A Little Thing...Getting Back On The Newtons

It used to be quite a challenge and lots of fun getting back onto a Newton dive boat in heavy seas. The stern of the boat would be going up and down, sometime so far out of the water that you could see the props. The ladders would be swinging in and out, up and down, banging away.

Being an experienced divemaster and instructor, you would be the last one to get back on board. The reasons for this were many. Divers would drop gear while on the tag line, ladder or stern step...weight belts, fins, masks or even just fall back in. You would have to retrieve these items or assist the divers. 

The trick was to be prepared and ready to make your move when the time was right. After all of the other divers were safely on board you would get on the tag line, a little bit back from the ladder. Here you would wrap your arm over the line and take off your fins, placing the straps over each wrist. 

Now you're ready to approach the ladder. You never approached the ladder while there was still another diver on the ladder or on the deck area between the ladder rails. With things rockin' and rollin' it wasn't uncommon for a diver to fall off of the ladder or step, back into the water.

You would pull yourself up the tag line, close enough to the ladder to be able to grab the handrails but not so close that it could hit you. The trick was to get into that position, and then just when the ladder drops down in front of you and hits its lowest point,  you would grab on and step onto the ladder and just ride it up. 

Once you were on the ladder you just climb up and step onto the deck, always having at least one hand firmly grasping something solid, and never refusing a helping hand. 

Top down view of the ladder.

I always enjoyed being on Captain Carol's boat because she would stand on the stern, supervising and assisting with the whole procedure. It was always reassuring and almost welcoming to see her looking down at me, with 'that look' from behind her sunglasses.  I somehow got the feeling that she never felt the need to be ready to help me because I never needed it and she knew it, assumed it, counted on it. Then again, she might have just been waiting to see what dumb ass thing I was going to do.

View of the back of a Newton

with Captain Carol and Alex