AN UNDERWATER MUSEUM AND AN ARTIFICIAL REEF knowledge divingfreedivingpassion
WONDERFUL ICELAND MALIN HEAD WRECK SITE
TWOJCIECH ZGOŁA Editor-in-Chief
he holidays are gone and the time for good visibility in European lakes has come. Let’s make the best of it and dive safely!
In this issue, we discuss MUSAN – an underwater museum that cost a million euros. Was it worth it? Is it worth diving there? As we visited MUSAN, you can find our opinion in the article.
After a long absence, Irena comes back with an article about an iconic Ireland wreck site. It is a real treat for technical divers.
Additionally, Tomek wrote a piece about ORP Delfin from the Baltic Sea.
Zbyszek retells a journey to fantastic Iceland and shares the adventures of the entire team. Practical tips will be useful to everyone who plan to visit the island that was once discovered by the Vikings.
There are also great publications about discovering nature up close, written by Laura and Klaudyna. A few words about corals and sharks in Spain.
Finally, we present you with some technical information about gear. At long last, the world champion, Agnieszka Kalska, comes back and Aleš presents his research results after a series of articles about static apnea.
Finally, I would like to make it absolutely clear that Wojtek A. Filip’s articles branded Tecline Academy are not only advertisements of the gear of our partner – Tecline. They contain practical tips and condensed knowledge presented in an approachable way. I heard some voices saying “I don’t read these articles, sure they just tout Tecline gear”. Seriously? Read at least one article to know what you are talking about. You can also cover the Tecline Academy brand with an opaque tape and see for yourself. Only then feel free to comment.
Welcome to e-diving. May the force be with you. Let’s plan dives, discover new sites and enjoy life!
And we’re already working on the next issue – the last one in 2021.
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Wojciech Zgoła
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WOJCIECH ZGOŁA
He often repeats that he travels by diving and that is his motto. In 1985 he obtained a yacht sailor's license, and only in 2006 began to dive. In the following years he improved his skills by obtaining the Dive Master degree. He completed nearly 650 dives in various climatic conditions. Since 2007, he has been taking photographs underwater, and since 2008 he has also been filming. As an independent journalist, he published dozens of articles, mainly in journals dedicated to diving, but not only. Co-author of photo exhibitions in Poland and abroad. He is passionate about and propagator of diving. Since 2008 he has been running his own website www.dive-adventure.eu. On the basis of extensive experience, in August 2018 he created the new Perfect Diver Magazine
”My passion, work and life are under water.” He has been diving since 2009. Since 2008, he's walking in caves. Underwater archeologist by education. He participated in numerous projects in Poland and abroad. He has been engaged in professional diving since 2011. In 2013 he obtained the qualifications of a 2nd class diver. Has experience in underwater work both at sea and inland. Since 2013 he has been diving in caves, especially in the mountains, and since 2014 he is a diving instructor CMAS M1. In June 2020, he obtained a doctoral degree in underwater archeology.
An IT specialist by profession, but a flesh and blood salesman who is not afraid of any job. Diving has always been my big dream. At the beginning it was supposed to be a challenge, a short episode but it turned out to be a passion for the end of the world and one day longer. Under water I react and rest. As a Divemaster, sidemount Razor diver, and recently also a photographer, I realize my dreams by admiring and immortalizing the beauty of the underwater world. "Passion breeds professionalism, professionalism gives quality, and quality is a luxury in life. Nowadays, especially..."
That's my name and I come from Poznań. I have been associated with water practically from birth and with diving since I learned to walk. My grandfather instilled my passion for the underwater world, a CMAS*** instructor taking me to the lakes at any free time. I obtained my first qualifications in 1996. A year later I went to Croatia and literally went crazy at the sight of blue water, octopus and colorful fish;) I bought my first underwater camera – Olympus 5060 and started the adventure with underwater photography. I acquired my diving experience in the Canary Islands, Sardinia, Norway, Maldives and in Polish lakes. I am currently a Padi and ESA instructor, I train diving enthusiasts in Europe and pass my passion on to others.
I invite all lovers of the underwater world and photography to Beediver (FB) – see you soon.
MATEUSZ POPEK
BARTOSZ PSZCZÓŁKOWSKI
HUBERT REISS
Has more than 8000 dives on his account. He has been diving for over 30 years, including over 20 years as a technical diver. He is a professional with great theoretical and practical knowledge. He is an instructor of many federations: GUE Instructor Mentor, CMAS**, IANTD nTMX, IDCS PADI, EFR, TMX Gas Blender. He participated in many diving projects and conferences as a leader, explorer, originator or lecturer. These included the Britannic Expedition 2016, Morpheus Cave Scientific Project on Croatia caves, GROM Expedition in Narvik, Tuna Mine Deep Dive, Glavas Cave in Croatia, NOA-MARINE. Professionally, he is a technical director at TecLine in Scubatech, and a director of training at TecLine Academy.
Karolina Sztaba, and professionally Karola Takes Photos, is a photographer by education and passion. She is currently working at the Trawangan Dive Center on a tiny island in Indonesia – Gili Trawangan, where she moved to live four years ago. She photographs above and below the water. In addition, she creates photographic projects against littering the oceans and polluting our planet with plastic ("Trapped", "Trashion"). She cooperates with NBO organizations dealing with environmental protection and actively participates in pro-ecological actions (coral protection, coral planting, cleaning the world, protection of endangered species). She is also the official photographer of Ocean Mimic – a brand that creates swimwear and surfwear from rubbish collected on the beaches of Bali. She cooperated with many brands of diving equipment for which she created advertising campaigns. In 2019, she became the ambassador of the Polish company Tecline. She has been a technical diver for two years.
A graduate of Geography faculty at the University of Wrocław and an incurable optimist… with a permanent smile on her lips! It was probably Destiny that led her to Activtour… and she's been here on permanent basis. She passionately fulfils the dreams of many, organizing diving trips around the world, and she has already been diving for more than half of her life. Each year she explores a different ‘piece of the ocean’, pinning another pin to her diving world map. In winter she changes fins into her beloved skis and gets away into the Alps. A recipe for life? ”The only a dead trunk flows with the current – the explorer's canoe flows up the river!” anna@activtour.pl activtour.pl; travel.activtour.pl; 2bieguny.com
Polish photographer, winner of awards and distinctions in world underwater photography competitions, has already dived all over the world: with sharks and whales in South Africa, with orcs behind the Arctic Circle, on Galapagos with hundreds of hammerhead sharks and humpback whales in the Tonga Islands. He participates in specialist photographic workshops. He has been diving for 27 years, he started at the age of 12 – as soon as it was formally possible. He was the first in the world to use the Hasselblad X1d-50c camera for underwater macro photography. Recently, in the remote Chincorro archipelago on the border between Mexico and Belize, he did it again, taking a successful attempt to photograph the eye of a crocodile with a macro lens with an additional magnifying lens, which is the world's largest photo of the crocodile's eye living in the wild (in terms of pixel count, print size, quality).
A traveller and a photographer of wild nature. A graduate of journalism and a lover of good literature. She lives in harmony with nature, promotes a healthy lifestyle: she is a yogini and a vegetarian. Also engaged in ecological projects. Sharks and their protection are especially close to her heart. She writes about the subject in numerous articles and on her blog www.divingandtravel.pl. She began her adventure with diving fifteen years ago by total coincidence. Today she is a Divemaster, she visited over 60 countries and dived on 5 continents. She invites us for a joint journey with the travel agency www.dive-away.pl, of which she is a co-founder.
"Wet photos" – He has photographed since he remembers. After several years of experience as a diver, he wanted to keep memories of underwater dives. He bought his first compact camera with an underwater housing. Over time, however, the desire to have the best photo began to dominate, which was not quite possible with the compact he used. That's why he switched to the Olympus PEN E-PL 5 reflex camera, which allows the use of several different lenses. He uses a combination of underwater flashes and lights. He focuses on wildlife photography, not arrangement. He photographs in fresh domestic waters as well as in the seas and oceans of the world.
He has already won numerous awards at Czech and foreign photography competitions. More photos can be found on his website, where you can also buy them not only as photos, but also as photos printed on canvas or on another medium. www.mokrefotky.cz www.facebook.com/MichalCernyPhotography www.instagram.com/michalcerny_photography/
WOJCIECH A. FILIP
SYLWIA KOSMALSKA-JURIEWICZ
ANNA SOŁODUCHA
KAROLA TAKES PHOTOS
MICHAL ČERNÝ
JAKUB DEGEE
A graduate of two Poznan universities, the Academy of Physical Education (coaching specialization – handball) and the University of A.Mickiewicz, Faculty of Biology (specialty of experimental biology). He connected his professional life with this first university trying to influence the direction of development of future professionals on the one hand, and on the other planning and implementing research, pushing laboriously in the right direction of the stroller called science. In his free time he spends his time actively – his main passions are sailing (sea helmsman), skiing (downhill skiing instructor), riding a motorcycle, recreational diving and many other activities, as well as photography, mainly nature.
Since I was a child, I had dreamed of becoming a marine biologist and I managed to fulfill that dream. I did a degree in oceanography, where I recently started my doctoral studies. My diving adventure began when I was 12 years old. I love observing the underwater life up close and I try to show other divers how fascinating the underwater, Baltic creatures are.
”I can't imagine living without water, where in a free body I experience freedom of the spirit.”
• founder of the first freediving and swimming school in Poland – FREEBODY,
• Apnea Academia International and PADI Master Freediver freediving instructor,
• world record holder in freediving (DYN 253 m),
• record holder and Polish champion, member of the national team in freediving 2013–2019,
• winner of the World Championships in freediving 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2018,
• multimedalist of the Polish Championships and a member of the national team in swimming in the years 1998–2003,
• passionate about freediving and swimming.
A traveler, photographer and the underwater world filmmaker, an Asian cuisine enthusiast and a PADI diving instructor. He visited over 70 countries and dived on 5 continents (the other two are planned for next year's expeditions). For several years he has also been an instructor and trainer of the unmanned aircraft flights. A co-author of a travel agency for divers www.dive-away.pl. He documents his expeditions with photos and descriptions of his journeys on his blog www.divingandtravel.pl
Laura Kazimierska is currently working as PADI Course Director at TrawanganDive Center on the Indonesian island of Gili Trawangan. Founder of the Divemastergilis portal. www.divemastergilis.com @divemastergilis For over 7 years she has lived and discovered the underwater world of Indonesia. She is not only an avid technical diver, but also the face of the Planet Heroes platform and the ambassador of the Ocean Mimic brand. She actively contributes to the promotion of the protection of corals and the natural environment of fish and marine animals by taking part in scientific projects, campaigns against ocean littering and cooperating with NGOs in Indonesia.
@laura_kazi
Regional Manager Divers Alert Network Polska, diving and first aid instructor, technical diver and cave diver. In love with all flooded, dark, cold, tight places and invariably from the beginning of the diving route – in the Baltic. Implementing the DAN mission, he conducts a series of lectures ”Dive safely” and Diving Safety Laboratory, so field research of divers for scientific purposes.
IRENA KOSOWSKA
AGATA TUROWICZ-CYBULA
AGNIESZKA KALSKA
WOJCIECH JAROSZ
LAURA KAZIMIERSKA
ADRIAN JURIEWICZ
My name is Aleš Koštomaj. I'm from Slovenia (Europe). I was born 1978 (43 years old) in city Celje. From what I can remember I loved snorkeling and freediving. I studied at the Faculty of Sports in Ljubljana, where I became more professionally acquainted with freediving. At first I was active in spearfishing (between 2001 and 2009), and then for a few years I completely focused on freediving. Between 2009 and 2016, I trained and competed in freediving. My biggest success is a 3rd place in CWT (AIDA international world) in Croatia (Lopar, 2011). In 2017, I received my master’s degree from the Faculty of Sports and became a master of science in freediving. Since 2017, I no longer compete but I love discovering the underwater world with an underwater camera in freediving and I also do researches with top Slovenian freedivers (Samo Jeranko, Andrej Ropret, Jure Daić...). So far, I have the highest scientific education in freediving in Slovenia (Mag. Aleš Koštomaj).
PADI diving instructor and videographer. She spends most of his time in the water documenting a fascinating underwater world. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in the field of Fashion Design in Łódź and Film studies at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, trained as a tailor, and with a love of nature and a large dose of adrenaline. She loves everything related to water. Her diving adventure began with a backpacking trip in 2016. During her stay in Thailand she dived for the first time and from then on she got hooked on at this sport. Spending the last years and most of her days under water, teaching and showing the beauty of the underwater world in Asia, she believes that diving means unity – unity with own mind, nature and unusual creatures. @waterographyk
He has always been fascinated by the underwater world, and from the very beginning of his diving journey, he has been associated with the wrecks of the Baltic Sea. Currently, he has completed several thousand dives in various places around the world. He dives mainly technically, wreck and cave. Fascinated by rebreathers and underwater photography. Tomek is an Instructor Trainer, rebreather, technical, wreck and sidemount instructor in several training organizations. For over 10 years, he has been sharing his knowledge with others, focusing on high quality training. Founder of the 4baltic Association, owner of Deepbusters and Wreckbusters. www.4baltic.pl www.deepbusters.pl www.wreckbusters.pl www.facebook.com/tomekramutkowskitechnical
ALEŠ KOŠTOMAJ
KLAUDYNA BRZOSTOWSKA
TOMEK RAMUTKOWSKI
ZBIGNIEW ROGOZIŃSKI
A passionate and enthusiast of diving, he photographs amateurly and likes to know what he sees under the water, what are the names of the animals he calls and what stories hide the wrecks. He has been diving since 2009, getting the PADI Instructor Assistant degree, and in 2010 he and his friends opened a diving school and Wolsztyn Diving Club Bad Fish.
WOJCIECH PRUSKI
Diving and first aid instructor, a photographer and a founder of the Good Dive diving school. He himself dives the Prism 2, a vessel ideal for photographing more skittish animals. He is fascinated by cave and wreck diving. In addition to diving and photography, he also likes travelling and exploring previously unknown parts of the world. If he doesn't dive – he runs or rides a bike. He just likes to spend time actively and be in good shape. Diving gives him the opportunity to break away from everyday life and a feeling of total freedom. If he does not train under water, he can always be found with a camera or camcorder.
ZYGFRYD KWIATKOWSKI
Zygfryd Kwiatkowski. He comes from Kashubia, so water is his second home. A passionate sailor, motor boater, WOPR rescuer, diving instructor. He specializes in wreck and cave diving. Underwater photography has been his hobby for several years.
JULIA PRUSKA
Julia Pruska. Despite her young age (19), she fulfilled her dream and became a PADI diving instructor. Her passion was instilled in her by her father, a PADI instructor, who took her to the first course when she was just 12. She loves most the life under water and diving among animals gives her the greatest pleasure. Currently, she is developing her passion and spreading it to others in the family-run Good Dive diving school. In addition to diving, he likes cooking and horse-riding. www.good-dive.pl
Find
MUSAN
AN UNDERWATER MUSEUM AND AN ARTIFICIAL REEF
Text and photos WOJCIECH ZGOŁA
EUR 1 million was spent. For what? To create a complex of sculptures and place them on the seabed in Cyprus. The entire project, which took over 3 years to officially open, is located close to the mainland near the city of Agia Napa.
Perfect Diver editors were invited by the Ministry of Tourism of Cyprus to the official opening and the first, inaugural dive. I would like to add that the organisation, logistics, atmosphere were very good, and the weather was even too good, because the temperatures fluctuated between 38 and 40°C.
Both before and after the opening of the MUSAN – Agia Napa Underwater Sculpture Museum), there were votes for and against. Because why spend so much money on a piece (quite a lot) of concrete? Or that we destroy the oceans in such a way, catch everything that moves, that in a moment only such
sculptures in the water will remain. There was also admiration for a wide view of human interaction with nature, and opinions that maybe such museums will raise the awareness of mankind, what this world is aiming at, that not everything can be seen only through the glass of the screen, that it is worth reflecting on the meaning of existence...
In the morning we got on the bus that had been brought to the parkin place. I must add that, wherever it was, there was an air-conditioned coach waiting for us, previously cooled down. It was very nice to enter it and rest from the heat. We went to the restaurant "KAI chill‚ n joy ", located by the sea. We collected personal badges that authorized all invited people to attend a breakfast with the Agia Napa authorities and the MUSAN creator Jason de Caires Taylor. It was delicious, Cy-
Nicosia
Museum of Underwater Sculpture Ayia Napa
Larnaca MUSAN
CYPRUS
priot and professional. We heard short speeches among the cameras and video cameras. There was also time to talk to the artist himself.
Then we went back to the hotel to pick up our diving gear and went to the ship we were diving from. I had the pleasure to dive together with Katarzyna Boni. I would like to add that the heat was unmerciful, and the sun heated the plastic or metal parts of the ship very much. And since there were quite a few diving journalists, it took "a little" time to land in the water. Temperature 28°C was cold
Before that, there was a general briefing in English. We dived without guides. We had as much time as the air in the cylinders. Nobody rushed us and we spent over an hour diving among the sculptures of the museum.
It turned out that 93 sculptures were sunk here. All thanks to the Mayor of Agia Napa, who in cooperation with the Department of Fisheries and Marine Research reached an agree-
ment with the world-famous artist, the aforementioned Jason de Caires Taylor. There is, among others, an underwater forest, human figures, some with shrubs instead of heads. Children looking at the world only through the camera lens.
The creators hope that, thanks to the museum, the biodiversity of this area will be enriched over time.
While diving, we watched the figures, the way they were presented, as well as fish and hermit crabs. I wondered why this woman looked like this, folded in a fetal position on her left side and a plant growing out of her belly? Or why are two other women facing each other with a brown fish circling between their backs – a damselfish? There is also, among others, the figure of a girl with difficulty carrying a satisfied old man on her back, or the figure of a small, crying boy that no one pays attention to.
Several times a day I was able to talk to the creator. The sculptures are inspired by nature and man. They are made of
neutral materials with a neutral pH. They do not have a destructive effect on the area and are already visited by shoals of fish.
– I hope that the created artificial reef will attract a variety of marine fauna and flora that will become permanent here, said Jason.
When asked if he was worried about the storms, because the sculptures are only 8–10 meters deep, he replied
– We chose this place from several different more or less available ones. The sculptures have very wide and heavy bases and are firmly anchored to the ground.
I don't think anything will happen to them.
Coming back from diving at MUSAN to the hotel, we talked about our feelings, we continued the conversation for some time later. Then we had time to shower and change and we were on our way to the evening gala where there were more speeches, more glamour, more coolness (but only in the air) after sunset, great snacks and drinks and live music. Our meeting ended with a fireworks show.
Hollis gear stands up to any condition. So, how deep will you go?
I would like to add that the depth of the MUSAN underwater museum is perfect for freedivers and for people who practice snorkeling. The underwater forest and human figures can be seen from the surface of the water, and divers can observe them up close for longer. Moreover, for those who do not dive – the museum without walls and roof can be admired from the deck of a glass-bottom boat
The one mentioned at the beginning of EUR 1 million is probably a lot, and many will find other spending options than the creation of the first (geographically) underwater museum in Europe. On the other hand, countries have their own budgets and spend them as they see fit. Cyprus lives from tourism, and many places in the Mediterranean Sea are poor in marine life. Perhaps this is the artist's expression of human-nature interaction that will give food for thought to visitors? And those who do not dive, thanks to photos and films, they will be able to see the whole project. Finally, how will MUSAN be adopted by the sea and its inhabitants? Let's wait, there is a good chance that the biodiversity of marine life in this area will increase.
However, what I am most interested in is how the next tourists will react when visiting this place. Will they begin to perceive Nature in a different way? Will they understand that it needs to be respected, supported and contemplated?
Cyprus has some great wrecks for diving. The most famous Zenobia in the world is waiting for more divers. We also visited it during this visit. Cyprus is a unique dive site and there is a lot to choose from. Warm and clear water, great opportunity to meet sea turtles and have great food. Now there is an additional attraction – MUSAN.
#visitcyprus #purenature
PS. We kindly thank the Ministry of Tourism of Cyprus for the invitation and care during this escapade.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:
Location:
Depth: Bottom: Number of sculptures: 200 m from Pernera Beach in Agia Napa 8–10 m sandy
93
Diving from the boat for a fee www.musan.com.cy
Love corals
Text LAURA KAZIMIERSKA
Photos KAROLA TAKES PHOTOS
Gili Trawangan is one of three islands located in northeastern Lombok, Indonesia. Even though most restaurants, bars and hotels are closed and tourists are banned from entering the country due to the pandemic, our diving community is thriving.
Fortunately, we have great diving spots under our noses, which means we don't even have to use a boat to reach them.
For years, I have not dreamed of having so much time at my disposal. And as I can't sit still, I decided to sign up for a course to propagate coral: Ocean Quest Coral Propagation. As a diving instructor, I spend a lot of time underwater, and I am fascinated
by the life of marine animals. I love all fish and creatures, from huge sharks to tiny hairy crabs and shrimps, but I've never had much knowledge of corals. I decided it was time to change that.
I love being a trainee! Thanks to this, diving is never boring for me. This time I found out that a coral can get decompression sickness, I understood why corals are stressed and how we can protect the coral with minimal resources. I had never thought that coral protection could be so simple and at the same time fascinating.
Coral – a plant or an animal?
Corals derive their energy mainly from photosynthesis, which some trees and flowers require. Most of them cannot move and live in one place all their lives. In many ways, corals have more to do with plants, but actually they are animals. Mainly due to the fact that they are not able to produce their own food like plants do, corals form complex, diverse colonies and are key to a healthy marine ecosystem.
Why are coral reefs so important?
Since the beginning of their life cycle, corals are involved in the marine food chain. The journey begins with joining zooplankton. By drifting in the current, they become the main food source for all filter feeders such as manta rays and whale sharks. They then sink to the bottom of the ocean, providing nutrients to animals such as giant clams and sea urchins. Those that survive and find a suitable place to settle become reef-building structures, providing shelter and food for most species of sea creatures.
Corals form barriers to protect coasts from waves, as do mangroves on land. They are also a centre for the reproduction of marine life.
It is estimated that coral reefs produce a significant part of the oxygen and absorb a third of the carbon dioxide, which contributes significantly to climate change. If that's not enough to impress you, coral reefs stabilise the pH level in the water, thus creating a sustainable ecosystem for all marine life, while also acting as indicators of the state of the environment.
By observing the coral reef ecosystem, we can obtain information about pollution and environmental degradation and take appropriate steps to prevent it. A healthy reef is beneficial to coastal communities because it brings income from tourism and fishing.
Another interesting fact is that coral reef plants and animals are an important source of innovative pharmaceuticals to help treat cancer, bacterial infections, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, viruses and other diseases. They can also be used in natural cosmetic products.
Hidden beneath the surface of blue, pleasing the eye of every diver, coral reefs are undoubtedly one of the most important ecosystems on our planet.
Threats to coral reefs
As valuable as they are, coral reefs are in danger of extinction. For more than a century, industrialised societies have contributed to extremely high carbon dioxide emissions and pollutants that affect the climate and imbalances in the marine ecosystem. The exploitation of our oceans, deep-sea mines and destructive fishing practices have a huge impact on the health of coral reefs.
In the last decade, a record number of cases of coral bleaching have been recorded in various parts of the world (when the water temperature rises, corals reject zooxanthellae, which are the main source of food formation in the process of photosynthesis). Without algae, corals become weak, prone to disease and extreme weather conditions. All this contributes to the slowed restoration of coral reefs so important not only for marine animals, but also for humans. To protect what is left and secure this unique environment for future generations, we must act now.
Ocean Quest. My adventure with coral reproduction
For more than a decade, Malaysian organisation Ocean Quest Global has been experimenting with coral propagation. After many years, the organisation created its proprietary techniques, methodology and materials for the restoration of the coral reef. A few years ago, they started cooperation with diving centres and organisations dealing with the protection of the marine environment. Our Trawangan Dive Center is one of them!
What attracted me to the Ocean Quest project was that they use only ecological methods of propagating coral. From collecting building material
from the reef, to ingredients that accelerate growth to creating a natural development environment.
The first thing we did during the course was theory. I'm a "super nerd" and of course I had a million questions.
It is important to understand the life cycle and reproduction of corals, as well as the risks to which we expose them during the transition period from the natural environment to the stage of reproduction. I discovered that propagation requires great precision of the right tools and any unnecessary interference can cause damage to the coral.
The practical part was amazing! The first dive was intended to collect natural building material for a new coral restoration nursery. The visibility was great, but the sea current was quite strong, which complicated the whole situation. We swam in pairs established earlier, filling baskets with rocks. Great buoyancy and breath control are key skills to accomplish this task. I could feel myself sweating under the water, if that is at all possible.
We also collected some "live rocks" and dumped them into the shallows. Later, we will join them with our corals ready to breed.
During the second dive, although the current began to gain strength, we focused on collecting the right coral. When looking for samples to propagate, it is best to focus on the loose
parts of the coral lying on the bottom. It could be disconnected from the reef naturally (current, waves) or less naturally (human intervention). The most important thing is not to damage the healthy colony, and also not to collect more corals than you will be able to propagate. You need to make sure that you collect only healthy samples so as not to spread infections or diseases in the coral nursery.
The branched corals of the Acropora family are easier to propagate because some of the fragmentation processes do not require specialised equipment or skills. Still underwater, we submitted the samples to a strict selection.
Once we found the right amount, we began to surface. By bringing corals to the surface, you want to give them time to acclimatise to the change in pressure and temperature. Like divers surfacing from technical diving, we stopped at different depths to wait a few minutes. In this way, you give the samples time to adapt to changing conditions, and this reduces their stress.
While the two of us waited underwater with corals neatly tucked away in plastic bags, the other part of the team was preparing a propagation station on the beach.
Our task was to divide the samples into smaller pieces and glue them to the "living rocks" that we had collected during the previous dive. Time is essential because you want to mi-
nimise the time that corals are on land. We have prepared saltwater bowls to water the corals and the substrate while joining the elements. We acted quickly. First, a live rock substrate. Then glue. Then coral and catalyst. Meanwhile: Splash! Splash! To keep the moisture level. And boom! New coral ready to be transferred to the reef. We ran like crazy, carrying the multiplied corals to a temporary station located in shallow water right on the beach.
When we finished, it was time for the third dive.
This time our task was to transfer and secure the multiplied corals to the nursery. It was not easy under the rapid current conditions, but the mission was successful. It was fascinating to see our reef come to life. After a few minutes, the little excited wrasses started heading towards us, and then the other species inhabiting the coastal coral reef. They will be the personnel taking care of our new, young corals, protecting them from the development of algae and other natural competitors.
Thus, without any experience in marine biology, thanks to Ocean Quest I became a propagator of corals.
From now on, my task will be to observe and keep notes. We need to make sure that our corals grow strong and healthy. Maintaining the nursery involves checking that the samples have not fallen over under the influence of sea currents and waves, that they have access to light and nutrients, as well as analysing potential hazards.
Satisfaction guaranteed
Being part of this project was an immensely enriching experience, giving hope for the future of coral reefs. I have seen many different methods of protecting and cultivating coral: using metal structures or underwater sculpture. However, I have never seen so much fish activity immediately after installing coral samples. The bonus is that it's a completely natural process. Immediately after installation, human interference in maintaining the new ecosystem is minimal, while other methods require much care to keep the artificial reef healthy.
The future of coral reefs is in our hands. Everyone can contribute to their survival by making responsible choices in everyday life, understanding the causes and effects!
Blue sharks.
BASQUE SHARKS
Text and photos KLAUDYNA BRZOSTOWSKA
I was travelling around Spain I did not expect that I would have such an exciting meeting with sharks. It turned out that all what it took was the right geographical location, one hot afternoon, water around 21°C and I had two hours in water with 9 sharks guaranteed.
Iusually dedicate my travels to diving with larger animals. It is very important for me to find places where people with passion run an intimate business. I try to choose companies that promote conscious diving tourism focused on environmental conservation and protection of endangered species. I find it difficult to imagine a better dive than the one accompanied by a guide who is a total freak and takes you to unique places. When you come out of the water you know right away that what has just happened is in harmony with nature, and you feel the satisfac-
tion of a good dive. This is how I felt after diving with Isaias, the founder of Mako Pako.
In the Basque Country there is a beautiful port town – Bermeo. It is from here that we take a boat deep into the Cantabrian Sea to find sharks. In Spain, the term Cantabrian Sea is used to describe the southern part of the Bay of Biscay. It is a coastal sea of the Atlantic Ocean that washes the northern coast of Spain. This part of the Atlantic Ocean, as it turns out, is special because it is here where the nursery for blue sharks (prionace glauca) is located. In this region
Madrid Bilbao
BERMEO
the young come into the world and stay here until they reach sexual maturity (for females it is 4–5 years of age, for males it is 5–6 years of age). The blue shark is a cosmopolitan species with a very wide range of occurrence. It traverses waters in many climatic zones and occurs on many continents. It is a species close to extinction, it has the NT (near threatened) status in the IUCN Red List of endangered species. The most common sharks found during diving are young individuals, but often we can also come across mature males which are about 2 m long.
As we arrived at the place – Isaias knows exactly where to moo, because he meticulously records the geographical coordinates of each trip. That day the sea was quite rough, we were rocking for a good hour and a half looking for sharks. Diving takes place in the open sea, we have a rope with two heads of tuna attached to the boat, tunas are the only bait for sharks. When Isaias spotted the first individuals, he immediately (but with composure and elegance) jumped into the water with his camera (he is also an award-winning photographer). After a while, he made an inviting hand ges-
ture signalling to customers that it was time to slip into the water. Good two hours, several blue sharks appeared and were constantly interacting with us. Extremely interesting individuals swam up to the centimetre to examin and check on us. At one time there were 9 blue sharks next to the boat, including two adult individuals (about 1.5 metres).
Blue sharks are particularly photogenic, their shape and movements make it a really interesting subject for photographers. Blue sharks are predators with elongated, slender bodies, their muzzles are sharply pointed. From the top the
shark is blue, and from the bottom it is white. The characteristic caudal fin is large and strongly indented, as are the pectoral fins – elongated and indented. This shark is fast and agile, it has a large range of movements of the body. It is
one of the most beautiful animals I have ever managed to photograph.
It is an honour to be able to commune with these animals, especially when shark fishing is a common practice in Europe. The shark fin busi-
ness is very profitable and millions of sharks are caught in Europe every year. Spain is one of the leading producers of unprocessed fins. In Europe alone, in 2016, the catch of the blue shark reached 53,000 tons. One can imagine this number comparing it to the weight of the blue whale (150 tons) and the conclusion is that it equals to the weight of 353 such individuals. The blue shark is a species close to extinction and the main reason for this status is too intensive fishing not only for its precious fins, but also for its increasingly popular meat.
It is worth looking at the website: stop-finning-eu.org and get acquainted with the disturbing statistics of hunting practices that take place in Europe. Signing the petition which can be found on stop-finning-eu.org may help to contribute to saving sharks.
INFORMATION ABOUT DIVING WITH BLUE SHARKS:
Location:
Season:
Company:
Hours:
Price:
Equipment:
Bermeo, Spain
June–October
MAKOPAKO BASQUE SHARK DIVING
8.00–15.00 or 15.00–21.00 (depending on the day)
180 euro
foam, mask, snorkel, fins, balast belt
Wonderful Iceland
and
Text
photos ZBIGNIEW ROGOZIŃSKI
There is a place on earth where ice meets fire, high mountain peaks climb majestically to the sky, and the water flowing from them in the form of mighty waterfalls crosses the lowlands with multi-coloured ribbons of rivers.
This fairy-tale land where, according to the locals, elves and trolls live, and where the night sky can shine with a riot of colourful lights, is Iceland.
Our plan to visit this beautiful and mysterious island was born almost ten years ago, while visiting the Viking Museum in Borg, in the Lofoten Islands. There we heard about brave northern men who, in their slender knars, crossed the dangerous North Atlantic, reaching Iceland. So, we decided to follow their footsteps. Unfortunately, we had to wait until this year for the realisation of this vision, but believe me, it was worth it.
As we were landing at the airport in Keflavik, we had only three things organised: cars, accommodation and three dives plus snorkelling. The rest of our stay was supposed to be done overnight, and sometimes even on the way :) But let's start from the beginning. The basic thing when going to Iceland is to rent a car and a suitable one. A fourwheel drive is indispensable, without such a vehicle we can forget about travelling in the Icelandic highlands. We chose a Dacia Duster, which turned out to be an "almost" perfect choice. That car burned little (the price of fuel on Iceland is almost 8 zlotys per liter !!!), it was spacious (we had two cars for 7 people with luggage) and reliable (we only got one flat tire and lost the license plate in one of the rivers). By the way, when we were returning, we decided to stop near the crossing where we lost the plate and tried to look for it. However, the success turned out to be half. It is true that we found license plates (even five), but unfortunately not ours :) This showed us that sometimes it is worth removing the plates if you plan to cross rivers. So why was our car selection "almost" perfect? It turned out that on Iceland, in addition to the four-wheel drive, the size of the car also matters. On the route to the valley Thorsmork (Þórsmörk), one of the last fords to be crossed before entering this tourist attraction, turned out
Jeep
Dacia
Keflavik Fagradalsfjall
Strytan
Húsavík
Silfra
Eyjafjörður
Vatnajökull
to be too deep for our cars and we had to turn back before our destination. While renting the cars, we were informed that the insurance on Iceland does not include flooding of the cars and dents of their roofs (tourists stand on the roofs to take pictures), which at first was a bit of a joke, but it turned out that it is not a joke and such situations happen here. When driving on Iceland, you need to remember one more thing, namely that there are not so many gas stations here, so it's better to fill up your car as often as possible and plan your route well. We found out about it the hard way, luckily with a happy ending :)
As for accommodation, we decided on hotels, detached houses, and private accommodation. Before leaving, we heard that on Iceland tents can be pitched anywhere, so we planned to take them with us and try to spend a few nights in such conditions. Unfortunately, it turned out that it is not so simple. Recently, there have been many bans and restrictions relating to this type of overnight stay, and if you break them, you face high fines. So, we decided to give up this attraction and from our perspective it turned out to be a good decision. A much better option for exploring the island seems to be travelling by camper (there are plenty of them here), although this way of visiting the island is not without some drawbacks.
Campers are simply too big, and it will not be possible to drive them everywhere.
Before planning a trip to Iceland, you need to remember that it is one of the most expensive countries in the world, so such an expedition can seriously damage the budget. A great convenience is that practically everywhere you can pay by card, so to explore the island, you do not need cash. Honestly, I don't even know what Icelandic crowns look like :) Shopping on Iceland is worth doing in large supermarkets of the most popular chains, where prices are not "so" high. I put the word "so" in quotation marks, because for Polish conditions they are still high. Although recently Poland has been getting closer to Iceland in this matter :) The list and location of these stores should be checked in advance on the Internet, because here, as in the case of gas stations, there are not so many of them and sometimes a trip to such a store can mean a small trip or a large detour. Also excursions and diving on Iceland are not the cheapest. The cost of one dive is about 900 zlotys, when buying a package of dives in one base it is, of course, a little cheaper. It is not enough, but apart from a computer and a diving certificate (also a certificate in using a drysuit), we do not have to take anything else with us on such an expedition. We
Fagradalsfjall volcano
Waterfall
get all the equipment included in the price of diving. It can only be problematic to choose a drysuit, despite the fact that the choice is really large. Of course, the bases are prepared for such a circumstance and use several tricks to match a piece to the customer. Unfortunately, if these tricks do not work, the drysuit will be leaking, and at a water temperature of about 10°C (Silfra 2–4°C) it is not a pleasant experience, which we also unfortunately had the opportunity to test :)
Now I will tell you a few words about why I fell in love with Iceland. FIRST OF ALL, IT WAS BECAUSE OF ITS FIRE. The island lies at the junction of two tectonic plates – the European and American, which are in constant motion (they move away from each other about 2.5 cm per year). It is their continuous, mutual interaction with each other that causes incredible geological activity on the surface of the entire island. The earth here in many places is shaking, bubbling, and exploding all the time. Iceland is a land of volcanoes (there are over 100 of them here), some extinct, others still active, like the Fagradalsfjall we visited, whose eruption began in March 2021 and continues to this day. Lava ejected from the interior of the earth during the eruption can be seen practically everywhere on Iceland, because almost the entire surface of the island was formed from
it. Everywhere you can see old and quite fresh lava fields overgrown with multi-coloured mosses, creating landscapes like from another planet. In addition to these amazing structures on the surface of the earth, lava has created many amazing lava caves beneath its surface. We visited the longest of them, Surtshellir. One and a half kilometres of wandering through a huge natural tunnel, in which once a river of liquid rocks flowed, gives an idea of the forces shaping this island. In addition to volcanoes, this land is full of geothermal fields, geysers shooting into the sky and hot springs, which are connected by the smell of sulphur perceptible from afar. You can also feel it often turning off the tap in many homes, because geothermal energy in about 80% satisfies the country's needs for heating and hot water.
SECONDLY, WHAT FASCINATED ME WAS THE ISLAND'S ICE. Glaciers occupy about 10% of its area. We decided to take a trip to the largest of them, Vatnajökull. Getting to the glacier with a huge vehicle, which was created from the combination of three cars, entering the ice cave and trekking on the glacier itself are worth spending a few extra crowns for such an expedition. The tour itself begins in the Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon, where giant blue and white icebergs drift, formed by calving from the
Vatnajökull Glacier
glacier. For those willing, of course for an additional fee, excursions on an amphibious car are organised, to be able to admire these ice islands up close. Growlers, i.e. smaller lumps of ice, are thrown on the shore of the lagoon, or flow along the river connecting with the ocean, and then, shattered and fragmented by waves, are thrown on the famous diamond beach nearby. Walking around on its black sand, among these ice gems, you can observe seals floating or basking on the shore.
THE THIRD THING THAT AMAZES ME IS THE WATER. The entire surface of the island is crossed by a network of streams and rivers, the colour of which depends on the terrain on which they flow. They then merge with each other to form a multi-coloured mosaic. Another amazing attraction that awaits us on Iceland are waterfalls, and there are hundreds of them here. From small streams flowing from vertical rock walls to monumental giants like Dettifoss and Gullfoss. Water is also related to our main reason why we went to Iceland, which is diving. We did the first of them in the most famous place on Iceland. Silfra is a flooded gap between the European and American tectonic plates, connected to Lake Thingvallavatn. You can dive here only in drysuits in the company of an experienced guide, which in practice means accepting the offer of one of the many diving centres. We used the services of the diving centre DIVE.IS. Diving in Silfra takes about 40 minutes, and the maximum depth is 18 meters, the average is about 7 meters. The water flowing through the fissure comes from a glacier located 50 kilometres away. During its way to the lake, it is filtered through the rock substrate, thanks to which visibility in Silfra reaches 150 meters!!! The diving route consists of four
Arnarnesstrýtur
Arnarnesstrýtur
stages. In three of them, Big Crack, Hall and Cathedral, you sail in single file behind a guide between the rock walls of the canyon. In some places it is so narrow that by spreading the arms you can touch both tectonic plates. The fourth, the last part, is a shallow lagoon of 100 meters in diameter overgrown with yellow algae. In Silfra, any access to ledges and caves is forbidden due to earthquakes occurring here, which can cause rocks to fall. Unfortunately, there is no too rich fauna here, and the route itself is not the longest, so the inability to penetrate this place more accurately spoils the fun of diving in this location. Two more dives were made in the north of the island, in the waters of the longest fjord on Iceland, Eyjafjörður . This time we used the services of the diving centre STRÝTAN. Both immersions were made in unique dive sites on a global scale, on hydrothermal vents. The owner of the base, Erlendur Bogason, is actively involved in their protection and investigation. Before plunging into the waters of the bay, the owner in his small museum, located above the base, talks about the history and specificity of this place. The first of our spots is Arnarnestrýtan. It is a group of small vents located at a depth of about 20 meters, around which a variety of marine life is concentrated. Immersing ourselves in this place, the first thing that caught our eye was a lot of cods, pollocks, lumpfish, flounders and wolffish, which even rushed towards our group and swam among us as if looking for something. The riddle was soon understood when our guide sat down at the bottom and began to feed
Strytan
all that bunch. In addition to fish, among the seaweed growing on the area around the vents you can meet small nudibranchs and crabs, while dozens of jellyfish float in the open tone. Water at the temperature of 79°C comes out of the vent fractures, which unfortunately does not affect the water temperature around them, and this fluctuates around 10°C. The second dive site we dived was even more amazing. From the bottom, at a depth of 65 meters, a lonely, 50-meter hydrothermal vent,
Strytan, rises like a huge spire. It is the shallowest known object of this type. It is estimated that it was formed after the last Ice Age, around 10,000 years ago. Every second, Strytan produces about 100 litres of fresh water at 72°C, and the compounds it contains are deposited on its surface, constantly building it up. Diving in this place, you descend to a depth of over 30 meters, and then, circling the chimney, you emerge into to the surface. Despite its size, Strytan is very fragile, so it cannot be touched, and divers must be very buoyant. Life around the chimney is not as rich as in the first place, but also here you can find fish and jellyfish circling around Strytan, and the chimney itself is covered in several places with anemones.
In addition to the two dives, we also had to do whale snorkelling. Unfortunately, once again it turned out that plans are one thing and reality is an-
Surtshellir cave
Silfra
other. The day we were supposed to go swimming with these giants, the whales swam out of the fjord into the open ocean. Therefore, we packed our cars and went to a nearby small fishing village, Húsavík, known as the "capital of whales", to meet these largest mammals on a boat trip. This time we managed to achieve our goal and apart from a lot of white-beaked dolphins frolicking around the boat and hundreds of puffins floating on the waves, we were able to see a humpback whale and a minke whale. Unfortunately, we will have to wait for swimming with these giants.
However, fire, ice and water are not all that can be admired on Iceland. It is impossible not to mention the beautiful coast, full of cliffs, beautiful beaches and monumental rock structures protruding from the stormy sea, and the picturesque canyons carved by rivers on the island's surface. It is impossible not to mention the beautiful single and double rainbow arcs and the amazing colours of the sky at dawn and sunset, swimming in hot springs and landscapes that change like a kaleidoscope every few kilometres. These views and experiences are simply unforgettable. It was impossible to visit the whole of Iceland during our ten days' stay. Despite travelling almost three thousand kilometres and walking over a hundred, we still have a lot to see and discover in this fairy-tale land, created and shaped by the elements of fire, water, earth and air.
White-beaked dolphin
Troll Hvitserkur
A single image – a photograph made by Leigh Bishop, auctioned by Jarosław Rzytka from Nitrox Divers for a hospice – provoked a thought “I want to dive there and feel it myself”.
Iremember it like it was yesterday –
I talked with Barry McGill, who prepared for me a list of courses, gear and experience that I need to dive in the Atlantic and see THIS wreck.
It has been over five years since then. Five years of training, configuration changes and gaining experience... I’m not going to write “it happened”. It did not “happen”. I did it. I worked hard for five years to be able to dive exactly where I wanted.
Today, I would like to tell you more about this fantastic place – the Malin Head wreck site.
Malin Head (Irish: Cionn Mhálanna) is a cape in Donegal County on the Inishowen Peninsula and the northernmost point on the Irish island. This area is a real paradise for divers, as it is the world largest grouping of sunken ships, liners, steamships, u-boots and other vessels that were once crossing the waters of the Atlantic.
18,000 (!) vessels of different kinds sunk off the Irish coast, 4000 of which were catalogued and described and their exact location is known. Detailed information on wrecks can be found at the National Monuments Service: Wreck Viewer website.
Malin Head wreck site
If at first you don’t succeed, don’t give up on your dreams. Their time will come. My dream about SS Justicia was born on 13 February 2016
Text IRENA KOSOWSKA
Photos ZYGFRYD KWIATKOWSKI
Today, I’d like to share with you a brief description of several of these wrecks and how to organize your dives there.
Malin Head can be reached in at least several ways; however, since these dives are quite difficult, you must always take into account the transport of gear. Our team chose to fly (you can fly to several Irish airports from many European cities) and have our gear transported by two vans from Poland (mind the maximum authorized mass of vehicles). Gear can also be sent by a courier, but due to the gas logistics on site (or actually, none at all), we took the gases with us for each dive (this can
only be organized with your own van or two vans). When planning routes, you need to take into account ferries and optimal routes; Brexit meant that customs checks were reintroduced. COVID-19 restrictions and potential quarantines did not make our lives easier as well. Before setting off, a thorough research into the current requirements and conditions in this respect is necessary.
When you arrive at your airport in Ireland, you need to rent a car – I recommend to rent one with a high ground clearance. A car loaded with gear will have a tough time travelling the
narrow Irish roads, where cars often pass each other on the roadside. You also need to remember about left-hand traffic in Ireland (a little funny and a little scary).
Two boats from two different operators are available for diving at Malin Head. Your diving expedition price includes accommodation at the diving boat owner’s B&B.
The organizer of our expedition, Andrzej Zalewski, and his friend, Piotr Dybikowski, who resides in Ireland, chose the RosGuill and lodging in Fisherman’s Village. As a result, we lived
in a clean, cozy and well-organized place, offering excellent breakfast and special, very spacious rooms to store their diving gear (drying room, compressor station). As a diving team, we highly recommend this place!
Organization of trips on the Atlantic depends, first and foremost, on the whims of Neptune, then on the captain, and only then on the divers. We had our diving preferences, but the final decision about the destination is always up to the captain and this decision is most often taken on the previous evening. Your
dive time depends on the waves, tides and currents, so there were days when we needed to wake up at 5 am to not miss a “slack” and on other days we could only enter the water in the late afternoon. Unfortunately, the whether in Ireland is very unpredictable and, when planning a week-long expedition, you need to be prepared for the eventuality that some trips will simply not happen. You should also account for almost constant rain, wind and waves reaching several meters with a length that is much different from what we know from the Baltic Sea. All of this necessitates completely different diving gear logistics, which should be strictly followed on a boat. On the first day, the team was thoroughly trained on the applicable procedures, including mock practical training, thanks to which diving logistics worked like a charm.
Despite the descent and decompression conditions, which were sometimes very difficult, the conditions underwater made up for the hardships. More than once visibility exceeded 30 meters and we could see vessels more than 100 meters long and fantastic artificial reefs on monumental wrecks, teeming with life. Our bottom time was limited by cold and depth – we tried to limit it to three hours, which is also recommended at MH. The average dive time, depending on the day/wreck
and the team, is 150 minutes. You need to be prepared that your entire dive will be done in relatively cold water, approx. 10 degrees, which was sometimes uncomfortable during the decompression phase, despite a well-organized deco bar. Hydration and urination are also topics to consider with these type of dives (but it is a topic for a separate article).
All physical activity and struggling with seasickness during several hours long ocean trips were compensated underwater. The number of wrecks, their size and preservation, visibility underwater and the favor of nature manifesting in the form of dolphins and Minke whale accompanying us during return trips make this expedition our “trip of a lifetime”.
The experienced organizers of our expedition, Andrzej Zalewski and Piotr Dybikowski, definitely rose to the challenge and ensured the safety and comfort for all fellow travelers, as well as taking care of the logistics for the trip. It was not their first expedition to the magical Malin Head, and from what I understand, they will soon organize another one! If you are interested, please contact Andrzej Zalewski: +48 603 209 571.
A big thank you to the whole team – we had a great time. See you underwater!
THE MOST FAMOUS MALIN HEAD WRECKS
HMS Audacious, 64 meters
HMS Audacious, built in 1913, was a King George V class super-dreadnought battleship with a buoyancy of 23 tons and dimensions 182 x 27 x 8 m. The ship did not participate in military operations and sank in 1914, as it struck a mine during gunnery practice. The most famous site on the wreck itself are the remarkable cannons – their magnitude can only be appreciated when compared with the size of a diver, who seems to be as small as a fish.
SS Carthaginian, 58 meters
SS Carthaginian, built in 1884, was a British sail and steam ocean liner. On 14 June 1917, a vessel weighing 4444 tons, with the dimensions 99 x 12 m, struck a German mine and sank off the coast of Innistrahull, without any casualties. It sailed from Glasgow to Montreal.
SS Empire Heritage, 66 meters
SS Empire Heritage, a vessel built in 1930, weighted 15 702 tons and its dimensions were 508 72 x 50 m. It was torpedoed on the route from New York to Liverpool and was laden with crude oil, Sherman tanks and armored vehicles. There were 113 casualties. Currently, the wreck lies on its starboard 20 miles northwest from Malin Head. A spectacular view that unfolds before the divers’ eyes during descent includes objects resembling toy tanks scattered on the floor and grouped on a pile that turn out to be massive machines scattered by nature on the ocean floor. It is one of the dives that you will never forget.
RMS Justicia, 72 meters
RMS Justicia, a British military vessel with a tonnage of 32 234 tons and the dimensions 225 x 26 13 m, was put to sea in 1914. It was torpedoed several times on the route from Liverpool to New York and sunk, taking with it 16 casualties from its crew of 600 men. It is a massive wreck with large boilers and three exposed huge screw propellers. Currently, it lies on its port 16 miles northwest from Innistrahull. This is the wreck that motivated me for an expedition to Malin Head. And it turned out to be even more majestic than I imagined. I will be sure to come back there – also to see it again.
SS Laurentic, 42 meters
SS Laurentic, a vessel built in 1908, weighted 14 892 tons and its dimensions were 550 67 x 41 m. After leaving Buncrany in Donegal County, it struck a mine and sunk within 45 minutes. Part of its cargo were 3211 gold bars, each weighting 40 pounds. Over the next seven years, 700 dives were conducted to retrieve the gold, but 22 bars have still not been found. Unfortunately, we didn’t have any luck and didn’t find the gold. But we will come back!
SS Athenia, 60 meters
SS Athenia, a British ocean liner built in 1923, weighted 13 580 tons gross and its dimensions were 160 20 x 11 m. It was torpedoed by a German U-boot on the route from Liverpool to Montreal and sunk, causing 112 casualties out of 1418 passengers and crew members. It was the first marine casualty
during World War II – the war with Germany was declared a mere hours before and the event was condemned worldwide.
U-2511, 67 meters
A German U-2511 submarine, set to sea in 1944 and with a length of 77 meters, was the only active XX1 U-boot. It was sunk on 7 January 1946 and currently, it is relatively undamaged. Diving there makes quite an impression – enormous spaces allow for easy penetration and leave you wanting more. Great visibility outside and inside the wreck made us redefine U-boot diving.
U-89, 62 meters
U-89, a German operational U-boot, was set to sea in 1915. On 12 February 1918, it was rammed by HMS Roxburgh near Malin Head and sank with its entire crew – 43 people. The vessel is massive and has a lot of space to be penetrated, with delightful views outside and inside the wreck. The preserved weaponry is both fearsome and stunning. It was an unforgettable dive.
mission. In every condition. Zeagle has your back.
Disenchanting the Baltic wrecks
ORP ”DELFIN”
Text and photos TOMEK RAMUTKOWSKI
ters, they ignite the imagination of divers who dive on them to see redness.
The Baltic wrecks are magical. Regardless of the depth at which they are buried, the degree of destruction, the type of vessel, size or period in history from which they come, all wrecks lying on the bottom of the Baltic Sea undoubtedly have "that something" in them.
Each of them in some way has made history. Some of them were very spectacular, bringing with them huge tragedies which they witnessed and because of which they found themselves at the bottom of the Baltic Sea. Others, in turn, were sunk in more prosaic circumstances, due to weather, navigational errors or deliberately, for training purposes.
Regardless of that, all Baltic wrecks are great places to dive, and bathed in often the dark and often mysterious Baltic wa-
And although many of them lie at depths far beyond the capabilities of recreational divers*, there are many wrecks that are ideal for starting a Baltic adventure.
And I will gladly take you to these wrecks :)
WHERE TO START?
The best place to start your adventure with real wreck diving (we are not talking about sailboats sunken in lakes, is Puck Bay, which is part of the Gulf of Gdańsk. It is due to:
● the Bay being sheltered by the Hel Peninsula, thanks to which waves are smaller than on the open Baltic Sea,
● the currents, which are weak and not very frequent,
● the fishing nets, which are not numerous,
● the relatively small depths of wrecks,
● the large number of wrecks at various depths, available for recreational diving.
To sum up, it is certainly easier to start in the Bay than on the open Baltic Sea.
WELL, WHICH WRECK TO CHOOSE IN THE BEGINNING?
There are several places worth visiting at the beginning of our wreck path. I will start with the wreck, which in my opinion and many other divers' is one of the prettiest, if not the prettiest in the bay, in terms of recreation.
ORP "Delfin", because we are talking about this ship, is a very climatic, wooden wreck lying at a depth of 20 meters, with a minimum depth above the wreck at a level of less than 13 meters. It is located 4 km from Jastarnia in the south-east direction.
The "Dolphin" is in a very good condition and although a few years ago, in circumstances not fully explained, it lost its superstructure, nevertheless, it is still an extremely charming and, above all, easy to navigate wreck. There are no remains of fishing nets on it, which makes diving relatively easy. It lies tilted to the port side, which makes the view even more charming and atmospheric.
The hull of the "Dolphin" is very well preserved, with beautiful and very characteristic galleries running along both sides, quite large holds in the central part of the deck and many hatches that can be peeked into by shining a flashlight there. "Dolphin" is also liked by more advanced wreck divers because it looks even more beautiful inside. On the transversely board-
ed wooden walls there is a tarnish, which makes the interior rooms look even more beautiful and mysterious in the light of a flashlight.
Attention! However, I strongly discourage from entering the wreckage by people without proper preparation, appropriate equipment and skills. Inside the wreck it is very easy, with one inappropriate movement of the fin, to cause a very strong deterioration of visibility, and with stronger disturbance of the sediment, the visibility drops to zero!
However, it is worth investing in the development of your diving skills, training with good diving instructors, buying the right diving equipment and learning the right procedures to be able to see this and other wrecks from the other side in the future:)
ORP "DELFIN" – A BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY
The Dolphin was built at the Robert Jacob Inc. shipyard on City Island, New York, as one of 561 American ships of this type. It was first launched in 1942 under the name YMS (Yard Minesweeper) – 211, but it started sailing for good after being transferred to the British Royal Navy, where it sailed under the British flag, under the name BYMS (British Yard Minesweeper) – 2211.
It served mainly in European waters, and the interesting fact is that it participated, among others, in the famous Operation Neptune, the landing in Normandy, which is the largest landing operation in history in terms of forces and means used. After the end of the war, the ship was demobilised and handed over to the Americans, and in 1947, it was one of the four ships, purchased by the Polish Ministry of Shipping.
Three of them, under new names: "Delfin", "Foka", "Mors" were incorporated into the Polish Navy, and one, as "Zodiac", was transformed into a hydrographic unit in the civil service. ORP "Delfin" served in the 4th Division of the Minesweeper Flotilla until 1957, when it was withdrawn from service and, after preparation, sunk in the waters of the Bay of Puck for training purposes.
ORP “DELFIN” SPECIFICATIONS
Coordinates:
54° 38' 52.2" N
18° 36' 11.2" E
Dimensions:
Length: 41,9 m
Width: 7,5 m
Draft: 2,4 m
Displacement: 277 t
Weapon:
● two double WKMs (12.7 mm Colt large-caliber machine guns),
● one soviet cannon with 85 mm caliber
● acoustic trawl SA-IV
● electromagnetic trawl TEM-VI
● OROPES contact trawl
Drive:
● two GMC diesel engines with 735 kW (1000 KM)
● two propellers giving a maximum speed of 12.6 knots
● crew: 42 people
HOW TO START?
There are many diving bases on the peninsula from which you can go out to the wrecks of the Bay. You then need to contact the service of such a base, arrange a specific day and wreck on which you want to dive, of course within your depth limits. Regardless of the choice of the base, at the beginning of the wreckage tour, I propose the following scenarios:
1. The beginning of the wreckage adventure with the wreck course. Despite various opinions in the community, it is always a good idea to undergo wreck training. It definitely increases the level of the diver's self-awareness, familiarising him or her with the techniques and procedures related to wreck diving. It is important that, when choosing a wreckage course, you have an adequate instructor. He or
she must be an experienced wreck diver who has dived and trained a lot on these wrecks, so there is a good chance that you will get the most out of such a course.
2. Diving with a guide hired from the base. This gives you the comfort that you do not have to dive on your own in an environment that is new for you, and the guide will discuss diving, show the most interesting places on a given wreck, present potential threats, but also discuss the ways to enter the water and get out on the boat after diving. In a word, he or she will take care of your comfort while you are taking
the first wreck steps. This option is also good for people who do not like to leave in large groups with their (if they have any) diving centre.
3. Going with your instructor. Regardless of the training organisation, any instructor who is a freelancer or instructor from any diving centre in the country can come to the Baltic Sea with his group. All you need to do is contact the selected base and fix a convenient date. The advantage is that on such trips your instructor is your guide, and you leave, most often, with a well-known group.
Regardless of the way in which you want to start the wreck adventure, it is worth taking this first step and seeing for yourself how wonderful and majestic our Baltic wrecks are. I recommend starting with those that will give you the greatest comfort of taking your first steps, i.e., from our Bay gems, such as the protagonist of today's article – ORP "Dolphin".
* a recreational diver in this sense is one who performs no decompression diving. Of course, technical diving, with a real or decompression ceiling, are also or can be recreational dives, even if they are performed on trimix mixtures at considerable depths.
KURSY
TECHNICZNE I REKREACYJNE
SIDEMOUNT WRAKOWE
INSTRUKTORSKIE
Drysuit
When you consider investing in a drysuit, first of all you want it to be dry also after diving. There are as many opinions as there are manufacturers. Apparently, buying your second or even further suits is easier.
Let’s not focus on instructors and people who dive several hundred times a year or those working under difficult conditions. Instead, let’s focus on recreational and intermediate technical divers – those who make a couple of dozen of dives a year. Let’s rather look at product availability (the sooner, the better – who wants to wait months for delivery), vast sizing offer, efficient service and the weight of the suit, which will be important as we’ll want to fly with it to various diving destinations. Color has been gaining importance recently, as a factor for selecting a drysuit. Some manufacturers also market limited editions. Personally, I opted for black and would probably choose black today – or maybe blue ;)
We focused on the light drysuit from Bare – Aqua Trec. The weight of this one is really low. It is made of Cordura Nylon Oxford and is fitted with a neoprene neck seal. It is rather snug and fits the diver’s body well. You should take into account the temperature of the water you’ll be diving in. This suit is just an external layer and as such has no significant thermal properties. The colder the water, the warmer clothes you will need to wear underneath. On the other hand, it is perfect for diving in water temperatures over a dozen degrees. Some use it for diving in any waters, including the Red Sea. Personally, I’ve been charmed with this one. I’m forgetting about the suit completely when under water. It doesn’t pinch, squeak or leak. OK, there was this one time in the Trześniowskie lake – after getting into the water I felt cold water near my left knee. I descended to 5 m and was diving for about 20 minutes when the water started to flow to the other leg and I signaled the end of the dive. Upon inspection, it turned out the suit had a straight cut of about 2 cm at the knee. I glued it together and it has been working fine ever since – a couple of years already. Apart from this external mechanical damage, I haven’t experienced any issues with this suit.
Aqua Trec has a plastic YKK zip on the front that allows self-zipping. It runs from the right hip to the left arm. Remember to take proper care of it! Sleeves end with latex seals. Both dry and wet gloves can be used, according to your preference. Personally, I take care of my zip and initially I was afraid that a tooth or the entire zip would break. None of this never happened. It has been working like a charm.
The Si-Tech inflation valve does not leak and is installed by default on the chest. It rotates 360 degrees. At the same time, the default location of the drain valve from the same manufacturer is on the left shoulder. I’m right-handed and operating the valves under water didn’t cause any discomfort. They work impeccably.
Bare internal shoulder straps work really well. Additionally, they are joined with a telescopic body part with a replaceable crotch strap that can be undone. As with all shoulder straps, they tend to twist on your back and turn when gearing up.
Sometimes I have my diving buddy untangle them. Once I adjusted them to the proper length, once fastened, I forget about them during the dive. Additionally, you can order an Aqua Trec with neoprene socks or boots. Get an additional pocket or
pockets. The material around the knees is additionally reinforced and padded from the inside.
I opted for boots for mine, just out of personal preference. I put them on once, I take them off once, no fuss. And no laces to tie ;) I didn’t request a pocket and sometimes I miss it, but not that much to have it glued on. Yet, if I were to buy a new suit, I’d have decided for a pocket.
Reinforced knee parts are also useful. I dive in all sorts of conditions – sometimes I kneel to take a photo, I dive to collect waste or with archeologists and from time to time I nudge my knees on the floor. No cut, no tear and it’s been 4 or even 5 years already.
If you are uncertain what to buy, look for testing events of a particular manufacturer. There are plenty of them throughout the year. A couple of dives will surely help you choose your drysuit.
Aqua Trec is convenient, comfortable, light and dries fast after diving. It fits well during diving. There is no pinching, no “pulling”, but it only an external layer, so with the appropriate undersuit, we won’t be freeze in cold water. Personally, I got cold at least twice :)
Wojciech ZGOŁA
IT’S A COLD WORLD
OUT THERE.
BUT BARE KEEPS YOU WARM ON EVERY DIVE.
Key: VC – vital capacity in litres FVC – forced vital capacity in litres
STATIC APNOEA
Results Text ALEŠ KOŠTOMAJ
RESULTS
We successfully performed all measurements with all eight subjects. The results are shown in the tables and figures as arithmetic means and standard deviations (AM ± SD). Characters and abbreviations in the tables and figures represent statistical significance: **: P ≤ 0.010 and * ≤ 0.050.
Subjects achieved different results. The results of spirometric tests (ST), however, fail to convey enough information about the characteristics of the subjects. Other important parameters are also gender, age, height, body weight, and competitive experience. It is good that the subjects achieved the best possible ST results. The right combination of all the mentioned parameters produces the best results. However, it is yet not known, what the ideal formula for that right combination is.
Figure 1 shows the duration of individual apnoeas, i.e. end of apnoea (EA). The longest apnoea after inhalation was measured on land, namely 462 s, while the shortest apnoea after inhalation on land was 250 s. In apnoea after inhalation in water, the longest apnoea was 405 s and the shortest 260 s. In apnoea after exhalation on land, the longest apnoea was 278 s. The shortest apnoea after exhalation on land was 125 s. Subjects held their breath the shortest in apnoea after exhalation in water. The longest apnoea was 271 s long and the shortest 125 s.
The subjects held their breath on average 11% longer in apnoea after inhalation on land than in apnoea after inhalation in water. On average, subjects held their breath 7% longer in apnoea after exhalation on land than in apnoea after exhalation in water.
Table 1. Results of spirometric test (ST) measurements
Figure 1. Duration of individual apnoeas, i.e. end of apnoea
Figure 2 shows the contraction point (CP) of individual apnoeas. In all apnoeas (in water, on land, after inhalation and after exhalation), it is always the goal to reach CP as late as possible. In apnoea after inhalation on land, CP occurred after the longest period of time with an average time of 219 ± 71 s. In apnoea after inhalation in water, CP occurred within 215 ± 64 s. In apnoea after exhalation on land, CP occurred within 127 ± 43 s. However, in apnoea after exhalation in water, CP appeared after the shortest time of all apnoeas, with an average time of 123 ± 37 s.
The difference in CP between apnoea on land and apnoea in water was on average 2%. The difference in CP between apnoea after exhalation on land and apnoea after exhalation in water was on average 3%.
The times of EA and CP correspond between all four performances. CP and EA appear first in apnoea after exhalation in water, then in apnoea after exhalation on land, which is followed by apnoea after inhalation in water, and finally in apnoea after inhalation on land.
Figure 3 shows the heart rate (HR) values in both apnoeas after inhalation relative to the percentage of the final time. In apnoea after inhalation on land, positive values of the standard deviation from the arithmetic mean are shown. In apnoea after inhalation in water, however, negative values of the standard deviation from the arithmetic mean are shown. Analysis of variance for repeated measurements showed statistically significant differences between the two apnoeas (**: P ≤ 0.010 and *: P ≤ 0.050) in most percentages of the final time. At 0% of the final time (onset of apnoea), the difference in initial HR between apnoea after inhalation in water was 85 ± 11 (1/min) and apnoea after inhalation on land 78 ± 11 (1/min). At 10% of the final time, a major change occurred as HR in apnoea after inhalation on land began to increase. HR in apnoea after inhalation in water, however, was greatly reduced. The lowest HR in both apnoeas after inhalation was measured at 70% of the final time in apnoea after inhalation in water (41 (1/min)).
Figure 4 shows heart rate (HR) values in both apnoeas after exhalation relative to the percentage of final time. In apnoea after exhalation on land, positive values of the standard deviation from the arithmetic mean are shown. In apnoea after exhalation in water, negative values of the standard deviation from the arithmetic mean are shown. At 0% of the final time (onset of apnoea), the significant difference in initial HR was measured between the apnoea after exhalation in water – 85 ± 7 (1 / min) and apnoea after exhalation on land – 79 ± 12 (1 / min). The HR curve in both apnoeas begins to decrease immediately after the onset of apnoea and has similar characteristics throughout the measured time. The lowest HR of both apnoeas after exhalation was measured at 100% of the final time (end of apnoea) in apnoea after exhalation on land (36 (1/min)).
Figure 2. The onset of spontaneous contraction, i.e. contraction point (CP) of the abdominal muscles in individual apnoeas
3. Heart rate (HR) values in both apnoeas after inhalation
4. Heart rate (HR) values in both apnoeas after exhalation
Figure
Figure
Figure 5. Blood oxygen saturation (SaO2) values in both apnoeas after inhalation
Figure 5 shows values of blood oxygen saturation (SaO2) in both apnoeas after inhalation relative to the final time. In apnoea after inhalation on land, positive values of the standard deviation from the arithmetic mean are shown. In apnoea after inhalation in water, negative values of the standard deviation from the arithmetic mean are shown. The two SaO2 curves of apnoeas after inhalation are similar. The largest drop in SaO2 of both apnoeas after inhalation occurred after 90% of the final time. The lowest SaO2 was measured in apnoea after inhalation on land at 100% of the final time (end of apnoea), namely 39% SaO2.
Figure 6. Blood oxygen saturation (SaO2) values in both apnoeas after exhalation
Figure 6 shows values of blood oxygen saturation (SaO2) in both apnoeas after exhalation relative to the final time. In apnoea after exhalation in water, positive values of the standard deviation from the arithmetic mean are shown. In apnoea after exhalation on land, negative values of the standard deviation from the arithmetic mean are shown. The two SaO2 curves of apnoeas after exhalation are different. The largest drop in SaO2 in both apnoeas after exhalation occurred after 90% of the final time. The lowest SaO2 was measured in apnoea after exhalation on land at 100% of the final time (end of apnoea), namely 30% SaO2.
Figure 7 shows the systolic blood pressure (BP) of individual apnoeas in mmHg relative to the final time. Systolic BP increases with time in all apnoeas. The largest jump in systolic BP was detected at 90% of the final time. At 90% of the final time, a difference between the two apnoeas after inhalation and the two apnoeas after exhalation is seen. The two largest measured individual values were 228 mmHg in apnoea after inhalation in water and even 240 mmHg in apnoea after inhalation on land.
Figure 7. Systolic blood pressure (BP) of individual apnoeas
Figure 8 shows the diastolic blood pressure (BP) of individual apnoeas in mmHg relative to the final time. Analysis of variance for repeated measurements showed statistically significant differences between the apnoeas after exhalation (in water and on land) (*: P ≤ 0.050) at 40% of the final time. Diastolic BP, similar to systolic BP, increases with time in all apnoeas. At 40% of the final time, there are statistically significant differences between apnoea after exhalation in water and apnoea after exhalation on land. The two highest individual values were measured at 90% of the final time in both apnoeas after inhalation (164 mmHg in water and 145 mmHg on land).
DISCUSSION
Identified differences between static apnoea after inhalation in water and on land
Depending on the place where they were performed, apnoeas after inhalation did not differ in effects. The only difference was in the change of the HR value. There were no statistically significant differences in EA and CP between apnoea after inhalation in water and apnoea after inhalation on land. This may indicate a different functioning of the diving reflex in water and on land. The response of the diving reflex on land is smaller while it is stronger in water. On the other hand, the measurement conditions in water probably did not allow for longer apnoeas. Namely, all subjects complained of the pain in their hands during measurements in water. Due to the measuring devices (SaO2 and BP measurement), the subjects had to place both hands on the edge of the pool. Pain in the hands was the main reason that the subjects were not able to relax in water as much as during the measurements on land.
The later the CP appears, the longer the apnoea is. If CP is shown in proportions of EA, it is found that it occurs in apnoea in water at 67 ± 13% and in apnoea on land at 61 ± 13%.
During the measurements in all apnoeas, all subjects achieved shorter apnoea times than are their personal re-
cords. There are probably two reasons for that. The first is the personal fitness of the subjects (timing of the fitness level for the best personal times), and the second is not allowing the subjects to use air packing techniques during the measurements.
The functioning of the diving reflex during apnoea is most easily monitored by measuring HR. The diving reflex represents the protection of the body when breathing is interrupted both on land and in water. The regulation of HR during apnoea is the consequence of the activation of various mechanisms which are triggered due to irritation. When the face is immersed into water and the mouth and nose are submerged, the facial receptors for cold are stimulated, which increase the activity of the vagus nerve and thus immediately lower the HR. Peripheral vasoconstriction increases resistance and consequently BP. This is detected by baroreceptors that reflexively lower HR. Upon deep inhalation, the tension receptors in the chest muscles detect muscle stretching and raise HR. However, as lung volume slowly decreases during apnoea, its impact also decreases, which further lowers HR. Apnoea also causes changes in the levels of O2 and CO2 in blood, which are detected by chemoreceptors. This also causes vasoconstriction and a decrease in HR.
Because of the change of HR values during the two apnoeas after inhalation, it was established that HR did not change in the same way. At the very beginning of both apnoeas, it was
Figure 8. Diastolic blood pressure (BP) of individual apnoeas
found that HR was significantly higher in apnoea after inhalation in water than in apnoea after inhalation on land. The differences in initial HR were due to different starting positions in both apnoeas. In apnoea after inhalation in water, three phases were observed, which is typical for excellent divers. The first phase is characterized by a steeper drop in HR, lasting to 20% of the final time, which is the effect of diving reflex and the functioning of various other mechanisms. This is followed by another, more stable phase with fluctuations slightly upwards and then slightly downwards, lasting up to 60% of the final time. In this phase, the cardiovascular system has adapted to the new circumstances.
The movement of HR values in apnoea after inhalation on land is completely different. The first phase is characterized by a steep increase of HP, lasting up to 10% of the final time. The increase in HR could occur because of a tensile reflex in the chest muscles and high intrathoracic pressure on the heart, which was not measured. The pressure is due to the large lung volume resulting from deep inhale and the supine position lying on land. In the second, more stable phase which lasts up to 50% of the final time, the HR rises a little in the first part of the curve, but then it begins to decline slightly. This occurs because of slow decrease of the lung volume which decreases the impact of lungs and further lowers HR.
The end of the second and the beginning of the third phase (phase of resumed lowering of HR) is supposed to coincide with the beginning of CP. In apnoea after inhalation on land, the moment of CP appeared earlier, at 61%, and the third phase started even a little earlier at 55% of the final time. In apnoea after inhalation in water, CP occurred at 67% and the third phase at 60% of the final time. The third phase, which lasts until the end of apnoea, usually occurs only in better divers. It is characterized by more obvious hypoxia and consequently peripheral vasoconstriction with a marked increase in blood pressure and ever stronger spontaneous contractions of the respiratory muscles. In the last phase, the lowest HR values were measured in both apnoeas after inhalation.
The SaO2 values for both apnoeas after inhalation are similar. There are no statistically significant differences between the two of them. Given that the response of the diving reflex is greater in water than on land, we would expect a later drop in SaO2 in water. It also must be emphasized that lower SaO2 does not necessarily mean longer apnoea. It is true, however, that better divers are able to achieve lower SaO2 values during apnoea than others. The results of the study showed that in both apnoeas after inhalation, BP also increases with the duration of holding one’s breath. The strong increase in BP in both apnoeas after inhalation in the last part of the final time is associated with a larger volume of air in the lungs and the functioning of many other mechanisms.
Identified differences between static apnoea after exhalation in water and on land
Depending on where they were performed, apnoeas after exhalation did not differ in effects. The only difference was in diastolic BP at 40% of the final time. As expected, shorter apnoea times were obtained in both apnoea after exhalation than in both apnoea after inhalation. The main reason is smaller lung volume and consequently lower O2 reserve. If CP is correlated with EA, it is found that CP occurs at 72 ± 14% in apnoea in water and at 67 ± 12% in apnoea on land. The changes of the HR values between the two apnoeas after exhalation, however, indicated similar changes of HR. The only exception was the initial HR, which was similar to both apnoeas after inhalation due to the two initial positions already described.
It is likely that the diving reflex in both apnoeas after exhalation is similar on land (dry face) and with a submerged head, as both apnoeas after exhalation also showed three phases which have the same characteristics described in apnoea after inhalation in water. The first phase is characterized by a steeper drop in HR which lasts until 20% of the final time. This is followed by another, more stable phase with slight fluctuations upwards and then slightly downwards which lasts until 60% of the final time. In this second, more stable phase, the change of HR values in apnoea after exhalation on land deviates a little. The increase is interesting because the lungs are empty and there is no influence of the tensile reflex in the chest muscles. The increase of the HR could thus be the result of a supine position and the force of body weight acting on the entire chest, as the internal pressure is lower due to exhalation. It is more likely that the difference between the two apnoeas is due to the greater response of the diving reflex in water.
The third phase in both apnoeas after exhalation begins at 60% of the final time. The lowest HR values in both apnoeas after exhalation were measured at the end of apnoea, namely, in apnoea after exhalation in water (53 ± 15 (1 / min)) and in apnoea after exhalation on land (61 ± 21 (1 / min)). The lowest HR value among all four apnoeas was measured in apnoea after exhalation on land (36 (1 / min)) at the end of apnoea.
The SaO2 values in both apnoeas after exhalation are different. There are no statistically significant differences between them, but the effect of the diving reflex on the values in apnoea after exhalation in water is clearly visible. SaO2 in apnoea after exhalation in water begins to decrease later than SaO2 in apnoea after exhalation on land. In apnoea after exhalation on land, the lowest SaO2 among all four apnoeas was measured at EA (30%).
The results of the study show that in both apnoeas after exhalation, BP increases with the duration of holding one’s breath. The increase of BP during both apnoeas is not jerky,
it is steady. In both apnoeas after exhalation, in which the air volume was minimal, the increase of BP was uniform.
CONCLUSION
Depending on where they were performed, apnoeas after exhalation did not differ in effects. The only difference was in diastolic BP at 40% of the final time. As expected, shorter apnoea times were obtained in both apnoea after exhalation than in both apnoea after inhalation. The main reason is smaller lung volume and consequently lower O2 reserve. If CP is correlated with EA, it is found that CP occurs at 72 ± 14% in apnoea in water and at 67 ± 12% in apnoea on land. The changes of the HR values between the two apnoeas after exhalation, however, indicated similar changes of HR. The only exception was the initial HR, which was similar to both apnoeas after inhalation due to the two initial positions already described.
It is likely that the diving reflex in both apnoeas after exhalation is similar on land (dry face) and with a submerged head, as both apnoeas after exhalation also showed three phases which have the same characteristics described in apnoea after inhalation in water. The first phase is characterized by a steeper drop in HR which lasts until 20% of the final time. This is followed by another, more stable phase with slight fluctuations upwards and then slightly downwards which lasts until 60% of the final time. In this second, more stable phase, the change of HR values in apnoea after exhalation on land deviates a little. The increase is interesting because the lungs are empty and there is no influence of the tensile reflex in the chest muscles. The increase of the HR could thus be the result of a supine position and the force of body weight acting on the entire chest, as the internal pressure is lower due to exhalation. It is more likely that the difference between the two apnoeas is due to the greater response of the diving reflex in water.
The third phase in both apnoeas after exhalation begins at 60% of the final time. The lowest HR values in both apnoeas after exhalation were measured at the end of apnoea, namely, in apnoea after exhalation in water (53 ± 15 (1/ min)) and in apnoea after exhalation on land (61 ± 21 (1 / min)). The lowest HR value among all four apnoeas was measured in apnoea after exhalation on land (36 (1 / min)) at the end of apnoea.
The SaO2 values in both apnoeas after exhalation are different. There are no statistically significant differences between them, but the effect of the diving reflex on the values in apnoea after exhalation in water is clearly visible. SaO2 in apnoea after exhalation in water begins to decrease later than SaO2 in apnoea after exhalation on land. In apnoea after exhalation on land, the lowest SaO2 among all four apnoeas was measured at EA (30%).
The results of the study show that in both apnoeas after exhalation, BP increases with the duration of holding one’s breath. The increase of BP during both apnoeas is not jerky, it is steady. In both apnoeas after exhalation, in which the air volume was minimal, the increase of BP was uniform
RESOURCES
For readers interested in additional resources please contact me through email ales.kostomaj@gmail.com
Text and photos AGNIESZKA KALSKA
"Which mask is best for freediving?" I often hear this question from my students and befriended freedivers. In order to give an honest answer, one should ask the question "what kind of mask to choose?", because it will not necessarily be the same for everyone.
The mask is the most important piece of freediver's gear.
A well-chosen one is one that we take out of the box, put it on and forget that we have anything on our face. In this article, I will pay attention to how to choose, adjust and properly use a mask so that it does not disturb us and serves us for years.
Mask shape
It is said that a freediving mask should have a minimum volume to minimise the loss of air from the lungs for compensation during the dive. There is a great deal of truth to this, but is it more important than its good fitting? Definitely not.
Remember that a freediving mask works completely differently than in the case of scuba diving. Freedivers change depth much faster both up and down, which also causes faster changes in pressure, and thus – changes in the volume of air inside the mask. A poorly fitting mask will leak and to get rid of water from it, we would have to waste a lot of air, which we should save.
Freediver mask
HOW TO CHOOSE AND USE IT CORRECTLY
Lenses
Large lenses increase the field of view, but also often increase the volume of the mask. For sports purposes, it is better to choose a more profiled mask with smaller lenses. For recreational purposes, we can choose the one in which we can see more. Among freedivers, the mask model with profiled plastic lenses is common, which gives us a wide viewing angle while keeping the volume small. For safety reasons, the lenses should be transparent so that the partner can observe the eyes and assess the state of our consciousness. On the market are also available masks with
mirrored lenses, which are mainly suggested for spearfishing.
How to choose a mask in a shop?
In online stores, it is difficult for us to judge in the picture whether a given mask has a larger or smaller internal volume and how large it is in relation to others. What we can pay attention to is, for example, whether there are two lenses and whether it is strongly profiled. The masks with a face-plate usually have a larger volume than those with double lenses and a profiled skirt (more tightly fitting the nose and cheeks). The best
solution will always be to try on the mask in a physical store or have the option of returning it after shipping.
Test no. 1
When trying on a mask, put it against your face without wearing the headband. We gently draw in the air with our nose. The mask should stick to the face evenly, without causing any pressure anywhere. We should not feel the pressure of the mask frame, especially in the area of the lower forehead, where the sinuses are located. The different frame shapes in the mask are meant to adapt different face shapes.
Test no. 2
Once the previous test has been passed, the second test can be performed, in which we check if we can catch the nose well to equalise the pressure. Pinch your nose with your fingers and blow gently through your nose. If the pressure in the ears is equalised and we do not feel air slipping through the nose into the mask, the second test is passed. Masks with a soft silicone nose will facilitate this activity even in thicker gloves and for people with not a prominent nose.
Don’t settle for less.
Elite design. Top performance. With Atomic Aquatics, the only limits are your own.
Test no. 3
Another test should be carried out in water, in which we check whether the mask does not leak after applying it to the face.
Before you cross out your mask due to leakage, check that:
f the mask skirt is in direct contact with the skin around the face, i.e. it does not overlap the hood or cap and that the hair is pulled back;
f the mask strap sits neatly on the back of the head and is not too loose; set its optimal length with clamps;
f in case of men with facial hair (moustache) – does the mask fit tightly to the skin under the nose?
f the attached snorkel to the mask is not the cause of leakage.
Mask fogging
Once we have a fitted mask, fogging might turn out to a similarly unfavourable phenomenon as leakage. It is enough to apply a simple burning trick and this problem may disappear forever. Before this, let's make sure that the lenses are made of glass and not plastic. In the latter case, you should use "half measures" (special agents such as "antifog" or simply your own saliva).
To perform the burning treatment, we only need a lighter and a tissue. We heat the glasses from the inside, trying not to burn the silicone parts that can be damaged. After thorough heating, it is enough to wipe the glasses with a tissue and, if necessary, wash the mask with soap or dishwashing liquid. To check the effectiveness, we can perform the treatment first on one lens, then fully cool the mask, put it on the face and blow through the nose. The difference should be visible. If the burnt lens continues to evaporate, repeat this procedure until the desired effect is obtained. The mask should evaporate less in the water until it remains clean. By washing it with dishwashing liquid, we will also restore this effect after a longer period of use.
Using the mask
As a rule, a plastic box is provided along with the mask to protect it during transport. Although the most common lenses are tempered and resistant to major shocks, it is worth using it to keep the mask clean. Before entering the water, when the mask is still dry, you can additionally take appropriate "half-measures" against fogging. After leaving the salt water, the mask (and other equipment) should be bathed in clean water
as soon as possible. Clear silicone, in particular, has a tendency to yellow from salt. It's also a good idea to develop good habits while putting on and taking off your mask. On the sides of the mask, special buckles are mounted on its strap, which easily loosen and tighten the strap. Before putting the mask on, you should loosen them enough to put on the mask without any resistance. After placing it in the right position on the face, gently tighten the strip evenly on both sides so that it does not pinch your face and stays in place. When removing, first loosen the strap and then take the mask off your face. This way, the silicone straps of the mask will last longer.
The snorkel is the element that we most often attach to the mask strap. Its shape, size, material from which it is made and the type of mask attachment itself are very diverse. The general principle of attaching the snorkel is this – it is not to disturb us during the dive.
Attention!
Never tighten the mask straps as tight as possible, as this may increase the risk of an injury. A tightly fitting mask will disturb the feeling of the mask clinging to the face due to the compression of the air inside during the dive and may delay the need to equalise the pressure in the mask, leading to facial and eye injuries. A tight mask can also press on the frontal or maxillary sinuses, making it difficult to compensate them or preventing the diver from noticing discomfort due to sinus obstruction.
If we cannot find the perfect mask for ourselves, we have to dive without one, for example with the help of a nose clip. Remember, however, that the mask is an indispensable tool to provide mutual attendance, in order to be able to clearly see what is happening with our partner under the water.
Niedackie Lake
The bottom is overgrown with lush vegetation, which turns the huge area of the lake into beautiful green meadows, among which freshwater organisms hide. Underwater, we can see, among others, northern pikes, which will allow us to carefully examine and photograph them. During one dive, we can admire about 10 of them on average. Then, we will certainly meet European perches that swim in large shoals, from small to quite large specimens. Often found at small depths are also beautiful tenches. There are no cultivated fields around the lake, and the areas outside the resort are uninhabited, which makes the visibility under water exceptionally good. At the worst time of the year, visibility is 4 meters, while at the best up to 14 meters. Niedack is a gem in northern Poland. Anyone who dives there once will definitely come back. The lake is taken care of by members of the Good Dive diving school, which organises the lake's cleaning
Text JULIA PRUSKA
Photos WOJCIECH PRUSKI
Gdańsk
Twardy Dół
NIEDACKIE LAKE
actions, so you won't find litter in this reservoir. The biggest attraction are shallow dives among the previously mentioned meadows and observing the underwater life. The maximum depth of Niedack is 30 meters, and deeper dives are also possible. There is a Good Dive diving base near the lake, where you can fill your cylinders not only with air but also with nitrox. On site, without prior reservation, you can rent the
highest quality equipment. People who want to dive deeper than those available from the shore can use the pontoon offered by the base. On warm evenings, the summer cinema is opened, where films about diving are shown. In the summer season, Good Dive organises diving camps for children, where there is no time for boredom, and the children return home delighted. There is a possibility to make a diving intro in the base. People who have never dived can try and see for themselves how amazing it is.
The accommodation base is the yearround Twardy Dół holiday resort – located in the depths of the forest, at the very shore of the lake. Beautiful, picturesque landscape, peace, quiet, clean air, firstclass clean water and unpolluted nature – these are undoubtedly the greatest advantages of this place. The facility offers rooms in the inn, family houses
called Leśne Chaty, as well as a camping and caravan site. In the package with accommodation you can buy meals: breakfasts and dinners. There is a restaurant "Pod Sosnami" on site, which specialises in the regional cuisine of Kociewie but also serves traditional Polish dishes.
The restaurant has a large terrace with a beautiful view of the lake, where you can eat the tasty meal in a beautiful scenery.
The Twardy Dół holiday resort offers a SPA and a fitness room. Leśna Oaza SPA offers a wide range of massages and treatments for face and body. Additional attractions offered by the resort include water equipment rental, sports hall, beach volleyball and table tennis. There are bicycle routes and routes of varying difficulty for orienteering (Green Checkpoint) in the area of the Twardy Dół resort.
Twardy Dół is an ideal place for a family holiday as well as for people who practice sports: morning jogging, cycling, Nordic Walking, fitness. Children can have fun on the playground. Anglers also appreciate this place. For the autumn season, the Good Dive base and the Twardy Dół center offer accommodation for divers and people who want to start their diving adventure.
Buddy system
SAFE DIVING WITH A REASONABLE APPROACH
This time I will start with a question to each one of you, dear readers - divers. Are you a good partner underwater?
Each student is trained in the basic safety rules and procedures in emergency situations – under and above water. Once they become certified divers, they stick to these rules and consolidate them in their daily diving routine. Well, routine...
During the OWD, P1 and equivalent courses in other federations, students learn the techniques and principles of safe diving. Their foundation is the buddy system. It is the basis of the whole safety system; if there is no partner – the safety system basically does not work.
It is not only about having a partner next to you. To illustrate, during a briefing, someone has been assigned to us as a pair, and we don't even know what diving level this person has, what he knows, we haven't exchanged a single sentence
with him before the dive, or it is someone with whom we haven't dived for a very long time.
If this is what our diving looks like, the answer is simple – it is certainly not the buddy system, and we are asking for trouble. The buddy system in very simple terms means following safety rules. However, in order to follow them, you need to know and remember them. If you have a new partner, the basic elements of the buddy system should be discussed beforehand. In some cases, the briefing instructor or divemaster will discuss some of them before the dive. If this does not happen, the responsibility falls on us. This is why responsible dive planning with your partner is so essential.
I was inspired to write this article by an incident that occurred during one of my diving trips, where routine, lack of safety procedures and lack of attention to the buddy system, fortunately only caused us a lot of nerves, but could have had a tragic end.
A group of divers meets up for a joint trip after a long break. Their diving levels are Assistant Instructor, Divemaster and two Rescue Divers. The location is Honoratka Diving Base [Baza Nurkowa Honoratka]. The plan was to do two dives, the first at a depth of 18–20 m and the second at 8–10 m. Each diver
Text HUBERT REISS
Photos HUBERT REISS, REDAKCJA PD
was equipped with a 15 L single air tank. We discussed the below-mentioned safety rules and plan for the first dive:
f route
f orientation relative to the compass
f reminders to swim in pairs
f underwater communication
f information on gas consumption (100 and 50 Bar respectively)
f what to do if you lose your partner/group
We entered the water, as per procedure we did a buddy check of the equipment in pairs. The whole dive went well. Surface break, air tank replacement and rest.
The second dive was shallower with better visibility. We dived at the thermocline intersection, along the fixed rope. After about 20 minutes, as we turned around and continued swimming along the rope, the group split up… Why? One of the divers followed a fish he wanted to photograph. Another one, cutting short his way, deviated from the route and got hooked in tree branches. Two other divers closing the formation, did not notice where the rest were, and swam further along the line. The snowball effect it is!
A good habit, regardless of the level of training of the person swimming in front, is to turn around once in a while to check if with the rest of the group is doing good and to ask about the amount of air left in the tanks. The same applies to the person closing the formation.
Three divers return to the route...
During a routine check, just like the one mentioned above, the group found the fourth diver missing. In accordance with safety procedures, we started searching for about one minute – in this case it meant going back along the rope to the turning point. We didn't find the diver and we decided to surface.
Unfortunately, there was no one on the surface except the three of us... Nerves, checking how much breathing gas we had left. After waiting about five minutes, observing whether anyone had surfaced, we decided to swim on the surface to the shore. While swimming, we were looking around for bubbles on the water surface... still nothing. Right before leaving the water, we noticed our missing partner standing on the shore, smiling, already changed out of his diving gear... Phew, a big relief mixed with huge nerves!
While talking to the lost diver, it turned out that after freeing himself from the branches, he had been looking for the rest of the group for a minute, and then he decided to follow the rope back to the point of exit from the water... and got out of it!
Unfortunately, situations like this, very often brutally verify our routine in acting and following, or rather not following the procedures. In this case, after getting lost, not following the procedure which requires surfacing and waiting on the surface
until we meet up, brought a lot of stress, but it also could have ended tragically.
Therefore, when planning a dive, it is particularly important to have a solid briefing and discuss even the most trivial and obvious point – a reminder of safety procedures. Among certified divers it may seem unnecessary, but as you can see it can help avoid many stressful situations and problems underwater. Many people, due to the coronavirus pandemic, have restricted their diving activity partially or completely. This seemingly short break should encourage us to reflect and remind ourselves of safety rules, the buddy system and emergency procedures.
Uncle Hubert and the editors of Perfect Diver know what they are talking about, so remember that Scuba review programmes – recalling a dive or reviewing training material is not a shame
Ubiquitous wagtails
Text and photos WOJCIECH JAROSZ
Wagtails can be found on the shores of water reservoirs, including sea beaches, but these are not the only places where it is possible to see them. In fact, we can meet them literally everywhere, when they are quickly fidgeting with their tiny feet to chase food.
While walking on a dirt road, reaching the piers of the sailing marina, stopping the bike in the driveway of the house, walking with the dog on the city lawn or kayaking down the mountain river. These are undoubtedly common birds in Europe (although not at all the most numerous).
The wagtails we meet are not always the same, of course. They belong to many species and subspecies. All of them, however, have a characteristic physique – they are small in size and have a long tail. And it is this tail that is most significant for wagtails. It is not even about its build, colour or length (although
it is indisputably long), but about its unique 'wagging'. It is not entirely clear what is the cause of such behaviour, and at least a few hypotheses have been put forward. It is suggested, for example, that wagging a tail is a way for wagtails to frighten insects, which are their favourite food. Perhaps, this is some form of communication for wagtails, but that requires further professional observations and research. In any case, the wagtails are waging their tails and thanks to this, everyone will be able to recognise them. The official English-language generic name is wagtail (in Polish language: folk name not to be confused with the South American birds of the Cinclodes family), and also refers to this feature of wagtails.
White wagtail (Motacilla alba) is the most common (which again does not mean that it is the most numerous), because it lives closest to man. Synchronisation gives it the ability to catch insects without as much pressure from predators as in the more natural circumstances of nature. Wagtails of this species make nests basically everywhere. Under tiles, in machine parts, in an abandoned pot, in various alleys and holes, and even on the ground. The bird tries, of course, to hide them diligently, but cunning domestic cats are able to wait patiently for the
hatching of the young, which are a tasty snack for them when they try to leave the nest. The white wagtail is white-gray-black, with a different proportion of these colours depending on the subspecies. Males are not easy to distinguish from females – it is easier in other species of wagtails, in which bird ladies are less coloured than feathered gentlemen.
Slightly smaller, but also often found are western yellow wagtails (M. flava). They are usually found in slightly different places. Yellow wagtails are birds of meadows, often wetlands, reed beds, but they are most characteristic of the agricultural landscape. A yellow wagtail on yellow-flowering rapeseed is a very nice picture, which, for example, in Greater Poland is not uncommon at all. In recent years, yellow wagtails are easier to find in cultivated fields than in meadows. However, they avoid forests and areas overgrown with high vegetation. You can regret it a little, because just as the aforementioned wagtail on rapeseed pleases the eye, the running among green grasses, sedge and wildflowers, and later squatting on high-lying places or tops of plants yellow bird is an extremely nice observation. Sometimes we can also come across a less numerous citrine wagtails in our part of Europe (M. citreola). Birds of this species live in Eastern Europe and Asia, but nowadays they are more and more often seen further to the West. In
Northern Europe they can also nest (more and more boldly also on our coast and in the eastern part of the country). Males in breeding colouration are, according to the name, lemon-yellow – beautiful!
Grey wagtail (M. cinerea) according to its name is a bird often found in the mountains and highlands. However, not only there, because it does not necessarily need high altitudes, but rather fast-flowing streams, creeks or other watercourses. Therefore, it can be found in many places of Poland and Eurasia, North Africa, and even on the Atlantic islands – as long as there is fast flowing water. Above this water, the grey wagtail, of course, catches insects and other invertebrates. In appearance, it is similar to the yellow wagtail, and it differs in details, such as a clearly longer tail and black crop in males. Kayaking or rafting in pontoons on mountain rivers almost always give a chance to meet a grey wagtail – unless the dear reader prefers extreme, winter versions of such activities, then you have no chance for the meeting. In winter, there are no insects, so there are no wagtails. Wagtails leave colder regions, wandering in flocks to more friendly places in terms of temperature. This applies not only to the grey wagtail, but to most species. In locations with a warmer climate all year round, wagtails live continuously as sedentary animals.
Wagtails are, of course, not only European birds. We can count on meeting the African pied wagtail (M. aguimp) in sub-Saharan Africa, but also on the Nile in Egypt. The Mekong wagtail (M. samveasnae) may show itself to us during a trip to Cambodia, Laos or Vietnam, and perhaps we will be given
a chance to admire the hidden and endangered São Tomé shorttail (M. bocagii) (unfortunately not all wagtails are common and numerous) during an exotic expedition to São Tomé in the Gulf of Guinea. The list of bird species of the genus Motacilla has by no means been exhausted by the above list. ...a short break in the article for a "occasional intrusion"... I am writing this article during the Masurian cruise. As usual, I am behind the schedule delivering the text (by the way, I apologise to the Honorable Editor-in-Chief for the need to remind me of the deadline), I am pulling an all-nighter, actually it's already morning, I'm completing and smoothing parts of the text. I left the yacht a moment earlier to breath fresh air, on the quay I met a friend from the neighbouring yacht and I got hot ginger tea from her (I felt as if I pulled out the awaited gift from under the Christmas tree during Christmas – thank you Lena!) and I met the hero of this article! A wagtail, or even two of them, were strolling on moored yachts, running on the pier, even sitting on the top of one of the masts. What a nice coincidence – I'm writing about wagtails, and they are flying and running around. I attach a photo or two of this meeting to the article.
Let's go back now to the actual text, so as to stay a little longer in the subject of meetings with wagtails. What is pleasant
about these birds is that representatives of most common species do not hide from man, giving us the opportunity to observe them while they are diligently chasing the flying and creeping arthropods or other invertebrates. Of the biological curiosities, it is worth mentioning the one concerning the brood of wagtails. It was found that cuckoos are very eager to lay eggs in wagtails' nests – maybe because from the cuckoo point of view, and the needs of the developing cuckoo, the wagtails exceptionally well fulfil the role of parents? Wagtail breed often more than once during one season, which allows them to maintain the population size at a non-declining level in many places. Unfortunately, not everywhere and so wagtails, as well as their environment, should invariably be taken care of, but the readers of Perfect Diver certainly do not need to be convinced of this.
I wish you pleasant meetings with wagtails – keep your eyes wide open!
A way to quickly improve your diving skills
PowerJet FINS soft SF and hard HD
Photo Tomasz Płociński
Text WOJCIECH A. FILIP
Properly matched fins will not only reduce gas consumption by nearly 30% but also significantly increase maneuverability, speed control and safety during diving for nearly every diver. Read more to see if you belong to those divers who will benefit from fin matching.
BEGINNER DIVERS
Yes, it’s true: a beginner diver can significantly improve their skills by changing fins. How to do it?
Shortcut:
● replace your fins with “jet” fins (e.g. PowerJet soft SF, Jetstream or similar)
● move your legs only when you want to swim*
● slow down; do everything like in a slow-motion movie if you don’t like reading, skip to the summary at the end of the article.
Let’s check whether replacing your current fins with PowerJet SF really works
You’ll need a marked underwater distance of 100 m, preferably no more than 3–5 m deep. The best way is to use a reel with sufficient cord, visibly marked at 100 meters. Be sure
to also prepare wetnotes or an underwater slate.
First, get used to your new fins: tow your buddy on the surface, turn to your back and to your chest a few times, using only fins. Once you descend, try to keep your body as still and horizontal as you can – do not flex your muscles unnecessarily, try to relax and breathe calmly.
First dive
Test no. 1
Swim a distance of 200 m, moving your legs as little as possible.
Try to avoid broad moves when swimming.
Breathe calmly, control the position of the cord.
Look at your (stop)watch, taking note of the amount of gas in the cylinder and the test start time; try to turn around as calmly as possible past the 100 m mark. Upon returning to the starting point, take note of the time it took you to swim 200 m (a typical distance covered by a diver visiting a small shipwreck), note the amount of gas consumed from the cylinder.
Test no. 2
Swim the same distance again, but moving two times slower.
Relax and control the cord position from the corner of your eye (you may put additional markers every 20 m). Try to make the return without using your arms.
Breathe out deeper.
Usually test no. 2 results are the most surprising, as not only does the gas consumption decrease but, despite slower movements, you cover the distance… in less time.
This is because we focus on steady, not very broad movements of our legs, we allow our fins to do their job instead of fighting with them – we push ourselves away from the water
ACADEMY
Second dive
Test no. 3
For this test, take your old fins and repeat test no. 1.
It is important to decrease the movement speed of our legs (or we will use excessive amount of gas).
If you descend slowly when you stop moving your legs, add a little bit of air to your wing or jacket.
Photo Bartek Trzciński
Photo Mariusz Czajka
ACADEMY
Test no. 4
Repeat test no. 2 also in your old fins. You need to reduce the leg movement speed twice, relax and breathe calmly.
Conclusions
Usually, test no. 3 results in a little longer time to swim 200 m and a higher gas consumption. Test no. 4 is sometimes frustrating, as the diver is almost standing still, which makes them want to accelerate. But if you manage to stay calm and really slow down 2 times, then the swimming time will be significantly longer from what you can achieve using PowerJet SF and gas consumption will be higher.
And last but not least
If you manage to perform test no. 2 over 5 subsequent dives, continuously decreasing leg movement speed, you will notice 3 surprising things:
1. Gas consumption will decrease by approx. 30%.
2. Swimming speed will stabilize and – despite the very slow movements – will be surprisingly high.
3. Alertness will increase: we’ll be noticing much more detail underwater than ever before.
If you are only using a wetsuit, instead of using the PowerJet SF to perform the test, use the LightJet fins – they are designed for divers using wetsuits (they have positive buoyancy, so your feet will float).
ADVANCED DIVERS
In this group, you’ll hardly find any opponents of “jet” fins.
The usual discussions concern the hardness of the fin and choosing the proper blade angle.
I suggest subjecting PowerJet HD –the hard model version – to harsh tests.
Always use your old jets as a benchmark.
For those using PowerJet MHD (medium hard), it is definitely worth compering them to HD.
You are free to choose the number of dives, during which I suggest you perform the following comparison tests (using a complete technical setup with 3 stage cylinders each time).
Photo Tomasz Płociński
Photo Mariusz Czajka
ACADEMY
Test no. 1
Modified frog kick – 300 m distance, assuming a slight current, i.e. we’re moving at a medium pace.
Once you cover the distance, evaluate the time/gas and CO2 level increase.
Test no. 2
Moving backwards in a tight space – distance of 100 m, calm pace.
At the end, evaluate the time/gas and CO2 level increase at the end (you can include the frustration level ).
Test no. 3
Dynamic towing at a distance of 100 m (assuming OTOX). Both the “victim” and the rescue diver in full setup. Small depth, maximum speed allowing to control CO2 levels, if possible.
Once you cover the distance, ascend to the surface, undress standing on the bottom at the shore, then continue CPR for 20 minutes.
DPV test (additional)
A DPV and a test “figure eight” made
of 2 buoys anchored on the bottom at a 5 m distance.
Make tight figure eight turns without touching the buoys, at a speed of over 30 m/min.
At the end, evaluate the time/gas and CO2 level increase and the need to reduce speed.
Then perform the same tests in your regular fins.
For comparison, I suggest the following 3-degree assessment scale:
1 – worse fin
2 – fin working similarly
3 – better fin
Summary
The difference between a tester and a diver consists in the level of objectivity. In this case, the tester should assume both sets of test fins are equally good and not favor either of them.
If you’re not capable of being objective, at least do the test to improve your diving technique
For beginners, the chance to obtain better results in fins other than jet fins is very small and if you’d like to compare jets to split fins, the chance is basically zero. Every effective movement and maneuvering technique performed in jets gives better results and reduces gas consumption.
Advanced divers will note the details: the size and fit of the foot pocket, blade responsiveness or the spring mounting angle. Did you know, that it is us – the advanced divers – that are so much more attached to their original choices (old fins)? Maybe it’s time to challenge those attachments?
Who cannot benefit from changing their fins?
The disabled (e.g. with atonia) – in such cases you should consult the choice of fins with your physician/physiotherapist. Those who favor myths against facts –the most wide-spread myth says jets are not good for recreational divers, as they’re designed for technical or drysuit diving.
Photo Bartek Trzciński
It is simply wrong when assessing “jet” fins to say they cause muscle contractions, especially in beginners.
Of course, if fins are used for controlling buoyancy, this might be the case – fins are not meant to be used for controlling buoyancy, i.e. we move our legs when we want to swim horizontally. Look at your depth gauge and stop moving your legs – nothing happens?
Then it’s OK
Well... I’m sort of a bit convinced, but I need a really strong argument to change my fins.
RESCUE test
Fins, like any other equipment, should be chosen according to our specific needs. On the other hand, they still must have influence on diving safety. One of the most successful tests in assessing PowerJet SF and HD performance is the rescue test. Such a test is performed on a yearly basis by technical diving instructors and rescue divers. It shows how efficient your help to your partner would be if you had to tow them. The test is exhausting, so before performing it remember it is quite easy for the rescuer to become the casualty and remember 3 important things:
1. Exhale to the fullest.
2. Instead of abundant, your leg movement should be moderate or small.
3. Don’t give up! You have to act in order to save someone –keep going as fast as you can until the end of the distance.
”RESCUE” test
Mark a 100 and 200 meter distance on the surface, along the shore line.
Beginners put on their full equipment and stand at the 100 m mark. We are using PowerJet SF fins.
Our buddy lies on their back, the rescuer tows them by their cylinder valve. The assisting person measures the time and controls the rescuer’s condition.
Advanced divers put on their full technical twin setup + 1 stage cylinder or rebreather + 1 stage cylinder (during casualty towing we do not detach the oxygen stage, other cylinders can be detached) and get set at the 200 m distance.
We are using PowerJet HD fins.
Our buddy lies on their back, the rescuer tows them by their cylinder valve. The assisting person measures the time and controls the rescuer’s condition.
Still in doubt why technical and experienced divers chose “jet” fins? Do the RESCUE test once again in your old fins – you’ll probably never use them again.
