Tips on diving high flow cave systems ?

[ARY]

- Definitely do not try to outfin the flow, if you cannot feel relaxed or feel a struggle it indicates you have to change something in the tactic.
- Grab the rock and take a brake
- Have fun with flow (somehow I feel it makes it easier)
- I prefer wetsuit for real highflow- makes less drag
- put stages on your butt (go ahead and criticize me I don`t care)
- You may try to inflate full and go all the way to the ceiling and walk or pull-glide it
- In vertical go down pit - rock climb it with hands
- In wide open high flow (Manatee Spring comes to memory) you can deflate completely and scoop the sand going upwind with your fingers like a turtle
- Scooter may help sometimes especially carrying payload
- And heck in the real high flow we had to set a climbing rope once

[PfcAJ]

Hey guys I'm a intro diver with about 20 dives in peacock, orange grove, ginnie, jackson and little river. When diving high flow cave systems i find that i am having a harder time getting a full breath and feel that it is causing my breathing rate to go up. My breathing rate is excellent in low flow caves such as peacock and i with my buddy regularly dive close to the peanut restriction on 1/6's. Any advice on how to control breathing in high flow caves would be greatly appreciated before my upcoming trip this week !

Slow down, accept that you'll make forward progress at a slower rate than in a low flow cave. Plan your next move, keep your head up and look at where you're going more so than where you are. This will keep you in the lower flow areas since you're moving with greater intent.

In the spots where you don't have anything to pull and glide on, use a flutter kick. It'll keep you in constant steady motion instead of slowing down (sometimes significantly) when on the recovery stroke of the frog kick. You're looking for efficiency.

Wetsuit or drysuit? Sometimes not enough gas in your drysuit can make breathing harder than it needs to be.

Also... slow down!

[johnj]

Mark Messersmith published a video some time ago titled "How to Dive a High Flow Cave". Not sure if it's still available, but I remember watching it and picked up a couple of good tips.

Hey guys I'm a intro diver with about 20 dives in peacock, orange grove, ginnie, jackson and little river. When diving high flow cave systems i find that i am having a harder time getting a full breath and feel that it is causing my breathing rate to go up. My breathing rate is excellent in low flow caves such as peacock and i with my buddy regularly dive close to the peanut restriction on 1/6's. Any advice on how to control breathing in high flow caves would be greatly appreciated before my upcoming trip this week !

[cavekrazi]

Don't lead. Follow a fat guy!

[cmint]

The slower you go, the farther you'll get.


and..


If you get to the lips and you don't have to swim DOWN to get to them you did it all wrong.

[rddvet]

- In wide open high flow (Manatee Spring comes to memory) you can deflate completely and scoop the sand going upwind with your fingers like a turtle

Do what now?

I hope you're not actually saying to grab the non-rock bottom (like a turtle) to pull and glide?

[cmint]

Do what now?

I hope you're not actually saying to grab the non-rock bottom (like a turtle) to pull and glide?

Turn your scooter sideways, jam it into the mud and use it like a sit-on john deere tiller.


That's what it appears some of y'all have done in the Hillier Tunnel, anyways.


:P

[rddvet]

Turn your scooter sideways, jam it into the mud and use it like a sit-on john deere tiller.


That's what it appears some of y'all have done in the Hillier Tunnel, anyways.


:P

We just had a talk about that the other day. If it pinches down and it's hard to scooter through, then turn it off and push it ahead.

[ARY]

Do what now?

I hope you're not actually saying to grab the non-rock bottom (like a turtle) to pull and glide?

Sure why not? Just don`t touch obvious mud mounds and clay banks. High flow moves sand and even gravel all the time, it also moves debris entering systems from rivers and sinkholes.
In fact in river caves I would rather crawl like a turtle than grab fragile outcroppings breaking mesh limerock or goethite.

[rddvet]

Sure why not? Just don`t touch obvious mud mounds and clay banks. High flow moves sand and even gravel all the time, it also moves debris entering systems from rivers and sinkholes.
In fact in river caves I would rather crawl like a turtle than grab fragile outcroppings breaking mesh limerock or goethite.

You did see that the op is an intro diver?

And on top of that your example cave was manatee.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk