Big Blue Wins International Environmental Achievement Award for Thailand
Dive shop in Thailand wins top honours for Environmental Achievement.
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Diving, the parent company of Big Blue Tech came in third for the Project AWARE International Environmental Achievement Awards for 2009 listing them as number 1 in Thailand.
Project AWARE Foundation honors dive operators around the world who display commitment and excellence in their efforts to protect underwater environments within business operations and their community. “The Environmental Achievement Award is about rewarding vision, excellence and pursuit of conservation. More importantly, this award ensures the enjoyment of underwater environments for future generations,” said Henrik Nimb, Project AWARE Foundation Director, Asia Pacific.
The following Asia Pacific Environmental Achievement Award 2009 winners operate in an environmentally responsible manner and demonstrate an outstanding commitment to conserving underwater environments through education, advocacy and action.
1. B&J Diving Centre – ABC, Malaysia
2. B&J Diving Centre – Salang, Malaysia
3. Big Blue Diving Resort, Thailand
4. Blue Season Bali, Indonesia
5. Crystal Dive Resort, Thailand
6. Deep Sea Divers Den, Australia
7. Dive Tropex Tokoriki, Fiji
8. Dive! Tutukaka, New Zealand
9. Eco Scuba, Korea
10. Gangga Divers, Indonesia
11. Kon-Tiki Krabi, Thailand
12. Malapascua Exotic Dive Resort, Philippines
13. Matava, Fiji Islands
14. NZ Sea Adventures, New Zealand
15. Ocean Elements, Malaysia
16. Plunge Diving, Australia
17. Scuba Cat Diving, Thailand
18. Sea Hounds, Singapore
19. Sea World Dive Center, Philippines
20. Subsurface Fiji, Fiji Islands
21. Thresher Shark Divers, Philippines
22. United Divers, Australia
The number of amazing initiatives and actions implemented by the Project AWARE Environmental Achievement Award Winners is inspiring. Congratulations! For information on planning your own environmental project or becoming more environmentally sustainable contact Project AWARE.
Technical divers discover shipwreck off coast of Thailand
Tec divers locate and dive on a shipwreck that has been missing for over one year.
Koh Tao, Thailand – In April of 2009 a wooden overnight ferry that would transport passengers and goods from Koh Tao Island to Chumphon City sank in rough waves and strong wind. The boat sank slowly allowing all the occupants to be rescued.
In May of 2009 a group of individuals contacted big blue tech to conduct a search for the wreck in an attempt to identify it as a potential artificial reef which was completed after warm-up training. However, due to technological limitations the wreck wasn’t found at the position reported.
In Christmas of 2009 it was reported that fishermen were catching their drag nets on something big under the water. The position was logged with their GPS as an area to avoid in the future and this information was passed down to the technical divers who have been looking for information in that area.
Today staff from Big Blue Tech set out on the sea early in the morning armed with GPS and a type of sonar that shows the topography of the sea bed to find the lost nightboat. The staff members included Helen Artal. Duncan Tyler, Thomas Hallstrom, Yvonne Fries and James Thornton-Allan worked as a team relaying information from the sonar to the GPS to the captain as we got closer.
Unfortunately the information we received was not accurate again and the GPS mark was showing nothing. After 30 minutes of searching the sonar bleeped showing the depth which was a constant 40m raise up to 27m about 1 kilometer away from all reports of the sinking. This was clearly what we were looking for, after a few more sweeps the shot line was thrown in and James set off to make the confirmation.
As James descended the divers waited on the surface waiting for the signal that there was a wreck below and that the rest of the team should descend. The signal would be a bright orange air bag that would float on the surface after filled with a small amount of air from below. After what seemed like an eternity the bag broke the surface along with cheers and applause.
The wreck is sitting perfectly upright in the silt, the stern is completely covered in fishing nets which appears to have ripped of the top roof exposing one floor. The length and width hasn’t been measured yet but it’s estimated at 30m long in length with plenty of room for penetration.
Without knowing the actual name of this boat we have named this large blue nightboat simply the “Big Blue Wreck”. More information needs to be gathered and a survey to be conducted before the wreck will be opened up to Big Blue Tech customers.
Rebreather Training in Thailand
Modified semi-closed rebreather diver course completed in Thailand
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Andrew Cavell from his TDI Semi Closed Rebreather Diver Course conducted over 4 dives around various dive sites on Koh Tao Island. The TDI Semi-Closed Rebreather Diver Course is designed to teach the student the safe diving and operation of a Semi-Closed Rebreather.
The semi-closed circuit rebreather (SCR) can be manufactured without the use of batteries or electronic components in a very reliable system. It’s only moving parts are the check valves in the mouthpiece and the demand valve override for deep inhalations. It can be simple, useful, and provide many of the benefits divers seek in rebreathers. With the use of Nitrox mixtures, the benefits of EAN use are retained with the added benefits of a properly designed SCR which includes:
- Quiet, reduced bubble operation
- Extended bottom time (due to efficient use of gas)
- Lighter, more comfortable diving systems
- All the physiological benefits of EAN (Nitrox)
Other advantages of the semi-closed circuit rebreather become obvious with use in each dives chosen environment. For example, the inspired air is moist, not-dry, helping to eliminate “cotton-mouth.” Also, the gas is warmer, reducing heat loss in cold-water diving. Buoyancy needs only be set once at depth. As the diver breathes, the system acts opposite to the lungs producing no change in buoyancy from inhalation to exhalation. This takes some getting used to for experienced divers.
Diving on the rebreather is a remarkable difference to normal open circuit scuba. Andrew’s first experience in the shallow training depths was commented as “that’s weird” when referring to the control of the buoyancy using your lungs. Because the unit uses a bag of air that you exhale and inhale from the exchange of gas from lungs to unit is different than experienced in normal scuba. In scuba diving when you exhale you descend and when you inhale you ascend. In a Semi-closed rebreather the movement is opposite.
During the open water dives do depths up to 30m Andrew found the marine life came much closer then ever before and that the air was not as dry as in normal scuba.
The rebreather which was used is a modified Drager Dolphin Semi-closed rebreather which has been adapted from it’s 4 litre tank which provided 69 hours of dive time to twin 6 litre tanks to get the increase gas and dive time while utilizing a full canister of soda lime. This rebreather also features the ability to bolt on a backplate and wing so technical divers can find it more comfortable and streamlined.
Training Team Expansion
New staff bring diversity to technical diving school in Thailand
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Tech welcomes the addition of new staff members to our technical diving team. Over the past few months Big Blue Tech has been actively seeking new employees to help accomodate the demand for training and diving. The new staff members include Helen Artal, Thomas Hallstrom, Duncan Tyler and Andrew Cavell who have been trained in house and start work on the first of March.
Working in the technical diving industry takes a select amount of skills. Not only are customer service skills essential while working in the tourism industry it’s also required to have the skills and education to properly represent this sport in the right manner. While all the new staff are already experience diving professionals it’s their adaptation to technical diving that sets them aside from the rest.
The new team is also a youthful and energetic crowd who are all current in today’s methods and ideology of technical diving which brings a fresh and welcomed spirit to the industry.
To learn more about the new team click on the “Dive Crew” link at the top of the page.
Got Wreck? The local wreck has been found, again!
Local divers rediscover a local shipwreck on Koh Tao.
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Tech internship coordinator Dean Jenkins took several divemaster candidates from Big Blue Diving out to local dive site “Japanese Gardens” to look for the little wooden wreck that disappeared a few months ago.
Using search patterns the wreck was found at 20m about 300m away from it’s origional location. The vanishing story comes from people who saw a large steel boat use the wreck as a mooring, when it encountered big waves it dragged the wreck away but failed to tell anyone where they put it.
Today the text came into the office that the team was successful and a mooring will be put on it, again, so other divers on the island can enjoy it.
New Colour Indicator Scuba Valves
Scuba cylinder valve manufactures release new safety feature with color indicator
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Tech return from their last expedition and begin the process of servicing their technical diving equipment in preperation for the next session of technical diving.
One of the tasks include the replacement of our Halcyon valves which we have been having a lot of problems with in terms of handwheel stripping and getting service parts for the proprietary design which caused us a lot of problems when on expedition.
We decided to order a twinset manifold system from Xs Scuba which included a new safety feature. This new feature has a colour inidication which shows the posistion of the tank valve at either fully open, fully closed or half way. This feature uses two sliding inserts in the handwheel that are green and red. When the tank is closed the red colour is showing. As the valve is opened the red colour retracts and the green slowly moves in to replace it. When the cylinder is in the open posistion it shows only green.
For technical diving we think the colour system might not be ideal as colour disapears at depth but certainly as a tool before entering the water and for shallow depths during gas exchange.
Valentines Tech Expedition: Conclusion
Technical divers return home after 2 weeks on the road.
Koh Tao, Thailand - Big Blue Tech returned to Koh Tao this morning after completing 2 weeks on the road during a technical diving expedition.
The team members including James Thornton-Allan, Andy Cavell, Yvonne Fries, Helen Artal, Thomas Hallstrom and Duncan Tyler completed their full tech course with a certification of Extended Range and explored a variety of diving styles and environments to make the divers very well rounded and confident.
In the end the students logged 30 technical dives in fresh and salt water and depths up to 55m.
This is the second successful expedition this year with another one planned for the end of April which takes divers to Singapore for Trimix diving. For more information about how you can join future trips or training feel free in contacting us.
Valentines Tech Expedition: Cave Diving Thailand
Technical divers explore caves and caverns in Thailand
Khao Sok National Park, Thailand – Big Blue Tech completed the cave and cavern diving portion of their expedition with the certification of a TDI Cavern Diver certification for Helen Artal, Thomas Hallstrom, Fanette LeGoarand and James Rickert during a 4 day/ 3 night expedition in Khao Sok National Park which hosts a man made lake with hundreds of undiscovered caves and cavern systems.
The course included all entry level skills including found in overhead diving including how to use a reel, deal with limited visibility and working as a team. In addition they also had to get used to fresh water buoyancy and diving in remote areas.
After certification the divers explored new areas and discovered some new caves in the 10 – 18m range which will be explored at a later date. On one dive a team covered over 1km of submerged limestone wall looking for caves.
On the final day the team departed from Khao Sok National Park and returned to Koh Tao on the 20th.
Valentines Tech Expedition: Khao Sok Cave Diving
Technical Divers head to Khao Sok National Park for cavern and cave diving
Khao Sok, Thailand – Divers on the Valentines Tech Expedition leave Khao Lak for Khao Sok National Park for the overhead diving portion of the expedition which includes cavern and cave level diving.
The Rajjaprabha Dam (also called Chieo Lan Dam) was built in the 1980′s flooding the valley of large limestone cliffs creating a large man made lake. This lake submerged caves and caverns making it perfect for cave and cavern diving and cave diving training.
Also in this lake is a submerged village with a temple which was deserted before the flooding. This temple was discovered during a expedition by Big Blue Tech in June of 2009 – “Wat Lies Beneath“
Big Blue Tech will be in Khao Sok for 3 days and 3 nights before returning to Koh Tao. A full report and pictures will follow.
Valentines Tech Expedition: Mv Sea Chart 1 Wreck
Technical divers explore the new shipwreck off Khao Lak
Khao Lak, Thailand – In August of 2009 the Mv Sea Chart 1, a bulk carrier from Thailand sank in rough waves during a the journey from Myanmar to Vietnam. The vessel was carrying 1200 tonnes of teak wood and sank during rough seas off the coast of Khao Lak. All crew and passengers were rescued and after the Thai Navy surveyed the wreck is was buoyed and opened for diving.
Last month Big Blue Tech conduced 3 days of technical diving during their “Golden Horseshoe Expedition” and found the wreck to be ideal for technical diving because of it’s size and depth.
The wreck now lies on it’s starboard side in 40m with a length of 85m. The wreck is still quite new but marine life continues to grow each day. Every dive conducted on this wreck reveals new passages, doorways and entrances with challenging penetrations and obstacles.
During the 4 technical dives we conducted more penetrations then before and secured many door which were previously locked into the open and tied off position allowing divers to safely enter these areas.
In addition to the wreck we found a “Ghost Pipe Fish” which is a rare type of fish which looks like a spiked piece of coral and always swims facing down. With Lion Fish and other venomous type things everywhere it’s important to look where you’re going at all times to avoid a nasty sting.
Below are pictures from our 2 days of diving.
For more information on the sinking look here at: “Andaman Sea storms sink Thai bulk-carrier”
Valentines Tech Expedition: Happy Birthday Cav!
Technical diver celebrates his 27th birthday in Thailand.
Khao Lak, Thailand – Big Blue Tech celebrated the 27th birthday of Andy “Cav” Cavell who has been on the expedition as assistant technical instructor for the final phase of his 3 month technical diving internship.
As the team left the liveaboard boat we sorted out our gear and got some sleep before heading out to the Happy Snapper. In the Happy Snapper we were met by several other friends and colleagues who joined us in the festivities which included drinking and dancing while the band played late into the night.
The night was also a celebration of a safe return from a great trip on the sea.
The following day was spent moving quite slowly and hanging around the pool resting up for some more technical diving to come.
Valentines Tech Expedition: Similans Technical Liveaboard
Technical divers return to shore after 4 days at sea
Khao Lak, Thailand – The Valentines Tech Expedition contingent of Big Blue Tech return to Khao Lak today after coming ashore from the Mv Pawara after the completion of a 4 night technical diving liveaboard on the Similan and Surin islands.
The liveaboard was the base of our diving while completing a TDI Extended Range course which trained the divers to conduct accelerated decompression dives to depths of 55 meters / 180 ft using 3 mixes of gas with air, nitrox and oxygen over 4 cylinders worn simultaneously.
This course was delivered by James Thornton-Allan and Andy Cavell for students Yvonne Fries, Helen Artal, Duncan Tyler and Thomas Hallstrom.
This would be the second technical diving trip in the similan islands for Big Blue Tech this season and again it proved to be a holiday setting with challenging and interesting dives. While the diving conditions are described below it was the extra touches of relaxing watching movies, sun tanning on the roof and trips in the dinghy to the beaches, which really made this trip relaxing and enjoying as a holiday.
Technical diving is saturated with bravado and peer pressure which have lead to serious diving accidents around the globe, we’re more about having fun on the surface and focusing as a team underwater which allows each diver to relax and progress at their own pace. In addition to our relaxed atmosphere we also encourage a alcohol free environment and no smoking during the diving day which has contributed to our perfect record of no diving related injuries.
The Similan Islands is located off the west coast of the west side of Thailand just north of Phuket from a town called Khao Lak. There are several ways to reach the similans by speed boat, long tail or liveaboard and is listed as one of the best diving destinations in the world. The Similan and Surin Islands are protected marine parks managed by the Thai government to prevent fishing and destruction to help the marine environment sustain for generations to come. Divers must pay a park fee to enter the marine park which is enforced by roaming park police boats. It seems the greatest enforcement in the area is getting the money from the dive tour operators rather than protecting the environment from fishing or negative effects like litter or pollution but it’s a better system than nothing at all.
The dive sites we visited on our trip was East Of Eden, Boulder City, West of Eden, Elephant Head Pinnacle, Christmas Tree Point, Koh Bon, Koh Tachai, Richelieu Rock, Richelieu Rock(sunset), Koh Bon Pinnacle, Boonson Wreck.
Over these sites we found ourselves at the mercy of very strong currents pushing us in all directions with changing temperature. On a dive a Elephant Head Pinnacle at 55m a freezing cold wall of cloudy water washed over us making the visibility very limited and giving all of us instant brain freeze that took your breath away. While we were struggling to adjust to the temperature we were being pushed all over the place at a very fast rate, so strong that you couldn’t kick against it to keep in place, our only option was to hide behind rocks and do strategic zig zag movements through the dive site back up to recreational diving depths where is was warm and clear again but it was an experience that taught everyone how to handle vicious currents and how to stay together as a team.
On a dive to Koh Bon we finally saw Manta Rays, thankfully our instructor dropped his mask off the back of the boat, as he went do to get it just below the surface we noticed two large manta rays circling us about 10m below us. This would be a first for some of the divers who have had plenty of chances but never actually seen one. The Giant Manta Ray or “Manta Birostris” is mostly black with a white underbelly, long triangular wings and a tail without stinger. It also has a pair of movable flaps just in front of its mouth. They can grow up to 3-4 meters wide and are recorded as up to 22ft or 670 cm in diameter or “disc” size making these very exciting animals to be witness to. These gentle giants are also one of the few rays that don’t sting so you can get quite close without worry of harm. We spent in total about half an hour with these majestic animals, while other divers were restricted by their single cylinder and no decompression limits we spent over an hour at depth without any concern for air or decompression since the dive was planned well in advance.
As the final night rolled around many started falling asleep after dinner showing clear signs of fatigue from the days diving. It was decided as a group that we would skip the last 2 dives and sleep in, we would come back with the speed boat to visit Koh Bon Pinnacle at a later date. It was also the 11th of February which is Andy Cavell’s 27th birthday. We all knew that coming back from the trip and it being Andy’s birthday that we would be well into a few drinks so it’s good to rest up for such vigorous Olympic style consumption.
Returning to shore we unloaded the boat into our taxi and headed off to our hotel for a nap, shower and relaxed for the next few days until the 13th when we would head off to the big shipwreck off the coast called the Sea Chart 1 which is 85m long in 40m of water.
Special thanks to the staff of Big Blue Khao Lak and Mv Pawara for taking such good care of us and bending over backwards to accommodate our trip.
Valentines Tech Expedition: Similan Islands
Similan Islands, Thailand – Big Blue Tech continues their technical diving expedition with the boarding ontheir liveaboard vessel the Mv Pawara bound for the Similan Islands over the course of a 4 day / 4 night trip.
The Mv Pawara is a luxury class liveaboard owned by Big Blue Diving and chartered through Big Blue Khao Lak and offers diving trips to the best of the Similan Islands off the west coast of Thailand.
Big Blue Tech uses this trip to conduct a TDI Extended Range Yvonne Fries, Helen Artal, Thomas Hallstrom and Duncan Tyler conducted by TDI Instructor James Thornton-Allan and assisted by Andrew Cavel.
Technical diving in the Similans is perfect for divers who want to see the best diving conditions in Thailand with a diversity of marine life and clearity unseen anywhere else.
At the moment the Mv Pawara is the only boat setup for technical diving with on board nitrox and oxygen fills along with Big Blue Khao Lak being the only centre in Khao Lak offering technical diving. This will be the second trip this season with many more scheduled in the coming months.
Valentines Tech Expedition: Hit the road!
Technical divers leave Koh Tao heading for Khao Lak on the west coast of Thailand
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Tech departs Koh Tao island heading through Chumphon City to Khao Lak to start the expedition phase of the tech course for Yvonne Fries, Helen Artal, Thomas Hallstrom and Duncan Tyler conducted by TDI Instructor James Thornton-Allan and assisted by Andrew Cavel.
The team departed from Seatran Ferry peir on Koh Tao and headed to Lang Suan Peir in Chumphon. Arriving in Chumphon we were met but a mini bus who would take us on the 4 hour drive to Khao Lak and our hotel which would accomodate us for the night.
While in Khao Lak the tech team will be diving on a technical liveaboard called the Mv Pawara which is owned by Big Blue Diving, the parent company of Big Blue Tech. After the 4 day, 4 night liveaboard in the Similan Islands we’ll be staying in Khao Lak to dive on the Sea Chart 1 shipwreck and a few speed boat trips before heading off to Khao Sok for some cave exploration diving over a few days with a planned return to Koh Tao on the 17th.
Valentines Tech Expedition: Decompression Procedures Diver
Divers advance to the level of conducting decompression dives
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Yvonne Fries, Helen Artal, Thomas Hallstrom and Duncan Tyler from a TDI Decompression Procedures course conducted by TDI Instructor James Thornton-Allan and assisted by Andrew Cavell and Ash Dunn over various dive sites on Koh Tao Island in Thailand.
The TDI Decompression Procedures course is designed to train a diver who has training in technical diving in the methods and skills involved with decompression diving. Recreational diving is considered no stop which means you can leave your depth and ascend to the surface at anytime (optional safety stop recommended), with decompression diving the diver has absorbed into their tissues (muscles and blood) a lot of gas which is forced in during deep and long duration diving of compressed air. Because the tissues are saturated with nitrogen it’s mandatory that decompression divers stop at certain depths for certain periods of time to let the nitrogen bubble leave the body safely. Failing to do this safely can cause the bubble to expand to fast causing decompression sickness or “the bends”. To those unfamiliar with diving, our atmosphere is made up of a concentration of 21% oxygen and 79% nitrogen, divers use this air in our tanks after a filtration system, it’s the concentration of nitrogen which effects the divers at this level.
The skills the divers had to learn were varied from following a complex schedule itemizing their stops and time, buoyancy skills like oral inflation of their wing at depth to deployment of back-up mask. Other skills continued throughout the 4 dives of this course which lead the divers to receive the coveted certification which is the most recognized internationally as a entry level technical diver.
The students were issued certification after and exam and progress on to their TDI Extended Range course tomorrow with a trip to the similan islands and khao sok national park. You can read more about the Decompession Procedures course here: TDI Decompression Procedures Diver Course
Valentines Tech Expedition: Advanced Nitrox Diving
Advanced nitrox divers graduate with bull sharks in Thailand
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Yvonne Fries, Helen Artal, Thomas Hallstrom and Duncan Tyler from a TDI Advanced Nitrox course conducted by TDI Instructor James Thornton-Allan and assisted by Andrew Cavell and Ash Dunn over various dive sites on Koh Tao Island in Thailand.
The TDI Advanced Nitrox course is designed to orientate the student about rich or high mixes of oxygen and their advantages while wearing technical diving gear. The use of low mixes to advance deep diving and the use of high mixes to add extra conservatism to optional stops during the dive.
The students learned about carrying a decompression cylinder, oxygen handling and analysis and vairous other skills. The final dives were conducted using nitrox to allow the diver to flow through a no-decompression schedule switching to different mixes of nitrox the shallower the dive went. This course certifies the diver to delve to 40m using up to 100% oxygen depending on the depth and if the situation is warranted.
The final dive was also held at Chmphon Pinnacle where we were met by Bull Sharks that live at that dive site creating an exciting atmosphere for learning and diving.
The students were issued certification after and exam and progress on to their TDI Decompression Procedures course tomorrow with a return to Chumphon Pinnacle for some more dive time with the sharks. You can read more about the Advanced Nitrox course here: TDI Advanced Nitrox Diver Course
Valentines Tech Expedition: Intro To Technical Diving
Experienced dives graduate from the TDI Intro to Tech course in Thailand
Koh Tao, Thailand – Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Yvonne Fries, Helen Artal, Thomas Hallstrom and Duncan Tyler from a TDI Intro to Tech course conducted by TDI Instructor James Thornton-Allan and assisted by Andrew Cavell and Ash Dunn over various dive sites on Koh Tao Island in Thailand.
The TDI Intro to Tech course is designed to introduce the foundation control skills of buoyancy and trim which will be built on during the rest of their training on the way up to TDI Extended Range which is the fourth level in the technical diver curriculum. The skills train a dive to maintain perfect control in a set of technical diving gear while keeping a constant horizontal body position in the water without the use of hands. The skills learned include unique skills like fining backwards and neutral buoyancy skills like no mask swim, regulator exchange, air sharing, long hose use etc.
While this course is not a prerequisite to become a technical diver we feel the skills learned are essential. One of the early goals in our training is to avoid contact with anything other then the equipment you carry once you enter the water. In Koh Tao there are a lot of buoy lines or permanent lines which may be tempting to hold on to during simulated stops but prevents the diver from focusing on controlling themselves in the water. In instances where the down line may not be available it’s essential a future technical diver be intimate with their diving equipment and how to use that equipment effectively.
The students were also exposed to air consumption calculations, basic dive planning without the use of a computer that tracks no decompression limits which is based on the philosophy of “Plan the dive, Dive the plan” which has fallen by the side recently with the advent of gas switching computers. Although the students will be provided with a gas switching computer later on it’s this course which teaches them how to rely and trust a dive plan which might be their back-up decompression information in the future.
In the end the students conducted 4 dives and received their certification after a final exam. The divers will progress on to their Advanced Nitrox course tomorrow. More information regarding the intro to tech course can be found here: TDI Intro to Tech Diver Course
