Sleepy Hollow (Mangan)

Dive 16

Finally, Nick and I got to go diving this year. We headed out early Saturday morning (approx. 9:30) with Curtis and Blog Reader Kristen. Kristen and I rented gear from MSD on Friday night, Nick was using Ted’s gear and of course Curtis has his own. I bought a dive computer on Monday (along with a BC and another dive computer for Nick, both on back order, the BC of which I’m going to exchange right away) but decided against using it because I didn’t want to unhook any of the rental stuff.

We decided to go to Sleepy Hollow, part of Mangan, because of some Beaver dams and fishes. It wasn’t terribly hot outside, mid 70s, but once the farmer john wetsuit is on it becomes quite uncomfortably hot. It took a while to get everything set up, we haven’t had to do it since October and I was a little rusty. The water was a bit chilly, but it felt good considering the wetsuit. The dive went good other than a little fiasco with my weights. One of my pouches slipped out of my BC. I thought I felt something tugging, then I looked underneath me and saw the swirling of the silty bottom and something black. I thought it was my camera and I did a panicked check for it. I found it still attached to me but suddenly I started rocketing to the surface. I figured I just didn’t have my buoyancy under control because I’d been struggling with it for the dive… I think I was a bit over weighted. Anyway, I let some air out of my BC and started swimming along. My tank kept falling over to one side. At first I didn’t know why, then I realized my weight pouch was gone. I was about equal distance from Nick and Kristen and assumed Nick would be the better diver for assistance in recovering it. I struggled to lopsidedly swim to him while staying at the same depth. I grabbed his fin and gave the thumbs up sign. He looked at me and immediately turned around and kept on going. Fortunately Kristen saw the event transpire and surfaced with me. Then we waited for the boys to realize we were missing. It only took a couple minutes for them to return and find us. I tried to assist in finding the weights, but without the extra 9 pounds I was helplessly stuck at the surface so Kristen and I stayed while the boys went searching.

It wasn’t a very fun time at the surface for me either. I stayed fully inflated and upright. I couldn’t snorkel around, swim or even look underwater because I’d just tip over sideways. Nick ended up finding my weights, Curtis got them back in my pocket and away we went.

The dive was fun, although most of the dive was uneventful. There was a spot with a lot of fishes. Curious little buggers. I tried to stay really still so they would come up to me, but I was having trouble with my buoyancy, so I tried my best not to get in Curtis’s way or stir up the bottom and ruin the visibility.

On our way back there wasn’t much to look at again other than trees, so I snapped a couple pictures of Kristen and Nick.

After the dive Kristen and I were pretty tired so we hung out while the boys dove again. Maybe next time I’ll be up for two tanks!! Maybe next time I’ll have more of my own gear as well :D

More pics in the gallery.

Read Curtis’s account of the dives.