Disappearing down to at least 60m the wall drops like a waterfall,only this waterfall is rock and the environment is water,its a humid liquefied world where even meager mortals can fly and soar through its wonders.
Jamie the lead diver tilts out of his normal holding pattern and starts to accelerate down towards the crystal depths,his pace accelerating at the equipment contracts against the pressure of the water and the weight starts to draw him deeper,he is falling perfectly like a master free-fall parachutist.
I extend and flex my Jet fins to propel me downwards to try to match his pace,the glide takes us past a studded wall of sea life,as the numbers cycle past 35m on my wrist computer then we level out slightly below and take in the wonders of some of the magnificent scenery at the Poor Knights.
This is just one of fabulous moments from the Tech Dive New Zealand Cavern Course,we were the first to taste this course and I can assure you, as usual, Jamie and the TDNZ team have excelled themselves.
I could write absolute pages of report on this course and my experiences on it,but the only way to REALLY express the feeling of being +30m down and right at the very back of Taravana Cave to exit towards the light is something you simply must do.
It has been a long term goal to actually achieve the goal of diving a cave,and that alone was a major achievement for me.
People will ask me was the course tough...? (my answer is simple...YES!!
,but as usual the courses are geared to the students and this was a very challenging course for Pete and John and myself the three that went for the course.)The course challenged me in many ways,it really was fabulous,GUE-F was very tough,the Advanced Nitrox Course was tough as well in its own way,but the Cavern Course was a different ball game....very very cool..
Pete and I have done a lot of diving together and know each other pretty well but the work we did as a team really tests the fabric of your buddy skills and awareness,we both...well we all came away with a lot of skills to work on...and that we will.
Cave exit...
We did 11 dives all up at the Poor Knights on Kevfish's live aboard the Mazurka (don't get me started on his amazing chicken curry!!
)Day #1
Matt's Crack (Line laying skills)
Venus cave (Line laying,OOG,light failures)
Barren Arch (Line laying,OOG,light failures,silt out sim's)
Rikoriko Cave (Nightdive)
Day #2
Cave Bay (Deep dive,silt out sim's following line round course.)
Mine Shaft Cave (Line laying,OOG,light failures,0 vis training.)
Big Eye Cave (Line laying,OOG,light failures,0 vis training.)
Blue Maomao Arch (Nightdive)
Day #3
Taravana Cave (Cave dive)
Scary Cave (Cave dive)
Waikato Wreck (Wreck penetration).
The Dive depths and training depths varied from 12.3m to 40.2m
Anyway lets have a look at some of Pete's pics...
John one of Jamie's GUE Fundie's divers.
Me..on deco stop..(Yes Andy I know the octi hose is too long..
)
Blind on the line..
Pete on his guard..
Taravana exit....
10w HID Halcyon light...
Mine shaft Cave...just fabulous...(John leading me in second place).
Jamie in the lead me in second place and John in third...
Heading for the "restriction" inside Scary Cave...
