First Dive Trip Without Instructor - Need to Rent Gear & Help Planning

[bamafan]

If you are diving single tank backmount you will have better luck at Vortex or one of the open water shops in Panama City Beach or Destin. I would think Vortex can hook you up. Edd or Rob up in Marianna will mostly have doubles setup.

Vortex and Morrison are your best cavern dives. The river backs up over the opening to Morrison and you would have almost no natural light. There are a few other small caverns closer to Destin but they require a boat. You could rent a canoe and go to Cypress Springs as it is a nice open water / small cavern dive but it might be blown out like Morrison. The canoe / kayak rental places around Vernon could tell you that.

Vortex has a small dam in the spring run that helps keep the tannic water out. There is Devil's Hole on the Econfina but it is a sinkhole with a sidemount cave off of it. Honestly Vortex or Jackson Blue will be your best options

[CavernFrog]

I plan to stop by Cave Adventurers on Friday to pick up some of the gear, then dive Vortex on Sunday and Jackson Blue on Monday. My dive buddy has 40 years of experience diving Florida caves. I would enjoy meeting and diving with folks from this board.

One thing I am not sure of is if CA will have the single-tank back-mount gear that me and my buddy need to rent. If they don't, where should I go instead? I will be based in Destin for the weekend and driving back to Atlanta on Monday, stopping by Jackson Blue.

[jj1987]

A friend and I recently got our Cavern Diver certifications. We plan to go diving at Morrison Springs this weekend. We need to rent gear/air/nitrox and I want to understand the layout of the cavern before going so that I can plan our dive(s) to reduce the chances of bends/narcosis. I was considering using some dive planning software if it exists, or just referring to an online dive table, but then I realized I don't really understand how to read the various cavern maps of Morrison springs I have found online.

I know that we plan to do 2-3 dives, probably 45 minutes max each on Sunday and Monday.

Halp!

Are you trolling?

If not, here are some tips you'll find helpful when planning your cavern dives and not knowing all the information about the dive site.
- Run a line and you can always find your way back, even if you don't know the layout
- If you invest in a depth gauge, set it to FT and ensure the numbers stay less than 100, you'll avoid narcosis
- If you read your tables and make sure your average depth and bottom time are below the limits, you'll stand a good chance of not getting bent
- vPlanner, Decoplanner, etc exist for dive planning software, but those are for decompression dives and mostly overkill for a cavern

[bamafan]

For single tank ow gear just go to an open water shop. There are a few in Destin and Panama City Beach. Did you check with Vortex? I would guess they rent gear but I am not sure. You should call a few shops but I would highly suggest you leave out the cavern diving part. Just say you are wanting to do some shore diving. If they ask where just say St Andrew's State Park. If you are wanting to rent some ow gear up in the Marianna area you might try Rob @ Chipola Divers if Edd can't help you. Rob might have something laying around. You could also sling a single al 80 sidemount as both Rob and Edd have demo sidemount harnesses.

[FW]

For single tank ow gear just go to an open water shop. There are a few in Destin and Panama City Beach. Did you check with Vortex? I would guess they rent gear but I am not sure. You should call a few shops but I would highly suggest you leave out the cavern diving part. Just say you are wanting to do some shore diving. If they ask where just say St Andrew's State Park. If you are wanting to rent some ow gear up in the Marianna area you might try Rob @ Chipola Divers if Edd can't help you. Rob might have something laying around. You could also sling a single al 80 sidemount as both Rob and Edd have demo sidemount harnesses.

Cave adventurers, and probably Rob, have single 80s. Not sure if they have backplates for them. When I was an open water diver, I had my own backplate with camband so I could use single 80s that had no backplate.

[rddvet]

Whats the over/under this guy leaves marianna with a brand new sms75, an uwld light, a set of deep6 regs, two sets of steel 85s, and a really strong interest in a sm rebreather?


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[MichelleC]

Whats the over/under this guy leaves marianna with a brand new sms75, an uwld light, a set of deep6 regs, two sets of steel 85s, and a really strong interest in a sm rebreather?

AND signed up for an intro to cave class hopefully!

CavernFrog: will try to get out there to meet you and go for a cavern dive if scheduling works out.

[Troglodyver]

Congrats on completing Cavern. Kudos on planning your first trip. You'll love i! Besides, this is where you actually learn to cavern dive.

If Morrison/Vortex are blown out, you can enjoy a couple of days of excellent long dives within Cavern limits at Jackson Blue. The cavern area is HUGE. You can experience several very different cavern dives in there without trying very hard.

If you're doing 3 dives a day, first dive, run your line around the right side of the cavern, near the wall, until you hit your 130 linear foot mark. Next dive, run the line around the left side. Next dive, split the difference and run it up the middle. The experience is different -- almost seems like a different cavern -- depending on where you are. Go s-l-o-w and sightsee. Look up at the ceiling, too; tons of fossils up there. Remember: most of the cavern is not along your line; it's to either side and above. Sightsee and savor the cave.

When you hit your 130 ft linear penetration, stop there, shine your light further into the cave and consider: you can explore that next area -- and beyond -- once you complete Intro. For now, spend the time sharpening your cavern skills and learning the first part of the cave. It'll make your subsequent dives more fun, and will pay off for you in coming years.

- Sid

P.S., where ever you dive, please post a dive report and share your experience with the rest of us.

[CavernFrog]

Thank you for the great feedback folks.

[CavernFrog]

BTW, in my OP I meant oxygen toxicity, not narcosis. Although I'd like to avoid narcosis too! I have PADI basic training in these areas but I plan to get additional training, maybe GUE or TDI, and keep studying the materials to absorb the knowledge more deeply. I love this sport and want to participate for a long time.