The "Current" Environment
Posted By Chris Elam on 11 September 2000
In the course of Okinawan diving, the average diver returns to the same sights over and over resulting in an unconscious reflex to take many things for granted. Some of the ideal conditions that exist for open water diving include outstanding visibility, manageable weather conditions, and calm to moderate currents. Since we had been diving very regularly for two years, what happened next was a real eye opener.
Every time we arrived at our intended dive location, the dive master would gear up and check the currents for several minutes at various depths. At times we would need to move to a new locale, and on other occasions we would dive the sight with an added "currents" briefing. I wrongfully suspected that they were just being over conservative. Nevertheless, we were told which direction the currents were moving and how fast. The instructor would also discuss the best position to be in if the currents became too strong. Again, since we had never dove strong currents, the thought had occurred to me that the dive outfit was just being melodramatic.
On our first dive I realized what the instructors already knew, a strong current could sweep me out to sea. We immediately became caught in what seemed to me to be a swift current. Admittedly, the bells and whistles in my head began to go off. But with a calm look from the instructor I realized that these were normal conditions. I began to relax and just went with the flow. With good buoyancy control we were able to drift along the long reef enjoying the view.
At the end of the dive we conducted our safety stop and then surfaced. I was certain that the boat would be missing after nearly 60 minutes in a current. That's when it became blazingly obvious why the instructor had insisted that each person carry a surface-signaling device. With device in hand ready to signal, it was to my surprise to see the boat within 20 yards of our position. When I asked the boat operator how he managed this magical feat, he simply said he knew the reefs and watched our bubbles.
With each trip into the water we became more and more aware of our environment. Dangerous marine life that we did not usually encounter at home was commonplace in the Maldives. For example, I was constantly on the look out for giant Stone Fish fearing I would brush one while photographing that perfect subject. Luckily for us, the tour operator also informed us of what marine life was common to each dive location.
We managed to go down with no problems, and captured some amazing photos. As it turned out, riding the current was actually one of the best experiences we have ever had diving. However, in the future we will never "assume" that we are prepared for all dive environments. Although we are experienced Okinawan divers, this vacation made us realize that there is still much to learn about diving.
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