My Journey to Full Cave Certification: A Reflection

My Diving Journey: Part 5 of 5

New here? Catch up on my beginnings >> Read Part 1: From Non-Swimmer to Certified Diver
Then, discover my turning point >> Read Part 2: Beyond the Basics
The start of my tech diving >> Read Part 3: The Technical Ascent
Finally, My Technical Diving Progression Formula >> Read Part 4: A Roadmap for Aspiring Tech Divers

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Finally certified as a Full Cave Diver in backmount doubles! It was a long journey of two and a half years, countless hours of practice, and endless drives to and from dive sites. The journey from Intro to Cave to Full Cave was not just about accumulating dives—it was about staying sharp. As our instructor Shannon told us, all the techniques we learned in our Intro course would be coming back, with a twist and an extension.

What Does the Full Cave Course Entail?

The Full Cave Diver course is typically a five-day training. If you combine it with Intro to Cave, it’s at least a six-to-eight-day course. However, at this level, training is paid for, but certifications are earned. Your personal experience will depend on where you are in your diving journey. To understand the course requirements, check out the minimum training times for various cave diving combinations from Third Dimension Diving.

Minimum Duration for Cave Courses

Course Names	Minimum Days
Single Courses
Essentials (Intro to Tech) Diver	3
Sidemount Diver	3
Cavern Diver	3
Intro to Cave Diver	3
Full Cave Diver	4
Combinations of Courses
Essentials or Sidemount + Cavern Diver	5
Cavern + Intro to Cave Diver	5
Essentials or Sidemount + Cavern Diver + Intro to Cave	7
Cavern + Intro to Cave + Full Cave	8-10

The major differences between the Full Cave and Intro to Cave courses are the gas rule and navigation. Full Cave divers can use up to one-third of their gas and navigate restrictions, complex jumps, and Ts, whereas Intro to Cave divers are limited to one-sixth of their gas and must stay on the main line without encountering Ts and restrictions. Personally, I found Full Cave less mentally taxing than Intro to Cave because we were building on existing skills, not learning everything from scratch.

>> Read More: descriptions and course standards of Intro to Cave Diver and Full Cave Diver from TDI 

While it is possible for a small population of highly skilled tech divers to complete the Cavern + Intro to Cave + Full Cave courses in one go, I personally recommend doing Intro to Cave first, logging some fun cave dives to practice, and then coming back for the Full Cave course.

>> Read More: meet my instructor Shannon at Underworld Tulum

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Key Lessons & Takeaways

I emerged from this course a much more confident cave diver. My reel proficiency and buoyancy improved dramatically, but the most important lesson was mastering navigation. I’ve always had a tendency to get lost and disoriented on land, but our instructor Shannon’s three navigation rules gave me the confidence I needed.

The 3 Golden Rules of Navigation:

1. Rule 1: Always Mark Your Exit. Any navigation decision you make must have a clear marker for your exit.
2. Rule 2: Be Unambiguous. Navigation must be 100% clear.
3. Rule 3: Be Courteous. Be considerate of other teams and the environment.

Procedures are Kevin’s and my strong suit. Having our procedure down gave us the peace of mind to know we could always follow our “breadcrumbs” to the exit. We also take extra time to consider our exit direction every time we place a cookie, a lesson learned from a close-call story from a mentor.

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Essential Mantras & Quick Bites

• Slow is smooth, smooth is fast. I tend to rush when adding new skills, and this mantra was a constant reminder to slow down and stay composed.
• Make sure the cookies are on the exit side. PERIOD. As long as this golden rule is followed and validated, you will always find your way home.
• When in doubt, turn around. If you are ever unsure, put down a cookie to mark your exit. If you’re still unsure, it’s time to turn around and end the dive.
• Plan the dive, dive the plan, and plan the contingency as well.
• My SAC rate reflects my mental task loading. My SAC rate chart showed me just how much air I was consuming when learning a new skill.
• Deco now comes into play. Surprise! I am glad we did Helitrox training (similar to ANDP, advanced nitrox and decompression procedure, with Trimix add-on) between our Intro to Cave and Full Cave courses, so we had the necessary knowledge to deal with decompression.
• Team dynamics are important. Kevin and I have been a team of two for all our diving (and life), and knowing each other so well made the journey more fun and easier.

>> Read More: Stay tuned for my upcoming blog post to explain how SAC rate (Surface Air Consumption rate) work.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed the course and am proud to call myself a certified cave diver. It was a hard journey, but I am so happy that Kevin and I got to achieve this together. We learned so much about ourselves and as a team. Now, we’re ready to explore more caves!

>> Read More: Packing for dive trips, especially tech/cave trips can be overwhelming. Read my blog post of “A Framework for Packing a Cave Trip: Backmount Doubles Edition” as a jump start!

>> Read More: Stay tuned for my upcoming blog post to detail Tulum as a diving destination!

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