When undewater, how safe is your stuff....Dumb question I am sure

[Butch25]

When underwater, what to do with your stuff?

 

We are sailing on the Pearl and have a snorkeling excursion planned through the ship for Norman Island (either the Caves or the Indians) when we are in Tortola, BVI. We are taken on a dive boat to the location.

 

My question is how safe is your stuff (Sign and Sail card, money, backpack, etc) when you are in the water? I would think that it would be pretty safe but thought I would ask this dumb question. I know that this a pretty general question but looking to see if there is a general practice others employ.

 

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

[VonChap]

When underwater, what to do with your stuff?

 

We are sailing on the Pearl and have a snorkeling excursion planned through the ship for Norman Island (either the Caves or the Indians) when we are in Tortola, BVI. We are taken on a dive boat to the location.

 

My question is how safe is your stuff (Sign and Sail card, money, backpack, etc) when you are in the water? I would think that it would be pretty safe but thought I would ask this dumb question. I know that this a pretty general question but looking to see if there is a general practice others employ.

 

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

 

Hi. Usually, in the ship's store, they sell a water-tight plastic box that you can tie to your swimsuit. We use this for our sail card, credit card, cash, etc. Its about the size of a deck of cards and comes with the cord. We bought one a few years ago while on the ship that is bright yellow and also floats. So, our key items are always with us.

[Cfanatic]

we've taken 15 cruises and never lost a thing but we take only the minimum with us - cruise card - money for tip - just the necessities. Everyone on the boat will be cruisemates or boat staff. As I said - never lost a thing (knock on wood)

[Capt_BJ]

first - howdy neighbor

 

In over 35 years diving I've never been ripped off. But I've known some who were.

 

The plastic 'beach bank' described works good for swimming and snorkeling but I don't recommend them for diving. I've not trusted one to 100 ft... But I do have several, prefering the one that's just about credit card sized. It easily hold MC, Driver Lic', a few $$ bills, and the cruise card without becoming too large an air bubble

 

On a boat there isn't usually a problem...closed audience and all that...but what if there were? Would you confront? I prefer to limit what I take and lessen the issue

 

On a cuise - the cruise card is usually plastic today so I just stuff it and any cash I brought in a ziplock and stuff it in my suit. Anything else stays in a backback on the boat and my RayBans have always been there when I got back...older drivers lic (non waterproof) and any other ID I took; same deal. No one has ever touched it

 

I do it about the same on a shore dive....minimize what I take so I can carry it down. The MasterCard is waterproof and no salesman, divemaster, or bartender has yet turned away my $20 cuz it was wet!

 

One warning....on some islands where shore dives are popular, USVI was bad for a while and Bonaire too....the locals know the types of cars typically rented by divers and when they'd see you park they'd wait for you to 'go down' then rifle the car.....don't leave anything of value....don't try hiding the key under the seat; they'll take the car. I wear the keys around my neck..My standard diving rig includes my old dog tag, a life guard's whistle and a small clip to hang the key dujore....locker, room, car....

[scubaran]

When underwater, what to do with your stuff?

 

We are sailing on the Pearl and have a snorkeling excursion planned through the ship for Norman Island (either the Caves or the Indians) when we are in Tortola, BVI. We are taken on a dive boat to the location.

 

My question is how safe is your stuff (Sign and Sail card, money, backpack, etc) when you are in the water? I would think that it would be pretty safe but thought I would ask this dumb question. I know that this a pretty general question but looking to see if there is a general practice others employ.

 

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

 

Hi,

 

We've done the tour to Norman Island several times and always had no problem with our stuff being bothered. On an excursion like this there are always groups of people on board, the sea sick wife, the grandmother who doesn't want to get in the water, the husband that would rather drink the free rum rather than snorkel, the teenaged daughter who's in it for the rays, etc. We take our stuff in a backpack, in zip locks, and stuff the important stuff really far down inside it and cover the backpack with our towels. It would look very suspicious for someone to start rifling through it in public view so the temptation just isn't there. On the beach, that's a different scenario and the waterproof "dry paks" are always a good ideal (my swimsuit even comes with a double ziplock plastic pouch sown right into the back pocket and it's large enough for my ship's card, a credit card and some cash).

 

Randall

[tunseeker1]

Sea line bags work wonders!

http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=&kw=see%20bag&origkw=see%20bag&sr=1

[Butch25]

Thanks for all the good info!

[islandwoman]

Just make sure that your bathing suit has a secure (zipper or Velcro) pocket. Put your credit card, sign and sail card, and cash in there. The water won't hurt any of those, and you don't have to worry.