Wraysbury ramblings

[Spacehopper]

Hurrah! Sunday at last, and after making a date on Wednesday its time to see what it's like to get wet in a (hired) drybag. Munch a quick bit of scoff, wave bye bye to SWMBO who is off for a days retail therapy at Ashford Outlet Store {sighs, feels a pain in the wallet}, and hop into the old jam jar. First stop at the bank machine for some folding stuff and then off to play with the traffic on the M25. Made good time, narrowly avoiding getting sideswiped and wiped out by some twonk in a Golf GTI. Bloody things, I've had problems with them since the mid 80's but thats another story. Arrive at Wraysbury at midges wotsit past 10, car park quite full but still spaces left, divers and non-divers everywhere.

Trot, well, walk quickly to the "office" pausing to say Hi to the nice couple I met on Wednesday. Find Richard the Gaffer, make myself known and get handed yet another PADI form to fill in. These guys must have enough paper to sink a battleship. A bit of idle chat and then its the talky bit. This is a membrane suit, this is neoprene, this is a seal, this is how you look after a zip, you know the sort of thing.

Eventually it's time to get kitted up and Richard hands me a giant baby grow. Slide myself into that and come out of the changing room thinking "now where's that catwalk" The next challenge is to climb into an old membrane suit. That done we realise that said suit was made for someone slightly less rotund and about 3 inches taller than your correspondent. Yes I am to short for my weight (note, I've lost 3 kg in the last 10 days, not bad). Nonetheless things were not too bad and I had unrestricted mobility etc. Then off to meet Danny, my instructor for the day and get the rest of my kit together. Quick chat with Danny and we go for a dip, kitless, just to see what a drysuit is like, and I suspect so Danny can see how confident I am. Walk into the water, feel the squeeze, lift legs off the floor and get that strange floaty feeling, ooooerrrr muvva! Then it's time for the real thing.

Get kitted up (flippers, goggles and oxygen tank ), and the pair of us enter the water down the concrete path behind the hut. A short surface paddle to the closest shot line and its time to make like a diver. Sink down the line to the 6m platform and demonstrate fin pivots and hovering, thinks this is too easy, I must be doing it wrong. Then its off for a bimble round the lake. Find the bus and it's in through the window, out through the door and never touched the sides, buoyancy is not that bad then. Continue to bimble, nearly colliding with a diver swimming in his own personal cloud of silt, and try to make like a fish. Well, the fish got a bit sick sometimes, swim bladder problems I think, but in general not bad for the first time out in a drybag. Eventually left the water at the car park entrance and toddle over for a debrief at the picnic benches. 20 minutes, viz about 3 to 5m generally. Amazingly Danny says that my buoyancy was great and he's never had anyone off the platform and out into the lake and through the bus so quickly. Head swells and face flushes with embarrassment, at least I can do something right!.

Things went a little awry then, I only managed half a cup of tea, the other half got spilt ... into the drysuit 'cos I was half stripped. Not content with that, the liquid contents of a Jetfin foot pocket also got poured into the suit when I lifted it to see how heavy it was. Must have been about 2lbs lighter by the time I was finished. Why don't they put drain holes in these things, like my Mares? By now the drybag is dry on the outside and soaking wet on the inside and it's time for Dive 2.

This time I'm joined by someone else who's name escapes me, we'll call him Fred, and Danny is doing something else so we're led by Christine, aka Dusty for obscure reasons. Once again it's a surface paddle to the near platform and then descend to the platform. Dusty and I sink nicely to about 3m and hold position (amazing!) while someone else clears the platform. Fred seems to have problems descending and then almost passes us. Signalled frantically that the platform was occupied and up he goes again. Eventually we all get there and assess the situation. The plan was to head for the bus and that's what we do, however, by now the viz was so bad that I think we circled it 3 times before sighting it. I reckon there was that much silt kicked up the lake was at least a foot deeper than when I arrived. Then it was off to the milk float. Well, we never found that, I did however manage to find the bottom once and very mucky it was too. Eventually we gave up, the viz was just too bad for it to be fun and I think poor Dusty was having her work cut out trying to keep an eye on both of us. I thought I was OK, so it must have been the other guy Anyway it was the right decision. 15 minutes, viz about 0.6m

So that was it, a quick de-kit, a few more bits of paper and it was all over. My first dry-suit dive and actually my first dive in the UK. Actually thats not quite true ... I did an BSAC A test and then a few months training in .... errrrrmmmmm say it quickly ..... 1984. Eeee lad them were the days when men were men and BSAC divers could tread water for 60 secs with their elbows out of the water.

To finish the day, it was a slow drive around the M25, something to eat, bottle of wine, start writing this, a few doses of the "Scottish Medicine", doze for hours, finish writing this with only one eye open 'cos 2 eyes means 2 screens.

Thanks to Richard, Danny and Dusty at Wraysbury and thanks to you gentle reader, if you have made it this far. Thanks also to Michael (Scuba1) for showing me what buoyancy really means earlier this year. Bloody man, he floats like a jellyfish and breaths about the same amount of air . Next week I think I'll be talking to those nice people at Otter Watersports, I might even pay them a visit if I can find a pressing reason for a business trip to Yorkshire, shouldn't be too difficult . And then it's practice, practice and more practice, oooooo fun time !

[Reikimaster]

Nice report,

[dry suit diver]

Nice report, I remember my first dry suit dive , nowherenear as good as yours , jammy beggar.

[SoB]

Excellent report SH - are you planning to go to Wraysbury again - as I need to do a dive-checkout this Saturday (see my signature line) and need a buddy for the morning?

Thanks,
SoB

[Gizmo]

Top Report, mate, top report, look forward to seeing you in that brand spankly suit in the not too distant future, hopefully at Wraysbury one sunny Wednesday evening for that practise, practise, practise.
Also I here very good things about the Mulberries off Selsey with Skipper. Practising with loverly marine life to look at....

Mark

[dry suit diver]

Originally Posted by Gizmo

Top Report, mate, top report, look forward to seeing you in that brand spankly suit in the not too distant future, hopefully at Wraysbury one sunny Wednesday evening for that practise, practise, practise.
Also I here very good things about the Mulberries off Selsey with Skipper. Practising with loverly marine life to look at....

Mark

Yes will second the bit about the Mulberry and Skipper.

[Spacehopper]

Originally Posted by SoB

Excellent report SH - are you planning to go to Wraysbury again - as I need to do a dive-checkout this Saturday (see my signature line) and need a buddy for the morning?

Thanks,
SoB

Cheers SoB I probably won't make it next weekend as I still have to get my own drybag sorted, unless of course I can hire one

Originally Posted by Gizmo

Also I here very good things about the Mulberries off Selsey with Skipper. Practising with loverly marine life to look at....

Cheers matey, the Mulberries is one of the places I am looking forward to, heard a lot about it, a salty scenic dive, just what the doctor ordered.