Page 319 - The Dutch Caribbean Isles
P. 319
he wall itself provides domain for innu- special skill development, but good diving subside when the diver ascends to a shal-
fitness and mastery of basic scuba skills lower depth.
T merable smaller creatures. The honey- are a must. Excellent buoyancy control,
astute depth, air supply and bottom time S urface signaling device is a good safety
comb of tiny cracks, crevices and holes that monitoring are important. Divers must accessory for wall divers. When drift
dot a wall provide hiding places and living understand the physiological challenges, diving along the wall, the boat follows the
quarters for tunicates, mollusks, crinoids, namely nitrogen narcosis and an increased bubbles and picks the divers up as they
crabs and other invertebrates of all sizes risk of decompression sickness, associated surface. The combination of divers surfac-
and shapes, plus, of course, sponges and with deeper diving. Since wall diving often ing at different times and places, changing
coral. Many walls are so heavily blanketed involves diving deep, wall divers should currents and choppy surface conditions can
with marine life that you can spend an en- watch for the onset of nitrogen narcosis, a cause the boat crew to lose track of your
tire dive observing the tiny creatures that physiological condition that occurs when whereabouts. You may surface and find
inhabit just a few square yards of the wall. the nervous system is exposed to increased the boat far away and the crew not looking
However, don’t become so engrossed that nitrogen pressure. Nitrogen narcosis usu- in your direction. In this case an audible,
you forget to occasionally glance over your ally occurs at depths of 100 feet (30 m) but inflatable or reflective surface signaling
shoulder to see what might be passing by some divers may begin to feel its effects at device, or better yet all three, will come in
in the blue water behind you. shallower depths. Symptoms include light- handy.
headedness, euphoria, mental confusion
W all Diving is not for the poorly or a “drunken” feeling. These symptoms
trained or rusty diver. It does not
require unusual physical conditioning or
