Shore Diving

Newbie Joined: 29 Apr 2007 Posts: 2

We will be visiting GC May26-31 and plan on diving. Any recommendations for shore diving? My husband has issues with equalizing his ears and when we were there in January we both had issues after our first dive.

Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2007 12:49 pm Post subject:

Welcome to the forum Smile

,

Wow! Are you lucky to be making another trip to Cayman so soon after just being down there in January!

Not sure from your question if you're asking for dive sites that would be good ones to see on a shore dive or if you're asking about dive shops located at good shore dive spots or what.

Eden Rock is a great place for renting tanks and they have a great spot for shore diving right there, as long as you choose a day with few cruise ships in. You could also rent tanks from them and go further down the street to Smith Cove....a great spot for snorkeling or diving. Another great shore dive is located up at the Turtle Farm Reef which is accessible from behind the Cracked Conch Restaurant, but you can't bring outside tanks in there. They have them to rent.

Char

Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 10:39 am Post subject:

lwilley:

I also have trouble equalizing sometimes when I dive.

I take 2 Sudafed and also use a 12-hour nasal spray about 1 hour or so before I dive. That makes all the difference and I normally don't have any trouble.

If you're worried about the Sudafed "hopping you up", just try the 12-hour nasal spray and see if that helps.

Salann

Posted: Tue May 01, 2007 9:44 am Post subject:

This past March I was able to snorkel Eden's Rock and dive a t the Turtle Farm. I wish we had the time to dive at ER. I'll definitely do it the next time we're on GC. TF was very cool. We went in the morning, but if you go later in the day, you may have to wander through a busy restaurant/bar to get to/from the ladder.

Also, I just thought I'd repost something I wrote earlier:

Quote:

Although many divers use them (myself on occasion), nasal decongestants have the potential to be problematic while diving. Should the effect of the medication wear off while at depth, and the congestion return, a "reverse squeeze" can occur during ascending, unenabling the diver to relieve pressure on the eardrum from the inside. This can cause pain and possible injury. PADI's official stance is not to use them. The best course of action if you are congested is not to dive until the congestion disappears.

Posted: Tue May 01, 2007 10:45 am Post subject:

Paul:

I understand completely about the reverse squeeze and I thank you for posting that information. That's why I also included the information about the 12-hour nasal spray.

Hopefully, all of what we share will help us to be better informed divers!

Salann

Posted: Tue May 01, 2007 3:54 pm Post subject:

We use a product called 'Clear Ease'. Starting taking it a bit before the trip helps with equalizing in the airplane as well as under water.

It is an all natural, so it's gotta be good for you, right!?

Google it up. It seems to work well for Mrs. DS as well as other family members who don't equalize well on airplanes.

ds

Posted: Wed May 02, 2007 8:46 am Post subject:

On my recent trip in March I experienced the usual clearing problems that accompany my chronic sinus conditions and Keith from Neptunes Divers gave me some great advice. The night before and the morning/afternoon before my dives I took a wash cloth, got it wet, heated it in the microwave and then held it up against my ears until the cloth cooled down. This did wonders to help open up my ears - in fact they usually 'popped' while I was doing this and then I was good to go. Thanks Keith!

Hey Paul, give me a shout when you want to dive Eden Rock. Mollie and I, may be the lucky recipients of a 4 night stay at our condo at TI sometime this fall - we'll keep you posted.

gd Diving

Posted: Wed May 02, 2007 9:01 am Post subject:

Geoff, thanks for the pictures... very cool....

I'm going to try that washcloth trick, maybe head off the ear infections I get !!

Let me know the fall dates you get, maybe we'll take a third trip this year!!!

Posted: Wed May 02, 2007 10:49 am Post subject:

Jack,

Good to hear you got the pictures. It was great doing the Turtle Farm shore dive with you. Hopefully, I'll get around to finishing my trip report and talk about our dive soon. Say hi to Mrs. Captain Jack.

gd Diving

Posted: Thu May 03, 2007 7:08 am Post subject:

Pictures? What pictures?... Sounds good about your lucky fall trip, Geoff. We'd love to join you, but I won't have enuf vaca time left by then. We're going out east on LI, to Montauk, for our 10th anniversary this August.

For next year (it's a long story...) we've got an inklin' of thinkin' of goin' to Thaisland....

Newbie Joined: 29 Apr 2007 Posts: 2

Thanks so much for the tips. We have tried Sudafed and nasal sprays before, but we will try Clear Ease and washcloths later this month. This is our 3rd trip to GC and we love the island. We've only been certified a year and Eden Rock (May 2006) was our first ocean dive after receiving our certification. The shore diving seems to allow you with a slower descent and we will try Turtle Farm in a few weeks!

This forum is great!