Grab the line!

Southeastern Divers, Inc.

2720 Governors Drive SW, Huntsville Alabama 35805 - Phone: 256-536-8404

"Training the best divers in North Alabama since 1980."

Grab the line!!!

Grab the line!!!, was the shout from the Mate as we dropped into the emerald waters of Destin, Florida. The water was warm and along with a little surface chop (typical of diving the Gulf Coast), the combination made a perfect start to another great dive adventure.

We were diving off the “Aquanaut” which has a unique history of being one of the boats used in the 1970’s movie “Jaws”. The Aquanaut is owned and operated by Emerald Coast Scuba, home of “The World’s Greatest Course Director”.

The line the Mate referred to on this trip was the “tag line” or “current assist line” which led to the “no-swim line”, which led to the “anchor line”, which led to the dive site 70ft below.

When diving in the Gulf, there are a very unique set of techniques used for getting into the water, during a dive and getting out of the water. The best advice I can give to anyone diving the Gulf coast for the first time, is no matter what dive operation you use, always listen to the briefing given by the Mate and Captain. There are many things you can learn to make your trip enjoyable. For example, most of the time, you will have very little air in your BC when you do your giant stride into the water. This is mainly true because as soon as you hit the water and give the OK on the surface, you will immediately grab the no-swim line, deflate your BC and pull yourself hand over hand to the 15 ft point of the anchor line. By doing this, you won’t have to fight the current and swells as you work your way to the anchor line. As a matter of fact in most cases, after completing a pre-dive safety check, buddy teams hop in, grab the ”no-swim line” and meet at the 15ft point on the anchor line where the current is usually less.

In Destin, we use many of these techniques and get a chance to dive on several artificial reefs as well as wrecks. These sites are home to a variety of aquatic creatures both large and small. Over the many years I have been diving the Gulf, I have been amazed at the abundance of life only @6hrs away from home. I have seen some of the same types of aquatic life in Destin which can also be found in Caribbean destinations.

This makes me realize how connected all of the oceans really are. It also helps me to understand importance of our job is as protectors of the aquatic realm. Project AWARE is a great organization to which I believe all true divers should be connected to in some form or fashion. AWARE stands for “Aquatic World Awareness, Responsibility and Education” and the foundation “combats challenges facing aquatic resources in 175 countries and territories with direct support from divers and water enthusiasts worldwide”. Every diver can help.

A couple of really cool courses for divers and non-divers alike to consider are the Project AWARE Specialty Program and the AWARE – Coral Reef Conservation Specialty Course.

For divers, the AWARE –Fish Identification Course, Underwater Naturalist Course or Underwater Digital Photography Course are also some great choices which really promote skills and ideas which can help us as Aquatic World Protectors. In each of these underwater courses, Peak Performance Buoyancy is very important because focus has to be placed on collecting written or pictorial data. The last thing a diver would want to do is crash down on some poor creature’s home or destroy many years worth of coral growth while trying to write on a slate or take a picture.

Our next trip to the emerald waters of Destin Florida will be September 26 and 27 (see Destin Trip Flyer), so if you are interested in getting a little experience diving the Gulf and having tons of fun while doing it, stop by the shop and pay your deposit to sign up. If you do, the very next time you hear someone shout, “Grab the line”!!! It could be the beginning of another great Scuba adventure.

Sean : )

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