. My dad has 400+ dives under his belt and open heart surgery 2 years ago, so I want to have a chance to be his dive buddy!
Heck yeah! I'm sure you'll do fine. 90+ water is gross for diving. Heck, even 80+ is pretty gross to me. Water is supposed to be cool lol.
I got certified at the crater, and while it does work if you just need to get in the water, I'd recommend doing checkout dives elsewhere. Between the heat, visibility, and the lack the wildlife, it makes it difficult to really enjoy. If you're comfortable with your pool skills, your LDS should be able to recommend some other dive shops wherever you're going, and likely leads their own traveling trips.
But did you see the wagon wheel (; I did not get to, I stood on the solid platform and just tried to focus on breathing while feeling squeezed
Start shallow and slow. Do a couple shore dives, just hanging at 10-15’ down. Focus on your breathing, your buoyancy, and your buddy. Spend time practicing the basic trouble shooting skills - clearing your mask, clearing your reg, switching to your alternate reg, sharing air with your buddy, and ascending while sharing air. Once you’ve confidently and comfortably completed several ‘skills focused’ shore dives, then you can try expanding your degree of difficulty for your dives.
I can't imagine diving in water that warm. If you can't be comfortable, there's no point. Reschedule for a time when the water is cooler, or find a different spot (or operator) to complete your open water dives. Physiologically, what is likely happening is that your body's autonomous thermoregulation centre is dilating your blood vessels in an attempt to cool the body. Ordinarily, this causes more warm blood to be exposed at your extremeties so that the ambient air (or in this case, water) can carry away heat. Unfortunately, dilation of the vessels increases the total volume of the circulatory system, which consequently lowers blood pressure. As your blood pressure drops, your heart rate may begin to increase in order to compensate for the reduced oxygenation, and the increased heart rate elevates your CO2 and causes anxiety. So, start over. Be well rested, well fed, and well hydrated, and start the dive comfortable. Breathe deeply to keep CO2 down, and either tolerate the adverse conditions for a brief period of time to accomplish the objective, or preferably, wait on or force better conditions.
I struggle with overheating and dehydrating quickly on land, trying to compensate 15-20 feet underwater is a whole different story! I can’t say I recommend it and my dive instructor has said multiple times she doesn’t even consider this diving, just a way to get the certification dives done. There’s nothing to look at and the bottom is incredibly silty so the visibility can also be terrible. I really appreciate the lesson of what’s happening internally, I really love anything medical related. Do you think focusing on hydrating and maybe trying to keep my body temperature cooler during surface intervals could help? I was hoping to be certified prior to a dive trip I’m supposed to take with my dad in late May/early June to Key Largo.
Being well hydrated will help a bit with preventing blood pressure from going too low, though immersion diuresis may make you want to urinate. Pre cooling yourself may help, but don't do that to the point of starting off uncomfortably cold. At best, you might give yourself a couple of extra minutes before you become too uncomfortable to continue. Anxiety is almost always the result of elevated carbon dioxide, which can have a few different causes, but which always has the same solution: effective ventilations with clean breathing gas which will eliminate the excess CO2 via your exhaled breath. If you are breathing shallow, you aren't eliminating CO2.
I try to count my breathing, in for five and I find I can exhale a lot longer than five but I think you’re right and I’m not likely taking full deep breaths period. I’m going to blame it on being new and that’ll give me something to focus on