SureFire

SCUABPRO Sunday – Nice to have Accessories

When planning a dive or a Boat/ Zodiac/ Wing ride, there are a few essential pieces of gear that you definitely should bring with you. But as much as you would want to keep your gear to a minimum, there are still a couple of things you should bring for your convenience. 

I am going to talk about a couple accessories that you may not have thought of to add to your gear list. Everyone knows about the hammock on long plane ride but not enough can be said about being comfortable on a 4-hour boat ride after a 3-hour dive. I will explain what makes them useful and why you should bring them with you. This stuff can be used if on a boat heading to a dive or if you are just on a boat for a long OTB. It’s about comfort and I will say safety.  

It all starts with a good dry bag. It’ll allow you to put all of your gear in one place, so you won’t have to worry about it getting wet or losing any of it. What makes a good dry bag? Well to start it has to have a good waterproof zipper and be able to take the beating of being bounced up and down in the front of a boat. In this bag you can keep your warm clothes for before or after the dive (if you are diving or getting wet) Always have a way to separate wet clothes from dry ones, a small or medium dry bag is good for this. That way you can put it back in away. You can also have a small camp / micro-fleece towel to help dry you off. In your bags hang a small light at the top so you can use it to look around with out having to dig around your bag trying to find whatever you need. This helps whenever you are looking in a pack at night. I like the small push button lights for this on a retractor like you use for your badge. Put one in all your bags will make your life easier when you are looking around your nags in the middle of he night when you are cold and wet.

If you can change out of your wetsuit make sure you do that, when you first get out of the water you will be hot, but if you are in for a long boat ride you will get cold. If you have a mustang suit, it is an easy thing to change into. Try and put on a base layer of wool, as you wont be completely dry wool keeps you warm even when wet. For your hands and feet. SEALKINZ make some great socks and gloves. They are waterproof and windproof. Lastly for when you get out of the water is something to eat and or drink. I am going to sound like and old man, but a thermos with hot chocolate, or soup. This will help keep you warm and also if you are cold and tired a lot better then eating a energy bar that is cold and hard. Some bite size snickers or something like that is good. They are also great for winter warfare or survival situations you can drop a bite size snickers bar into some hot water and you have a good soup.

Ok now that you are warm and dry, its time to get ready for the long boat ride home. Whenever you are on a boat the best ride is always in the back. There is less movement and its less wear and tear on you. If you are on a zodiac/ wing again try and sit in the back. If you have a stadium seat (picture below) take some one-inch tubular nylon wrap it around the seat and tie it together, put a carabiner on it to the D rings on the boat. Now you can sit on it, and it will help hold you in place and give you a better ride. This is great after a long night of being cold and wet.

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