Lesley's GUE Cave 1

Here I sit in my office, body aches allover and I'm propping my eyelids up with two snorkels.

I just got to bed early this morning after two consecutive weekends of the Cave 1 class....

Since we have so much discussion about this stuff I thought you might be interested in sharing my experiences... (plus I can't wait to tell everyone how much fun I had)...

Seth (one of my fellow class mates) has already written a great report with lots of details so I'll include the link to his website:

Return to Seth's Summary

It's an excellent report, much more coherent than mine and is very informative for anyone who is thinking of taking this class.

From left to right: Seth, Todd, Lesley, and Tyler (el jefe).

Here's an over view, Seth's report gives much more detail on the actual course material.. (Reccommended reading)

Day 1. I arrived in High springs a full 40 minutes early (really nervous). I snuck into the store kind of hoping nobody would notice me but darnit, they did. I met up with my two other classmates Seth and Todd from Talahassee. Then Tyler showed up and at once I realized that this was going to be a fun class. I had been really nervous about diving under the eagle eye of someone who's reputation greatly precedes them, but he was a great instructor, easy to understand and when you made a mistake (and we all did lots of those) his critique didn't make me feel useless or inadequate it just made me understand what to correct and how to do it, and motivated me to improve rather than just feel bad.

I was kind of expecing lots of classroom stuff and then the swim tests on the first day but the weather wasn't cooperating so we never did get in the water until Day 2.

The morning was full of lectures about the history of cave diving and the agencies involved, then we talked about accident analysis and reasons for the cave diving deaths and the ways to avoid becoming a statistic.

After lunch we went out back and everyone had their gear checked. For the most part we were in good shape. I had to change bungies to bicycle inner tube, Replace my sea worthy scissors with a cave worthy little knife, change some clips, and the position of the buckle on my harness. Everything else was just fine.

Then more lectures, regarding hand signals and communications and different types of kicks.

Day 2. We met up, filled tanks and then buzzed off to Ginnie springs.

First we did the swim tests. I had spent many evenings practising the swims and the breath hold in the pool so that I knew I could do it but I was still nervous about it. There was no need, everyone passed the tests.

After this we did the dry runs around the trees we learned how to make the various tie offs and then practised following the line with our eyes closed. This was so funny, we must have looked like 3 blind men all shuffling along in a row trying to understand the touch communication signals we had been taught. Todd went in front, me in the middle and Seth in the back. During this time we also switched places and learned the different team roles. In the meantime we were followed around the line by gangs of snickering children who were no doubt having a blast watching us making fools of ourselves. Maybe they learned something too, I hope so.

I had previously asked Tyler about using my drysuit, at this point I even hated the sight of it, and I knew that my trim and buoyancy would be allover the place if I used it. Mercilessly Tyler said "Nope. you need to use it". So then off we went into Ginnie cavern to practise our newly learned skills. First time in Tyler had the reel, directing us to pay attention to where he was placing it and the types of tie offs he was using. He then directed us to park on a big flat rock inside and demonstrated the different kicks. We all swam around and around the cavern practising the kicks too.

The second dive we just did a cavern dive on our own with Tyler watching. Seth ran the reel I was second and Todd behind.

The cavern was so full of open water divers that it was really hard for Seth to avoid them and eventually when he made it down to the grate he was struggling with the current and the reel, and simply couldn't avoid sweeping two of them up in the line. I got ready to help them out of the line but they seemed to disentangle themselves pretty well and my assistance was not needed. Then we turned the dive and exited.

The third dive was by far the most fun. Tyler laid 400ft of the most convoluted line you ever saw as if a giant spider had spun a web allover the open water area (I also noted that he included some big depth changes to test our buoyancy control too). He then directed us to follow the line by feel with our eyes closed as we had learned in class. Then we got to take our masks off and do the same thing again. This was tremendous fun. We then did it with eyes closed sharing air, and this was when I ran into trouble funny how you always remember what you mess up on isn't it). My buoyancy control was not great (drysuit), and somehow I got air in the feet and got a massive leg cramp, and spent about 5 minutes getting control and hanging onto the line like a helium balloon, trying not to lose my grip on it. By the time I got back under control I was so disoriented that I managed to switch hands and go back the wrong way. Both Seth and I repeated this and everything went fine on the second run. We then had to swim up and down the run sharing air with our masks off. after this Tyler made us ditch our gear and put it back on at the surface. This was proof that my harness was way too tight, so homework for the week was to lengthen the shoulder straps one inch each.

Day 3 For Day 3 we did our very first cave dive, it was at Little River. This was very interesting because there were many changes in depth, and also the current to deal with. By now what happened on which dive is becoming a blur but I do remember my light going out several times, and at one point just as I unclipped the reel from the main line on the way out, my manifold suddenly appeared to blow up and gush loud bubbles of air!!! I stopped and felt behind. I thought it was the right post, so I started to shut it down but it seemed to be taking too long so I signaled Seth to help at which point I got it shut off and switched regs to my backup, The bubbles stopped. Then after my heart rate slowed to a mere 200 per minute I proceeded out of the cave with the reel. On the de- brief I learned that I should have signalled Seth first before starting to shut down to get help on the way, but that I had found the right part of the manifold and shut it off. Seth told me that my right post had been gushing air at the reg and all the way back to the car I was furious that I had broken my new reg. I examined everything and finally realized that it had been a drill and there was nothing at all wrong with my gear, Crikey!!! (I must be the most gullible person on the planet). It's a heck of a way to make sure you are awake.

Day 4 Today we all showed marked improvement on trim and buoyancy of course the constant depth and lack of flow helped alot. We dived at Peacock, the first dive was the Pothole tunnel. The big piles of silt on the floor also helped me to remember to keep my T&B under control, just imagining what would happen if I kicked it up was enough to scare you into perfection.

On this dive we did the lost buddy search where we placed an arrow on the line, then tied off our spools and did a search for our lost buddy. We all did this at the same time, it must have looked pretty funny to an outsider.

We then dived the peanut tunnel, which was pretty small by comparison, but alot of fun. On the way Seth suddenly ran out of air, and we had to share, then mysteriously our lights went out and we all had to exit the cave in the dark using the touch contact signals. Given that I knew this was a drill I found it a great deal of fun and a challenge, but I'm pretty sure that I would be pretty scared if it ever happened for real. However the simulation was quite effective.

Then we went to the sandwich shop and got subs for lunch and Tyler went over alot of the geological information. Plus a lecture on dissimilar tanks for figuring turn pressures. Then we were given the exam.

Day 5. The last Day. I knew today was the day we would dive devils ear, and I had heard so many stories about the current that I was pretty stressed out and sat on my hands when Tyler asked for volunteers to run the reel. I remembered back to when I had been in the open water part in another lifetime and my mask blew off, I simply couldn't imagine actually going right into the cave. Tyler explained exactly how to enter, and I asked him to go over it at least twice before I was happy that I knew what to do. Get really negative and go in on the bottom of the crack he said. He also reminded us not to do the watermelon seed exit, which involved being popped out of the entrance like a watermelon pip, blown up into the river and ending up feet up with all our gear destroyed =:-0.

Todd took the reel, I was second and Seth first, to my surprise Todd zoomed off and went down the top of the entrance, which was probably the most difficult part of the whole place and because he was my buddy I followed him. We made it into the cave and we were all so negative I felt as if I was groveling on the floor which in fact we were. Now I know what it would be like to have my wing explode and have no buoyancy. We made the secondary tie off, moved accross to the main line and tied off there adjusting our buoyancy back to normal and getting situated. Our main error on this dive was that we didn't go along the top of the cave but swam in the middle where the current was the strongest. We mostly corrected this on Dive 2 in the same place. On dive 2 I began to enjoy myself, and even airplaned a little in the current on the way back. I must have been having too much fun becasue suddenly to my surprise Seth appeared from behind me with an out of air signal. Apparently it had taken way too long for me to notice this, I was duly admonished on the debrief.

By this time most of the mysterious happenings on the dives were points that Tyler felt we were still making errors on so he helped them along. For example, if we swam too close to the line he would place it on the manifold, or if we had too much spool slack he would sneak up and unwind lots more to make the point, (or if we looked as if we weren't paying enough attention he made someone run out of air =:-o.. Hmm). It was a really excellent way of making us realize what was going on.

By the way, the current was pretty bad but it was in no way as bad as I had been expecting provided you paid attention to it carefully, like not presenting the flat of your fins to the current on the way out etc:. I think my current calibration is off ever since the last dive we did on the Doc Demilly.

Dive 3 was my turn to run the reel. We went to Devils Eye for this one. My reel running experience has been that I don't seem to have any problem with handling the reel, but finding the right tie off and the way into the cave and the proper line etiquette, seems to be much more difficult. I had a hard time finding the man made stake to tie off to at little river also. The dive plan was that I would lead with the reel, and then when we reached the restriction Tyler would go in front so that we could follow his exact path so we could make it through (even though it was quite big, remember we are beginners).

When I reached the restiction, I waited and nothing happened so I waited agin still nothing so eventually I continued on. I had spent so much time looking for tie offs and waiting that I reached turn pressure before we got very far, so I signalled to exit and ran the reel back out. Back on the surface I learned that my mistake had been that I was not assertive enough and should have signaled Tyler to go in front. Apparently I was already so far in the restriction that he couldn't pass me so he just waited for me to turn back and signal. I was told and, realized that I needed to be more assertive in my efforts to follow the dive plan.

Dive 4 was again in Devils Eye. This time Tyler instructed us to close our eyes, he led us into the cavern and parked us on a rock. We were supposed to keep our eyes closed and pretend we were lost in zero vis. We had to get our our safety spools, tie off (so that we wouldn't get even more lost) and then search for the line. I had the hardest time making my tie off stay on the rock and effectively put my whole arms around it and found a new place. This time the tie off stayed, first I tried feeling my way up the side of the cavern and accross the roof, but that didn't work, so I reeled in the spool and then went accross the floor of the cavern on the side which I knew was away from the wall and Yippee.. I found the line, I tied off on it and then Tyler tapped me so that I knew I could open my eyes again. It was a very fun drill, but it does make you realize that it's not so easy doing things in the dark. Poor seth seemed to be having alot of trouble with his manifold on the way out too (lots of bubbles). We then returned to the EE store and went over the exam, and then finally we finished up.

Even though I seem to remember my mistakes very vividly I learned from them and we must have done some things right because everyone passed. We all agreed that it had been an excellent class. I had a complete blast, the tuition was excellent, delivered clearly (and patiently) and we had fun at the same time, what could be better.

I stayed up there for Monday and dived twice with Ken. Thanks Ken for doing the baby cave dives with me. We dived Peacock again, both tunnels and had alot of fun. I got to see my first little tiny white crawfish.

I bailed out at about 4:45 in the afternoon and finally made it back to Miami late last night... ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Lobster Lady