Here at Wicked Diving we strive to offer safe diving and great service - but we can't do it all! It's important each diver participate as safe divers! We have a few tips and suggestions for making this fun and a rewarding experience.
Don't touch - Don't kick
If you're a new diver ask your instructor for some advice on how to improve your buoyancy and if you find that you are having trouble controlling your movements then give the corals plenty of leeway until you have improved.
If you haven't dived for a while then you should consider a Scuba Review class (a refresher) and ask your instructor for skills which will help you to improve your buoyancy. Remember that this will not only help to reduce your impact under water but will increase the time you are able to spend there; good buoyancy control will reduce your air consumption.
Think before you Click
Be honest with yourself; are you comfortable with your buoyancy or does it need a little more
work before you take a camera diving with you? If you do go diving with a camera and you can’t get the perfect shot without holding onto something - wait. Remember that just one light touch of a human finger onto coral can kill what will have taken several decades to grow. Likewise, don’t go chasing after fish; it only stresses them and it certainly doesn’t look cool!
Remember that you don't belong there!
Interactions with marine life including disturbing mating or feeding can disrupt the eco-system. Observe from a distance! If you want to know what color a leopard sharks eyes are then go look it up on the internet!
Self Awareness
Give your fellow divers plenty of space to maneuver. I've seen so many people swim their buddies into coral or kick frantically with no awareness that they are disturbing the sediment below them or knocking nudibranchs off rocks. Keep yourself streamlined and don't let your gauges drag over the reef. Keep checking that you are not kicking the sand up, or kicking your buddy!
Why the Gloves?
Gloves should only be worn to keep your hands warm! The rules still apply - 'Do not touch anything!' So…why the gloves?!
Litter Bug
You may not have dropped the litter floating passed you but don’t just swim around it!
Do your part to protect the reef and put it in your BCD pocket. And you will be surprised how contagious your actions will be as a responsible diver.
Don't play with the Marine Life!
I actually see divers try to catch fish with their bare hands, or even pick up sea cucumbers and shake them around as if they were maracas. As tempting as it seems to be try to resist picking up sea creatures or poking mollusks; after all it is hardly polite and could even be fatal for the object of your curiosity, causing unnatural stress or injury.
National Park Rules for a Reason!
The Similan National Park imposes a severe fine - and even imprisonment - for removing any shells or coral from under or above the water. This is for a reason! Removing shells interferes with the ecosystem and gradually destroys the reef .
Report Bad Practices
Dropping anchor, throwing waste into the sea, the use of unnecessary cleaning products (such as toilet bleach), the feeding of marine life, divers who tease the marine life or touch the corals are all unacceptable practices and should be reported to the dive company and the national park.
Remember that divers do not belong in the ocean - treat it with respect and hopefully the reefs will last long enough for recreational diving to continue for more than half a century.
Finally, this is all fun and educational. If you are here to set records, or go deeper than ever before, or be better or faster than the other divers - Do it on your own time. This is a place and time to enjoy the life around you in the amazing underwater world.
-Similan Liveaboard
No comments:
Post a Comment