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Low Visibility Diving: Tips for Better Dives & Reasons You Should Try It

Low Visibility Diving: Tips for Better Dives & Reasons You Should Try It

Written by Nevin
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Published on July 12, 2009
divers in low visibility waters

Although all of us would love to dive in warm, crystal clear tropical blue waters, with underwater visibility as far as the eye can see; reality is so much more different. While some of us are blessed with easy access to the aforementioned clear waters, most of us dive often in lakes, or in waters that rarely offer us more than a few feet of visibility. In these cases, preparing for low visibility diving allows us to optimize the dive.

What is low visibility diving?

Low visibility diving opens the door for scuba divers to so many more diving opportunities, such as  lakes, rivers, quarries, ship wrecks, mangroves, inlets, submerged dam reservoir villages and other unique underwater worlds. Most shipwrecks are found in waters that offer poor conditions, where knowledge of low visibility diving alone, will allow you to explore these treasures.

So why dive in low visibility if you cannot see much? Diving in poor conditions will make you a far better diver as it tests and sharpens several of your diving skills. Underwater navigation requires great compass reading skills having no visual references underwater to navigate by. Additionally, divers need to keep in close contact with their buddies or you could easily loose him, and just remaining within communication range will challenge your diving abilities.

diver in low visibility waters
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10 reasons to try low visibility diving

It requires intense focus with to remain aware and alert

For starters, a low visibility dive forces the diver to remain focused at the job at hand. You have no distractions of brilliant fish zipping by or arrays of stunning coral in front. You spend a lot of your dive concentrating on trying to keep your focus on what’s coming up ahead in front of you. This forces you to slow down and concentrate.

Just as you have to focus your attention on what’s coming up ahead, under low visibility conditions a diver must remain completely aware of their surroundings, orientation, and their buddy’s position. The lack of distractions makes monitoring of air pressure and depth gauges more frequent. A diver becomes aware of their air consumption, and buoyancy, improving awareness of diving skills. Just like an aircraft pilot flying through fog, you tend to become more reliant on your instruments and instincts.

Makes you appreciative of clear water and good visibility

If you did your Open Water certification course in a tropical Island with miles of clear water, no suspended particles, you could always see the dive boat and the sea bed at all times. You may find it really difficult getting used to murky water. However, low visibility diving will make sure you never take good visibility for granted.

It’s relaxing

Sometimes. low visibility and night dives may be almost relaxing. While diving almost blind, the intense focus, lack of distractions, and the methodical checking of instruments, coupled with the sound of your breathing is almost Zen-like or meditative. A heightened sense of awareness of having limited visibility, and the surrealistic swirling of particles in front of you is probably the cause of this sense of relaxation.

It sharpens your diving skills

Low visibility forces the diver to use everything you learned in your dive certification courses. You use your compass to hold your bearing; you’re trying to fin without disturbing the particles which could further ruin visibility, you’re watching your exhaled air bubbles to determine your orientation, using innovative new dive signals using your underwater flashlight or sound to communicate. All of this adds up to making you a better diver through the process.

low visibility diving kelp
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It’s the ultimate test of a good dive buddy

A low-visibility dive is the best way to evaluate the competence and your compatibility with your dive buddy, or for that matter you as a good dive buddy as well. The need to keep within contact range and being able to constantly communicate despite the poor visibility will either make or break your reputation as a dive partner.

The skill of being able to swim within arm’s length and maintain visual contact is crucial. The very real possibility of losing your buddy while on the dive generates the need to create prearranged plans for search and meet up at the surface strategy.

Makes you appreciate the little things

The lowering of visibility makes you more appreciative of the little things that you do spot on the dive. Since you may not be able to spot much, any little marine creature or coral you see with be that much more exciting.

Tests your navigation skills

Low visibility diving makes use of all your compass navigation skills. As there are no features, visual navigation is impossible; navigation by compass is the only way you can find your bearings.

Pushes for good underwater communication

Underwater communication becomes challenging when you cannot see your buddy’s hand signals, and so the use of your flashlight or tapping your tank to create sound signals adds another element of novelty to low visibility diving.

Requires special gear & preparations

Low visibility diving, like night diving, requires some amount of special gear, such as reflector tape on your BCD, powerful dive flashlights, chemical glow sticks to light up the anchor line, possibly a buddy line, glow-in-the-dark compasses and gauge dials and perhaps a navigation tow line reel to find your way back. For us scuba gear freaks, this means a lot new shiny toys to add to our dive gear.

Thrill of danger

Although not entirely dangerous, diving in low visibility is somehow thrilling. Just as deep diving fascinates divers, low visibility diving has an element of challenge or danger to it that makes it more compelling. You could lose your buddy, lose your bearings and get lost, or simply get disoriented. All of these scenarios challenge the more experienced divers to put their skills to the test.

divers in low visibility waters
Image via Shutterstock

Tips for low visibility diving

Here are a few tips for low visibility diving:

Pre-plan your dive

Know your dive site well. If possible, dive in a site where you have previously dived under better conditions, to help plan your dive and aid navigation. If you plan to dive at a new location, ask other divers who have been before to give you a lay of the terrain. Take the time to research and obtain any scuba diving equipment that will help make your dive go easier. Glow sticks, dive lights, reflectors, high visibility lines, luminous compasses etc. will often aid in low visibility diving.

Use some light

Make sure you carry a primary and spare dive light with you. On a low visibility dive, it won’t help you see ahead any better (because of the particles) but it will definitely help your buddy locate you in the haze and vice versa. It’s also a good practice to attach reflective tape to your BCD, and wear bright colors to aid spotting your buddy underwater.

Use a descent line

Additionally, decent line, or anchor line from your dive boat is the best way to descend and ascend on a low visibility dive. It’s easy to get disoriented or separated from your buddy and if you know your buddy is following the same line, you have a better chance of rejoining if separated. You could also trail a high visibility line connected to the anchor line to help you return to the ascent line on your way back.

Take it slow

While diving in low visibility, take the time to proceed slowly making sure you are in contact with your buddy, and not heading face first into a coral outcrop. Descend feet first and take the time to note your bearings and to count kick cycles. Finally, relax and the dive will go a lot easier.

Plan a communication and meet-up strategy

Plan or rehearse your communication signals before the dive, as depending on how bad the visibility is, you may not be able to use hand signals. Finally, sound signals, i.e. tapping on the tank, or flashlight signals are more effective, and will need a run-through before the dive so that everyone is aware of what each signal means.

Conclusion

If you plan your dives properly and follow the above tips, you are sure to make the most of the several opportunities, that low visibility diving opens up for you.