We are in the trough that runs between the mainland and the island. The depth of this trough is between 2500 and 3000 feet. As we fall the wall rises to our right and the current moves us swiftly along. I check my depth gage. It is climbing 130, 135, 140, we level off at 150 feet.
I am aware that at this depth nitrogen narcosis is a real possibility. I check my faculties. Can I focus clearly? Is my thought process or reasoning impaired? Do I feel euphoric? Everything seems okay. I check my gages again. Still at 150 feet, the bars on my nitrogen graph are climbing fast. This means my body tissue is absorbing nitrogen at a swift rate. The bar is already near the yellow or caution portion of the graph. I check our dive time and tuck my gages away, concentrating again on the beauty of the reef. There are a few fish, some sponge, black coral, large gorgonians and sea fans growing out from the side of the wall. They wave in the current as if in a breeze. Again I check my gages. The nitrogen graph has entered the yellow area and is quickly moving toward the red or danger area. I check the time on my computer. It is at twelve minutes. I know this is a long time to be at this depth on air. The graph moves into the red and my computer lets me know we have entered a decompression situation. This means we have to make a mandatory stop on the way to the surface to avoid DCS, or, the bends. It is indicating only a two minute stop at ten feet but I understand the seriousness of the situation.
We begin to move up the wall to a shallower depth. I check my computer again and try to lock the time we spent at 150 feet into my brain. I am still certain all of my faculties are still functioning normally. We continue to move shallower. We pass seventy feet, now sixty five my computer no longer indicates the need for a decompression stop. I know however that I will spend as much time as possible at our safety stop around fifteen feet as insurance against any problems. The scenery is still breath taking with huge coral heads reaching up from the sandy bottom. I am watching my air supply. Still plenty left for a long safety stop. The dive master signals that we are to move up to our safety stop at this point. We hit twenty feet and stop. The surge can easily be felt at this depth. Pushing us back and forth as we all hang suspended in time and the water column. Two huge Eagle Rays pass below us at about sixty feet. Flying in formation like a couple of fighter planes. Their wings must span seven or eight feet at least. It is hard to hold our depth steady because of the surge caused by the waves at the surface.
We can see the bottom of the boat above us. The captain has done a good job of following our bubbles in the heavy seas. He, like the divemaster, is a pro. Finally my air is running low. I check my computer. I have been hanging at this depth for ten minutes and my nitrogen graph is well out of the yellow and into the green, or safe, area again. I ascend to the surface.
The boat is still bouncing heavliy. Caution and timing are needed to keep the boat from crashing down on top of me. In turn we climb in one at a time and remove our gear. When we are all safely back in the boat the captain heads for a spot on shore where we will serve our surface time before our second dive.
I am trying to remember how much time was on my computer when we started up from 150 feet and realize it has escaped me. I will never know for sure, but my best recollection is that it was between twelve and seventeen minutes. The nitrogen in my brain must have robbed me of at least this small detail.
We will spend two hours on the surface "off gassing" before returning to the water for our second dive. We spend this time eating freshly grilled grouper and squid and discussing what we saw on the dive. We also decide we will do our second dive at Paseo Del Cedral (Cedar Pass) otherwise known as, the home of the big grouper. I will leave the facts of that dive for a future story.
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