Lot valley/CCR

***EBT*** · 22nd August 2005, 23:18

Thought I'd share some brief words on a recent trip to the lot. You can all have a laugh at my expense...

Myself and Stuart (lizardland), decided to take a trip with our classic KISS units to the lot.

Day 1.

Rebreathers are prepped, bailouts are ready, we arrive at ressel for a shakedown dive. In typical style for any cave trip, theres an unexpected kit failure. My previously perfectly performing salvo decides to crap out during the pre-dive test. Luckily stuart and I are both wary of canister lamps, so the spare torch comes out.

We swam into ressel about 700m, on a leisurely dive, staging gas as we went (bottom of the 440 corner). Towards the end of the dive, stuarts unit has managed to flood a bit (mr flappy lips wasnt used to a CCR that works), so we turned the dive and headed out with stuart initially on OC bailout, then back to the CCR once we got <24m. At this point, his Halcyon sputtered out and the candle backup came out.

Its about a 2 1/2 hour run, with a conservative deco. I'll leave it to Stuart to tell you what he wrote on the slate.

The Salvo issue turns out to be a connector/termination problem, so I got handy with the soldering iron. I'll have to sort it out properly now Im back.

Day 2.

Cabouy-Pouymessens. We debated the vis, I predicted cracking... stuart predicted shite. Stuart was paying for dinner then... 20m+, best I've ever seen. We dived with twin 7's of 32 & 50% each... from cabouy to pouymessens, then upstream for about 300m. Its amazing to see this cave in clear vis, its truly gorgeous. Both breathers performed flawlessly, making for a nice relaxed dive. this is what its all about.

Day 3.

St Georges, vis to sump1 is milky... sump 2 onwards is crystal at 15m+. ran to about 700m in, gorgeous cave again, but you have to carefully manage depth to ensure you don't burn through dil.

Day 4.

Landenouse. Water was so far down here, that the climb to the water was more like 6m... man it was hot. Vis is also cracking... and this was to be the day that I had my first ever significant KISS failure in about 400 hours of diving.

On the entry, I noticed my PO2 creeping up. Dil flushes weren't curing this, which indicated I had an O2 problem, so the remaining 90 minutes were spent controlling the O2 flow using the tank valve.

Day 5.

Truffe. Water levels are so low, you can see the top of the first entry arch. Im ashamed to admit I couldnt get into truffe with the KISS on.... and apparently, for some stupid reason I couldnt get out with it on either (stuck between the first two entry restrictions). Having reduced the vis to zero trying to get out, I had to bail off (kept triggering the ADV, even in O2 mode), take the unit off and swim out pushing it in front of me, whilst carrying my 7L of bailout. I think my face told stuart just how much fun I'd had. *cough*

Day 6.

St George, a return visit, going in for a bimble... only an hour... but its good to get straight back on the horse.

Numerous amusing moments abounded.... but its certainly easy doing a trip like this on CCR. Bring your bailouts pre-blown and a drive tank or two of deep dil... a twinset of O2... and a tub of kitty litter. Total bill for air used (suit bottles and topping off drive gas) = 13 euros.

All in all a sound time, albeit beset with kit failures. Some caves are ideal for CCR, others are better attacked with OC and it seems to me that sidemount is ideal for these.

/Zak

PS. bring andrex....

***Decodiver*** · 23rd August 2005, 04:45

Nice report dear chap.

Cheers,

Dave.

lizardland · 23rd August 2005, 12:12

Quote: (Originally Posted by wreckweasel)

I'll leave it to Stuart to tell you what he wrote on the slate.

"Wank! Water in loop! Glug!"

Quote:

beset with kit failures

Not to mention sense of humour failures by certain north European open circuit brethren

Quote:

PS. bring andrex....

Still having trouble with your orifice?

Cheers,

Yak

***EBT*** · 23rd August 2005, 14:09

One orifice is fixed, the other still needs a strip down.

Ps. I spy....

lizardland · 23rd August 2005, 14:33

Does it start with a K or a C?

You left out the most important bit, the development of the EBT and its deployment procedures. Many people could benefit from that.

***EBT*** · 23rd August 2005, 14:46

Thats advanced diving techniques.... you have to expose a nipple, do a funny handshake and ply me with expensive cognac to find that bit out.

<throws EBT>

The Purist · 24th August 2005, 07:40

Quote: (Originally Posted by wreckweasel)

... and this was to be the day that I had my first ever significant KISS failure in about 400 hours of diving.

Pah! You haven't lived mate!! I can lend you some "spare parts" if you want a bit more entertainment

***EBT*** · 24th August 2005, 13:15

Careful what you offer keith, squeaky boy is so tight he'd probably take that dodgy scrubber can off your hands, if its free!!

lizardland · 24th August 2005, 13:30

Yep! As long as I don't have to pay for postage! If you've got any o-rings your chucking I'll have them too. Bit of spit and grease and they're as good as new!

Got a set of number stamps from the local cheapo shop for a couple of quid, never have to get a bottle tested again

CaveStainz · 24th August 2005, 22:26

Hi Zak,

Great write up, nice to see that things haven't changed.. water level at the Landenouse and Truffe still low at this time of year! Quite how recently did you go - would be useful to know the temperature also. I'll never forget the sight of French cyclists stopping at the Ressel to gawk at me in my underpants carrying cylinders down to the river! Lucky for me the cylinders had filled themselves to 345bar in 45 deg C sunshine.. it was a good dive ;-)

Steve

22nd August 2005, 23:18	#1 (permalink)
*EBT* Apprentice Luddite Current Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: UK, Brighton Posts: 1,932	Lot valley/CCR Thought I'd share some brief words on a recent trip to the lot. You can all have a laugh at my expense... Myself and Stuart (lizardland), decided to take a trip with our classic KISS units to the lot. Day 1. Rebreathers are prepped, bailouts are ready, we arrive at ressel for a shakedown dive. In typical style for any cave trip, theres an unexpected kit failure. My previously perfectly performing salvo decides to crap out during the pre-dive test. Luckily stuart and I are both wary of canister lamps, so the spare torch comes out. We swam into ressel about 700m, on a leisurely dive, staging gas as we went (bottom of the 440 corner). Towards the end of the dive, stuarts unit has managed to flood a bit (mr flappy lips wasnt used to a CCR that works), so we turned the dive and headed out with stuart initially on OC bailout, then back to the CCR once we got <24m. At this point, his Halcyon sputtered out and the candle backup came out. Its about a 2 1/2 hour run, with a conservative deco. I'll leave it to Stuart to tell you what he wrote on the slate. The Salvo issue turns out to be a connector/termination problem, so I got handy with the soldering iron. I'll have to sort it out properly now Im back. Day 2. Cabouy-Pouymessens. We debated the vis, I predicted cracking... stuart predicted shite. Stuart was paying for dinner then... 20m+, best I've ever seen. We dived with twin 7's of 32 & 50% each... from cabouy to pouymessens, then upstream for about 300m. Its amazing to see this cave in clear vis, its truly gorgeous. Both breathers performed flawlessly, making for a nice relaxed dive. this is what its all about. Day 3. St Georges, vis to sump1 is milky... sump 2 onwards is crystal at 15m+. ran to about 700m in, gorgeous cave again, but you have to carefully manage depth to ensure you don't burn through dil. Day 4. Landenouse. Water was so far down here, that the climb to the water was more like 6m... man it was hot. Vis is also cracking... and this was to be the day that I had my first ever significant KISS failure in about 400 hours of diving. On the entry, I noticed my PO2 creeping up. Dil flushes weren't curing this, which indicated I had an O2 problem, so the remaining 90 minutes were spent controlling the O2 flow using the tank valve. Day 5. Truffe. Water levels are so low, you can see the top of the first entry arch. Im ashamed to admit I couldnt get into truffe with the KISS on.... and apparently, for some stupid reason I couldnt get out with it on either (stuck between the first two entry restrictions). Having reduced the vis to zero trying to get out, I had to bail off (kept triggering the ADV, even in O2 mode), take the unit off and swim out pushing it in front of me, whilst carrying my 7L of bailout. I think my face told stuart just how much fun I'd had. cough Day 6. St George, a return visit, going in for a bimble... only an hour... but its good to get straight back on the horse. Numerous amusing moments abounded.... but its certainly easy doing a trip like this on CCR. Bring your bailouts pre-blown and a drive tank or two of deep dil... a twinset of O2... and a tub of kitty litter. Total bill for air used (suit bottles and topping off drive gas) = 13 euros. All in all a sound time, albeit beset with kit failures. Some caves are ideal for CCR, others are better attacked with OC and it seems to me that sidemount is ideal for these. /Zak PS. bring andrex.... __________________ Eagles May Soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines! Rebreather World Terms of service Real diving t-shirts for real divers
(Offline)

23rd August 2005, 04:45	#2 (permalink)
*Decodiver* Administrator Current Rebreather/s: Megalodon Ouroboros rEvo Other CCR Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Inspiration Vision Evolution Sport Kiss Classic Kiss rEvo Other CCR Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Geneva Posts: 2,179	Nice report dear chap. Cheers, Dave. __________________ CCR/OC Trimix Instructor Trainer CCR Training to Mixed Gas in Switzerland, France, UK & Germany on Megalodon/COPIS-Megalodon/KISS/Sport KISS/Ouroboros/rEvo/Inspiration/Evolution/Sentinel www.zerogravitydiving.com Rebreather World Terms & Conditions
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23rd August 2005, 12:12	#3 (permalink)
lizardland Yak Current Rebreather/s: MK 15.X Home Build Other Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Home Build Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: North... Posts: 1,253	Quote: (Originally Posted by wreckweasel) I'll leave it to Stuart to tell you what he wrote on the slate. "Wank! Water in loop! Glug!" Quote: beset with kit failures Not to mention sense of humour failures by certain north European open circuit brethren Quote: PS. bring andrex.... Still having trouble with your orifice? Cheers, Yak
(Offline)

23rd August 2005, 14:09	#4 (permalink)
*EBT* Apprentice Luddite Current Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: UK, Brighton Posts: 1,932	One orifice is fixed, the other still needs a strip down. Ps. I spy.... __________________ Eagles May Soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines! Rebreather World Terms of service Real diving t-shirts for real divers
(Offline)

23rd August 2005, 14:33	#5 (permalink)
lizardland Yak Current Rebreather/s: MK 15.X Home Build Other Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Home Build Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: North... Posts: 1,253	Does it start with a K or a C? You left out the most important bit, the development of the EBT and its deployment procedures. Many people could benefit from that.
(Offline)

23rd August 2005, 14:46	#6 (permalink)
*EBT* Apprentice Luddite Current Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: UK, Brighton Posts: 1,932	Thats advanced diving techniques.... you have to expose a nipple, do a funny handshake and ply me with expensive cognac to find that bit out. <throws EBT> __________________ Eagles May Soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines! Rebreather World Terms of service Real diving t-shirts for real divers
(Offline)

24th August 2005, 07:40	#7 (permalink)
The Purist Flood-master Current Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: UK Posts: 96	Quote: (Originally Posted by wreckweasel) ... and this was to be the day that I had my first ever significant KISS failure in about 400 hours of diving. Pah! You haven't lived mate!! I can lend you some "spare parts" if you want a bit more entertainment
(Offline)

24th August 2005, 13:15	#8 (permalink)
*EBT* Apprentice Luddite Current Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: UK, Brighton Posts: 1,932	Careful what you offer keith, squeaky boy is so tight he'd probably take that dodgy scrubber can off your hands, if its free!! __________________ Eagles May Soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines! Rebreather World Terms of service Real diving t-shirts for real divers
(Offline)

24th August 2005, 13:30	#9 (permalink)
lizardland Yak Current Rebreather/s: MK 15.X Home Build Other Rebreather/s: Classic Kiss Home Build Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: North... Posts: 1,253	Yep! As long as I don't have to pay for postage! If you've got any o-rings your chucking I'll have them too. Bit of spit and grease and they're as good as new! Got a set of number stamps from the local cheapo shop for a couple of quid, never have to get a bottle tested again
(Offline)

24th August 2005, 22:26	#10 (permalink)
CaveStainz New Member Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: UK, Kingston, Surrey Posts: 14	Hi Zak, Great write up, nice to see that things haven't changed.. water level at the Landenouse and Truffe still low at this time of year! Quite how recently did you go - would be useful to know the temperature also. I'll never forget the sight of French cyclists stopping at the Ressel to gawk at me in my underpants carrying cylinders down to the river! Lucky for me the cylinders had filled themselves to 345bar in 45 deg C sunshine.. it was a good dive ;-) Steve
(Offline)

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