Post by SeaRat on Jun 7, 2015 20:49:13 GMT -8
For the last several years, I've been using a dive float to indicate where I'm at, as there are a lot of other users of our Clackamas River. But of late, it's become a real pain. It is an entanglement hazard, as the line needs constant handling to avoid equipment tangles. I had rationalized that at my age (69) I should give some indication of where I am in the water in case there is a medical emergency too. But I'm in good health, and without risk signs. Here is a photo of my dive float.
I have a number of GoPro videos now that show entanglements, some that I didn't even know about. So I've been re-evaluating whether to use a dive float or not. The other limitation is that the current lifeguards can only go underwater about ten feet due to the PFDs they are required to wear. I don't have much confidence in their ability to rescue a diver in current more than a few feet underwater, as a few years ago a scout canoeing was lost when he entangled on the bottom, and the lifeguards could not get down in current to free him something like fifteen feet below the surface. They tried as I remember three times. So this whole idea of the float has kept me wondering whether to dump it or not.
Well, I dived both yesterday and today in the Clackamas River, and today's dive was definitive concerning the float. I had found the submerged log on the other side of the river above High Rocks and was holding onto it when the float caught in the current, and pulled heavily against my body harness (built into my Para-Sea BC), enough that I let go of the log and went downstream. It seemed a bit better, but another ten minutes of diving indicated to me something was wrong with the float. I surfaced beside it to find it completely deflated and the flag in the water. I thought maybe an inflator button had come loose, so I took off the line, pulled the float in and stuffed the line inside it, then left in on shore between two sunbathing beauties (teens on towels). Kinda wish I had the GoPro on for that, but it wasn't.
I continued the dive sans float, and found it really quite nice to be independent of that blasted line. I continued downstream, and got some pretty good video of small fish, my red-sided shiners, some sculpins, and a very large crawdad.
Finally, I exited, went to the car and doffed gear, then went down to the river to check in with the lifeguards, and recover my float. I told the lifeguards about the fish I was videoing, and about the float. It was still on the rock, and the sunbathing beauty was still there too. I went over to her and asked her to hand up the float if she would (I was about ten feet above her on a large rock), and she did. It was then that I could examine it, and there was a huge, gaping rip in the side of my float, near where the diver's flag support area was. So I don't have to worry about whether to use the float or not, as it is now officially junk.
That's three floats I've managed to destroy over the years, one an inner tube float, then a diver-down float/flag combination (the current pulled the styrofoam right up over the float, and off, sinking my flag to the bottom), and this one. On my way back up to the car, I met one of the lifeguards and told him about my float, and that I only used it because of them. He said not to worry about them, that they could follow my bubbles easily and it wasn't a problem diving without a float. So guess what? I've been liberated from myself! It felt good sans float on this dive.
John
PS--What do you think of the Heinke mouthpiece that Vintage Frank gave me that I am using in the above photo?
I have a number of GoPro videos now that show entanglements, some that I didn't even know about. So I've been re-evaluating whether to use a dive float or not. The other limitation is that the current lifeguards can only go underwater about ten feet due to the PFDs they are required to wear. I don't have much confidence in their ability to rescue a diver in current more than a few feet underwater, as a few years ago a scout canoeing was lost when he entangled on the bottom, and the lifeguards could not get down in current to free him something like fifteen feet below the surface. They tried as I remember three times. So this whole idea of the float has kept me wondering whether to dump it or not.
Well, I dived both yesterday and today in the Clackamas River, and today's dive was definitive concerning the float. I had found the submerged log on the other side of the river above High Rocks and was holding onto it when the float caught in the current, and pulled heavily against my body harness (built into my Para-Sea BC), enough that I let go of the log and went downstream. It seemed a bit better, but another ten minutes of diving indicated to me something was wrong with the float. I surfaced beside it to find it completely deflated and the flag in the water. I thought maybe an inflator button had come loose, so I took off the line, pulled the float in and stuffed the line inside it, then left in on shore between two sunbathing beauties (teens on towels). Kinda wish I had the GoPro on for that, but it wasn't.
I continued the dive sans float, and found it really quite nice to be independent of that blasted line. I continued downstream, and got some pretty good video of small fish, my red-sided shiners, some sculpins, and a very large crawdad.
Finally, I exited, went to the car and doffed gear, then went down to the river to check in with the lifeguards, and recover my float. I told the lifeguards about the fish I was videoing, and about the float. It was still on the rock, and the sunbathing beauty was still there too. I went over to her and asked her to hand up the float if she would (I was about ten feet above her on a large rock), and she did. It was then that I could examine it, and there was a huge, gaping rip in the side of my float, near where the diver's flag support area was. So I don't have to worry about whether to use the float or not, as it is now officially junk.
That's three floats I've managed to destroy over the years, one an inner tube float, then a diver-down float/flag combination (the current pulled the styrofoam right up over the float, and off, sinking my flag to the bottom), and this one. On my way back up to the car, I met one of the lifeguards and told him about my float, and that I only used it because of them. He said not to worry about them, that they could follow my bubbles easily and it wasn't a problem diving without a float. So guess what? I've been liberated from myself! It felt good sans float on this dive.
John
PS--What do you think of the Heinke mouthpiece that Vintage Frank gave me that I am using in the above photo?
that looks more like a main sail then a dive float, no wonder you now feel free. You could always use a early rife torpedo float n flag... their over 20 years old now, so almost vintage. I'll post a image Mon.
