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Dive Logs for Vance Stevens PADI open water scuba instructor #64181 Dive 389, 390, 391 April 26-27, 2001 Khor Fakkan: Pinnacles, Martini Cove, Martini Rock

Diving with: Scuba 2000
Dive buddy: Bobbi and Rebecca Woll and Bob Campbell
Others in dive party: We had the boat to ourselves
Conditions: calm seas, balmy air, warm sun
Visibility: 4-5 meters
Wetsuit combo: O'Neil overalls, chilly at first, but comfortable thereafter
Weight:12 kg
Diving from: Scuba 2000 boat with Patrick at the helm

My 389th Logged Dive since 1991

Dive site: Pinnacles
Training conducted: Rebecca Woll OW dive #3, Bob Campbell Advanced boat dive

Data from dive computer:

Time down on dive computer: 15:56
Max depth: 11.4 meters
Time started up from chart: 00:47
Dive time from computer: 47 min.
Min Temp: 25 degrees C (comfortable)
Nitrox 21% (normal air), no deco

PSI/Bar in: 220
PSI/Bar out: 80 bar

Pressure group out, from tables: well within limits

Description of dive:

A very nice dive, and Rebecca's first in waters replete with varied wildlife. The Pinnacles is one of my favorite dive sites, and I had chosen it as an easy afternoon dive, not far from the Scuba 2000 shop in Bidiya. We saw tiny pipe fish at the first of the dive, and a few morays. Coming over a rock on the west side of the outcrops, we encountered a large sting ray resting on the sand that took off as we gathered around it. Just down from the ray, a trio of cuttlefish were dancing in the water. They too scurried off when we got too close. We went over the rocks and found a turtle with barnacles on its back and passed over it resting.

Coming down through the valleys on the north east side, we regained depth and stopped for Rebecca to clear her mask and remove her low pressure inflator and reinflate her bcd. She had more trouble with that than expected and went from 60 to 30 bar in minutes, so we ascended as soon as she finally achieved neutral buoyancy. Bob and Bobbi elected to accompany us to the surface so Bob didn't perform his 3 min. safety stop (not required given depth and dive time, but a performance requirement for the advanced boat dive; Bob was my buddy and Bobbi Rebecca's, and they hadn't understood my signals on the bottom that they could team and complete their dive - I was remiss in not having worked out such contingencies in advance). On out way back to the boat, Rebecca and I dropped down an almost verticle mooring buoy and did two emergency swimming ascents from 8 meters depth. Rebecca was able to descend and ascend with no problems whatsoever and she consumed another 10 bar in the process, emerging with 20 bar, which is what the PADI training video says you should minimally exit the water with. I thought we were well within the realm of safety on these quick descents.

We were also well within a margin of safety on nitrogen absorption, less than 12 meters for just over 45 min (funny the two descents at the end of the dive didn't show up on my dive computer).

Surface interval:overnight

My 390th Logged Dive since 1991

Dive site: Martini Cove
Training conducted: Rebecca Woll OW dive #4 for certification, Bob Campbell Advanced multilevel dive

Data from dive computer:

Time down on dive computer: 10:43
Max depth: 15.3 meters
Time started up from chart: 00:31
Dive time from computer: 30 min.
Min Temp: 24 degrees C (comfortable)
Nitrox 21% (normal air), no deco

PSI/Bar in: 220
PSI/Bar out: 110 bar

Pressure group out, from wheel: M afer multilevel

Description of dive:

We did a Martini Cove dive inadvertently (again). When I did this before, I headed west on compass to get some depth (doing a deep dive that time) and on the eastern return leg managed to lead us north of the rock and into the cove. This time I did it the other way. Trying to avoid the previous error I swept west and south keeping the rock on the right, but managed this time to get into the cove south of Martini rock.

Still it was a nice dive. We had planned it as multilevel. Bob was charged with monitoring depth and time and he kept close, accurate track. We planned 18 meters max for 20 min, ascent to 12 for the remainder of the dive, and he indicated appropriately as we made the changes. Rebecca removed her mask and replaced it with little difficulty early in the dive, and she went into a hover on a wall with lion fishes tucked amid the yellow and white coral (still on Martini Rock at that point).

She had difficulty with the hover at first. She tries to start her buoyancy exercises mid water, sinks, and then tries to push off the bottom. She did the same yesterday with the fin pivot and this caused her problems. On the hover I was able to get her on the bottom and inflated to the point where she floated off the bottom, and then she had it perfectly. After she was hovering perfectly she rose a bit and to control the ascent she dumped air from her bcd. What she should have done was breathed out real hard and descended that way (or deflated and restored air in the bcd at depth). As it was, she had the buoyancy right at one point, but dumped air from the bcd to compensate for the ascent. Being not perfectly buoyant she then expended more energy than was necessary in hand and fin movements to control depth. I explained this after the dive and am putting it here for Rebecca's benefit, and to remind me to better make these points with future students.

I don't recall what we saw on the dive other than a lot of morays. With Rebecca low on air I brought us up the contour quickly and it registered that we didn't find the soft corals I was expecting. When I saw waves breaking overhead I knew we'd come up the headland. I signalled up for all but Bobbi and Bob (buddied this time) remained below to do Bob's 3 min saftety stop. Patrick brought the boat over to collect us.

I explained to Bob later that the last few minutes of the dive had been at around 5 meters (as can be seen from the chart) and so that in effect comprised the safety stop. I had intended to bring them up and return to the rock and let them continue their dive there. Bob had 70 bar and Bobbi over a hundred. I was thinking to join them, but when Patrick brought the boat and Bob elected to get on it, Bobbi and I decided not to continue, and I had Rebecca remove and replace tank and weight belt at the surface to complete all requirements of her OW dive course.

Congratulations Rebecca!!!

Surface interval: 1 hour 26 min; snorkeled during break and saw a flounder and lots of 'tang' surgeon fish

My 391st Logged Dive since 1991

Dive site: Martini Rock proper
Training conducted: Bob Campbell Advanced underwater naturalist dive

Data from dive computer:

Time down on dive computer: 12:51
Max depth: 12.8 meters
Time started up from chart: 00:36
Dive time from computer: 37 min.
Min Temp: 25 degrees C (comfortable)
Nitrox 21% (normal air), no deco

Pressure group in: B

PSI/Bar in: 180
PSI/Bar out: 90 bar

Pressure group out, from wheel: well within limits

Description of dive:

Patrick had planned to take us to Shark Island for our second dive, but we decided to do Martini Rock instead, so after a snorkel break around Shark Island we returned to the rock and dived it proper.

I believe we had calculated 20 min at 12 meters to be F divers, and Bob had figured a time up from which we subtracted 3 min (safety stop time) to put us at M divers. I believe M to B required about 1:26 min. surface interval which was exactly what we had (coincidentally). We then calculated a second 16 meter max dive for 20 min again, with as much time as we had air left above 12 meters. With Bob on time and depth watch again, we were in excellent hands. Bob tapped me on my shoulder only a second after a glance at my computer indicated I had slipped below 16 meters. Well spotted, Bob.

This was Bob's advanced underwater naturalist dive, and we saw plenty.

Vertibrates: a turtle, 3 scorpion fish, all kinds of morays, trigger fish, colorful wrasse, schools of grunts and fusiliers, sgt. majors .. The scorpion fish were particularly interestiing. I almost put my hand on one grabbing a rock against the current. One was in a yellow and black fern coral. The triggers were the white kind, with blue ones hiding in the rocks. One was hidden near where Rebecca saw a pair of morays. It was a great, relaxing dive.

Invertibrates: urchines, crown of thorns, many kinds of starfish, clams, sea cucumbers, anenomies with clown fish

Thus we wound up a great dive weekend, successful happy divers all.