News
Cave Diving Etiquette
By Jon Kieren
When it comes to cave diving etiquette, people have a lot to complain about. Pages upon pages of shaming and bashing exist on the diving forums, and there are entire Facebook groups dedicated to complaining about how terrible everyone is at this recreational activity. I personally don’t feel that is a productive use of anyone’s energy and it is not what this article is intended to do. In cave diving, there are a lot of different ways to do just about everything. Put 10 instructors from around the world in a room and ask them how to install a primary reel and you’ll get 11 answers. And each response is usually completely valid based on that instructor’s experience, preferences, and the specific environment they dive in.
So why all the hostility? Why can’t we all just get along?
The purpose of this article is to outline a few basic “rules of the road” and provide a few suggestions for how to interact within the community in a positive light. While some rules of cave diving etiquette are typically common courtesy, they often stem from matters of safety. The distinctions will be highlighted in this article, and it should be noted that safety of ALL teams in the water is always the primary concern. We will not be getting into the specifics of each area of concern as much of this is covered in your cave training. We will simply highlight the key points regarding safety and etiquette.
The Primary Line
So, let’s get right into it with one of the most commonly griped about issues, the primary line. On a nearly daily basis, I witness divers and instructors ranting and raving about how lines are laid into the cave. For me, the frustrating part is not how the lines are laid, it’s the response from fellow divers.
For safety:
- Your team must be able to identify and follow the primary line sharing gas in zero visibility
- Your line must not interfere with another team’s ability to follow their line while sharing gas in zero visibility. This can be achieved by running your line away from another team’s, low to the ground, by making secure tie-offs and placements, and if crossing another team’s line is unavoidable, make sure you cross underneath it.
For courtesy of other divers:
- Pick a side and stick to it. If you start on the right-hand side of the cave, keep your line on that side until it is absolutely necessary to cross to tie into the permanent guideline.
- Keep it low, keep it neat. If your line is slack and floating mid water column, it can be very challenging for another team to run their line cleanly.
- Don’t tie in at the very start of the permanent line. Instead, proceed into the cave another 10m/33ft to 16m/50ft before tying in, as long as you do not need to cross anyone else’s line to do so. This will give other teams a bit of breathing room to tie in their own lines without needing to cross yours. An additional advantage to this is, in the event of a loss of visibility, the first reel you come across will more likely be yours, making it easier to verify.
- If there are too many primary lines installed in the cave to run your own without creating a hazard, you have a few options. Number one, wait for a team to exit and clear a path for your line. You may have to wait on the surface for a bit, but it’s far better than the alternatives of not having your own continuous guideline or creating a hazardous situation for another team. The second option would be to speak with other teams at the site to see if you can “share” a primary. If the second option is chosen, make sure to be very clear about how the primary will be marked to indicate whether there is a team in the cave or if it is clear to pull the reel.
“Right of Way”
The next topic most commonly complained about is “right of way”. Simply put, the exiting team always has the right of way. Every cave diver knows that very well. However, there are occasionally instances where the rule is not applied and people get upset. It is important to note that it is rarely an issue of malicious intent, but usually a misunderstanding or lack of awareness from the entering team, although lack of awareness should never be used as an “excuse” for improper procedures in cave diving.
For safety:
- The team entering the cave is having a fine day. If they were not, they would be turning around and exiting. However, the exiting team may have had some sort of failure on their dive and could be stressed and in a hurry.
- The entering team should always yield to the exiting team by moving off the line and shielding their lights, allowing the exiting team to pass without restriction.
- Any time the entering team is nearing a restriction or narrow passage, they should do their due diligence to check to see if there is an exiting team already in the passage. If so, they should hold on the exiting side of the restricted area and off the line, waiting for the exiting team to clear the section before proceeding.
For courtesy of other divers:
- It is common for exiting rebreather divers, or experienced divers who are not in a rush to get out of the cave, to clearly indicate that they are OK yielding to an oncoming team. In this case, they are not in distress and know they have sufficient gas to exit and are being kind to allow the entering team to proceed to enjoy their dive without waiting in line to enter. While this happens often, it can create confusion if the exiting team is not clear on their intentions.
Jumps
Well, an entire book could be written on the various methods of conducting a jump from one line to another. However, the same rules for installing a primary line apply:
For safety:
- Your team must be able to identify and follow the primary line sharing gas in zero visibility
- Your line must not interfere with another team’s ability to follow their line while sharing gas in zero visibility. This can be achieved by running your line away from another team’s, low to the ground, by making secure tie-offs and placements, and if crossing another team’s line is unavoidable, make sure you cross underneath it.
- The one addition is that you must be able to verify YOUR team’s direction of exit where the jump line meets the permanent line.
For courtesy of other divers:
- If there are too many spools installed on the jump to install yours without interfering with another team, you should re-evaluate your plan and choose another passage to explore.
Entering and Exiting the Water
When entering or exiting the water at a popular dive site, it is important to be conscious of how your actions may affect other teams.
For safety:
- Keep the stairs/exit clear. If there is an emergency, any stage/decompression/sidemount cylinders stacked up in the way will provide an additional hazard for the rescuers.
For courtesy of other divers:
- Enter the water and clear the entrance/exit so other divers can get in and out. Do not crowd the area while donning sidemount/deco/stage/bailout cylinders. Grab your gear and move away so other can enter or exit as needed.
These are just several of the many ways we can work together as a community to make this sport more enjoyable for all and reduce some of the friction seen and heard so often. If you are the victim of a discourteous diver, find a positive and productive method of educating them about their mistake and how it affected you.
To find out more about International Training, visit www.tdisdi.com.
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
Overnight, the wind picked up, making the planned morning dive a bit bumpy on the Zodiacs to the drop point on Thomas Reef. There, we would dive along the reef before descending through the canyon and then passing under the arch before ascending the wall with a gentle drift. The site provided great encounters with more pelagic species, including shoals of large barracuda, tuna, and bigeye trevally.
Once back on the boat, it was time to get everything tied down again as we would head back south. This time, with the wind behind us, heading to Ras Mohammed to dive Jackfish Alley for another great gentle drift wall dive before then heading up the coast towards the Gulf of Suez to moor up at the wreck of the Thistlegorm. This being the highlight wreck dive of the trip and for many onboard, including myself, it was the first time diving this iconic wreck. I had heard so much about the wreck from friends, and globally, this is a must on any diver’s list. Fortunately for us, there was only one other boat at the site, which was a rarity. A great briefing was delivered by Ahmed, who provided a detailed background about the wreck’s history along with all the required safety information as the currents and visibility at the site can be variable.
Kitting up, there was a lot of excitement on deck before entering the water and heading down the shoreline. Descending to the wreck, there was a light northerly current which reduced the visibility, making it feel more like the conditions that can be found off the Welsh coast. At 10m from the bottom, the outline of the wreck appeared as we reached the area of the wreck which had been bombed, as our mooring line was attached to part of the propeller shaft. Arriving on deck, instantly everywhere you looked there were many of the supplies which the ship was carrying, including Bren Carrier tanks and projectiles that instantly stood out.
We headed around the exterior, taking a look at the large propeller and guns mounted on deck before entering the wreck on the port side to take a look in the holds. It was incredible to see all the trucks, Norton 16H, and BSA motorcycles still perfectly stacked within, providing a real snapshot in time.
Overall, we had four dives on the Thistlegorm, where for all of the dives we were the only group in the water, and at times, there were just three of us on the whole wreck, which made it even more special, especially knowing that most days the wreck has hundreds of divers. Along with the history of the wreck, there was plenty of marine life on the wreck and around, from big green turtles to batfish, along with shoals of mackerel being hunted by trevally. Some unforgettable dives.
The final leg of the trip saw us cross back over the Suez Canal to the Gobal Islands where we planned to stay the night and do three dives at the Dolphin House for the potential of sharing the dive with dolphins. The site, which included a channel that was teeming with reef fish, especially large numbers of goatfish that swam in large shoals along the edge of the reef. These were nice relaxing dives to end the week. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t show up, which was okay as like all marine life they are difficult to predict and you can’t guarantee what’s going to be seen. With the last dive complete, we headed back to port for the final night where it was time to clean all the kit and pack before the departure flight the next day.
The whole week from start to finish on Ghazala Explorer was amazing; the boat had all the facilities you need for a comfortable week aboard. The crew were always there to help throughout the day and the chefs providing top quality food which was required after every dive. The itinerary providing some of the best diving with a nice mixture of wreck and reef dives. I would recommend the trip to anyone, whether it’s your first Red Sea liveaboard in the Red Sea or you’re revisiting. Hopefully, it’s not too long before I head back to explore more of the Red Sea onboard Ghazala Explorer.
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
The second day’s diving was a day full of wreck diving at Abu Nuhas, which included the Chrisoula K, Carnatic, and Ghiannis D. The first dive of the day was onto the Chrisoula K, also known as the wreck of tiles. The 98m vessel remains largely intact where she was loaded with tiles which can be seen throughout the hold. The stern sits at 26m and the bow just below the surface. One of the highlights of the wreck is heading inside and seeing the workroom where the machinery used for cutting the tiles are perfectly intact. The bow provided some relaxing scenery as the bright sunlight highlighted the colours of the soft coral reef and the many reef fish.
Following breakfast, we then headed to the next wreck, which was the Carnatic. The Carnatic is an 89.9m sail steamer vessel that was built in Britain back in 1862. She ran aground on the reef back in 1869 and remains at 27m. At the time, she was carrying a range of items, including 40,000 sterling in gold. An impressive wreck where much of the superstructure remains, and the two large masts lay on the seafloor. The wooden ribs of the hull provide structures for lots of soft corals, and into the stern section, the light beams through, bouncing off the large shoals of glass fish that can be found using the structure as shelter from the larger predators that are found outside of the wreck.
The final wreck at Abu Nuhas was the Ghiannis D, originally called ‘Shoyo Maru,’ which was 99.5m long and built in Japan back in 1969 before becoming a Greek-registered cargo ship in 1980. The ship then ran aground on the reef on April 19th, 1983, and now sits at the bottom at a depth of 27m. Heading down the line, the stern of the ship remains in good condition compared to the rest of the hull. The highlight of the wreck, though, is heading into the stern section and down the flights of stairs to enter the engine room, which remains in good condition and is definitely worth exploring. After exploring the interior section of the ship, we then headed over to see the rest of the superstructure, where it’s particularly interesting to see the large table corals that have grown at the bow relatively quickly considering the date the ship sank. After surfacing and enjoying some afternoon snacks, we made sure everything was strapped down and secured as we would be heading north and crossing the Gulf of Suez, where the winds were still creating plenty of chop.
The next morning, it was a short hop to Ras Mohammed Nature Reserve for the next couple of days of diving. The 6am wake-up call came along with the briefing for the first site we would be diving, which was Shark & Yolanda. The low current conditions allowed us to start the dive at Anemone City, where we would drift along the steep, coral-filled wall. These dives involved drifts, as mooring in Ras Mohammed wasn’t allowed to protect the reefs. As a dive site, Shark & Yolanda is well-known and historically had a lot of sharks, but unfortunately not so many in recent years, especially not so early in the season. However, there was always a chance when looking out into the blue.
The gentle drift took us along the steep walls of the site, with plenty of anemone fish to be seen and a huge variety of corals. It wasn’t long into the dive before we were accompanied by a hawksbill turtle, who drifted with us between the two atolls before parting ways. Between the two reefs, the shallow patch with parts of coral heads surrounded by sand provided the chance to see a few blue-spotted stingrays that were mainly resting underneath the corals and are always a pleasure to see. With this being the morning dive, the early sunlight lit up the walls, providing tranquil moments. Looking out into the blue, there was very little to be seen, but a small shoal of batfish shimmering underneath the sunlight was a moment to capture as we watched them swim by as they watched us.
Towards the end of the dive, we stopped at the wreck of the Jolanda where the seafloor was scattered with toilets from the containers it was carrying. This provided a unique site to make a safety stop, which was also accompanied by a large barracuda slowly swimming by, along with a hawksbill turtle calmly swimming over the reef as the sun rays danced in the distance.
For the next dive, we headed north to the Strait of Tiran to explore the reefs situated between Tiran Island and Sharm El Sheik, which were named after the British divers who had found them. We started on Jackson before heading to Gordons Reef, where we also did the night dive. All the atolls at these sites provided stunning, bustling coral reefs close to the surface and steep walls to swim along, which always provided the opportunity to keep an eye out for some of the larger species that can be seen in the blue. Midwater around Jackson Reef was filled with red-toothed triggerfish and shoals of banner fish, which at times were so dense that you couldn’t see into the blue. Moments went by peacefully as we enjoyed the slow drift above the reef, watching these shoals swim around under the mid-afternoon sun.
The night dive at Gordon’s Reef was mainly among the stacks of corals surrounded by sand, which was great to explore under the darkness. After some time circling the corals, we came across what we were really hoping to find, and that was an octopus hunting on the reef. We spent the majority of the dive just watching it crawl among the reef, blending into its changing surroundings through changes in colour and skin texture. It’s always so fascinating and captivating to watch these incredibly intelligent animals, in awe of their ability to carry out these physical changes to perfectly blend into the reef. Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the boat to enjoy a well-deserved tasty dinner prepared by the talented chefs onboard.
Check in for the 3rd and final part of this series from Jake tomorrow!
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
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