Sidemount diving is diving with two independent tanks and regulators attached along both sides of divers body. The BCD is also Sidemount specific with proper hardware and bungee system to keep the tanks streamlined and easy to access. Because of the ease of tank management and possibility of its removal while diving this type of diving configuration is very popular in cave and wreck diving letting you swim through smallest restrictions where traditional back mount system would not permit it. It is also great for longer or deeper dives since it gives you significantly greater amount of gas to plan and manage your dives. The Sidemount system is also very compact which makes it great choice for travel to different dive destinations around the world.
The true playground for learning or to dive sidemount system would be in one of our dive center in Cienfuegos Cuba , Faro Luna . The divesites there are accesible from the shore so with enough gas you can reach many of them, including nearby shipwrecks. There is a maze of underwater crevices and opened tunnels which run perpendicular to the shore which makes it a mecca for practicing sidemount skills of swimming through restrictions without the risk of being stucked or lost.
During my last stay in Cuba I started to train some of our dive crew of Faro Luna Diving Center how to use and guide divers utilizing sidemount system. Check out the videos below of Elio , one of our instructors at Faro Luna trying and loving the sidemount for the first time.
COME DIVE WITH US
