I'm a hybrid Solo diver

[Dive4Fun]

I want to learn solo diving for the simple fact it's hard to find a good dive buddy around here when I have a tight schedule.

[RoyN]

I usually do solo dive from the boat where I use a cave reel to find my way back to the anchor.

[MSilvia]

Originally Posted by charlesml3

Anyway, I do what I call a "hybrid solo" dive.

I don't get what you mean by that... what makes it "hybrid"?

Originally Posted by charlesml3

Before we get into that, I'm not into the whole DIR thing.

Okay, but I don't really see where that's relevant to any discussion about solo diving, which is inherently not DIR, as there is no team.

Originally Posted by charlesml3

If I don't need it, I don't carry it.

Very Hogarthian of you. I try to do the same.

[RoyN]

I think he is long gone Matt, his thread was started in September.

[WAHMof2]

Originally Posted by RoyN

I think he is long gone Matt, his thread was started in September.

Ha! I just noticed that too! And I was really reading along thinking this was a new thread.

[Hollywood703]

I can relate to the OP. Unless im diving with my wife..... since she is still a new diver (under 20 dives) and isnt yet comfortable with her skills, I like to be close for her peace of mind. I dive with a 119 Steel and a 30cf Pony so i have my own built in buddy. I dont consider myself a "master diver" but am confident with my skills and am comfortable in the water. I also, take up the rear, and go at a slower pace. If my wife is on the dive, i will let her lead, and follow her general heading. I dont like being assigned a Buddy, that I have not dove with by assignment, I prefer to swim at my own pace. I understand that if im with a group on a vacation, that I need to stay within visible range of the guide, but that doesnt mean you have to be right next to them the whole time.

[rfb3]

Most photographers end up diving "solo" too anyway.

[rye_a]

I agree that there is nothing wrong with solo diving as long as everyone in the group knows how you dive so the second-to-last doesn't worry when he/she looks back and you are gone.

[Crimediver]

Most of my dives are solo though they may not start out that way.

[Foxfyre]

I realize that this is not an active thread, but this type of 'debate' seems to be a perennial issue.

And while one may champion the ideal, it pays dividends to be prepared for the real. How does the saying go? Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.

First...buddy diving.
Ideally in a perfect world in the land of infinite visibility buddy diving is a wonderful concept. And when we consider certification agencies who are dealing with liability and culpability issues, of course we are are going to assume that all will buddy dive - and don't dare suggest otherwise.

Now, reality. Assuming the awareness and capability to render assistance as necessary, I assume it a primary responsibility for any diver to be capable of self rescue.

(And to segue very quickly, it is rather scary to see far too many diver's who are neither sufficiently aware nor functionally capable to be effective in self rescue, let alone to effectively render assistance to others without simply becoming yet another potential contributing factor needing assistance as well. Sorry if this sounds a bit harsh. But many 'occasional' sport divers just simply are not. Oh, they may be well meaning, but that does not necessarily constitute the effective implementation of extractions skills. I am not really even complaining. Instead, the recognition of this predicates a few more steps for personal preparation.)

Limited visibility, complex environmental factors, and other factors all contribute to situations where close proximity diving is a lofty goal, but not a condition to be safely assumed.

Additionally, many functions simply do not lend themselves to close proximity diving.

At that point, not only are an astute awareness as well as self-rescue skills a pre-requisite, but I might suggest that additional tools such as UW communications (eg Aga + Dive Buddy com) become fundamental accessories. Additionally, a personal strobe, a marker strobe, cylume/electronic markers, and a positively buoyant flotation marker on a small reel/a whistle and inflatable sausage for surface deployment, etc., be considered for carry.