Poseidon Try Tech event gives taste of rebreather diving

BSAC members who are keen to try closed circuit rebreather (CCR) diving can join a regionally-scheduled Try Tech event. 

Grace Westgarth shared her experience of bubble-free diving with the Poseidon Se7en CCR at Cromhall Quarry in Gloucestershire. 

Before the Poseidon Se7en try-dive, I had only experienced rebreather diving briefly when I had completed a try dive on another unit back in 2019. I really enjoyed that previous dive but was left wanting more, so when my friend sent me a link to this event on BSAC's website, I knew I had to go!

On the day, we were given an overview of CCR diving and then the specific features of the Poseidon Se7en. Then before we got in the water, we were delivered a great, in-depth dive briefing. I had already learnt a lot from the morning and I was purely just excited to get diving at this point!

Throughout my decade of scuba, I had heard that CCR diving is completely different to open circuit (O/C) in many ways. But during my last rebreather try dive I didn't get as much time in the water to feel these differences and therefore wasn't able to experience what CCR is really like.

However, our time in the water was at least 35 minutes in duration which gave us a chance to see what a typical dive could look like. The hardest part was definitely getting to grips with the buoyancy. I guess I didn't realise how much I use my breathing to control my movement using O/C. I also learnt the method of exhaling through the nose to vent air out of the loop as that is the only way of expelling excess air. This felt strange but it’s something I will have to practice!

What rebreather diving feels like

What draws me to continue with rebreather diving in the future is that in the moments when I managed to achieve neutral buoyancy, it was so quiet. I was able to focus more on my breathing and how still I felt with the absence of bubbles flying past my face every with every exhalation. I would love to pursue a career in underwater photography or filmmaking and I can imagine how useful this would be. 

I would encourage everyone to have a go on a Poseidon rebreather if they get the chance. It's a fun challenge! I will be definitely be watching the BSAC website to make sure I don't miss any similar upcoming events. 

Thanks to Colin Rotheram and team at Quantumdiver for delivering the Try Tech event at Cromhall.