High Altitude Diving???

[monkeyhatfork]

I'm looking for any tip's,thought's, general info on high altitude dives. The location is Lake Tahoe, Northern California- elevation 6229ft the water is beautiful, well over 100ft vis. I've done some modest rec dives there, but am thinking of setting up a line and doing a bit of CWF this summer, want to learn a bit more before taking the deeper plunge-----how much will the up in red blood cells offset lack of oxygen, should breathup be altered, risks, benefits, etc.

 

[twentytwomonk]

Let me know how it works out. I plan on making at least one trip to Tahoe this year, and I really wanna get some diving in while I'm there!

 

[ggarrett]

Sitting here in Cheyenne, Wyoming at 6300 feet above sea level depending on which hill you stand and the tide, I recommend giving yourself a week to acclimate to the altitude. I find when going the other way down to sea level, I do better after a few days in the locale. I think airline flights set me back too. That's two ¢.
In peace,
Glen

 

[harbour seal]

hello monkey (is that mr.fork?),

regardng freediving at altitude, the higher you go the faster you get dehydrated (due to the decreasing air pressure) thus be sure to watch your fluid intake. dehydration can become a serious problem all on it's own at altitude, hypoxia and diving issues aside.

additionally, acute exposure to low air pressure (i.e., low partial pressure of Oxygen) can cause altitude sickness thus the hypoxic stress of freediving could exacerbate your risk. gradual acclimatization, to both the altitude and the freediving at altitude, is likely the safest strategy to avoid any issues. as long as you can avoid altitude sickness the benefits to your training should be pronounced.

given both altitude and freediving can result in pulmonary edema i wonder if there is an increased risk of barotrauma or other lung-related issues while doing both (i.e., freediving at altltude)? hopefully some of the wise physiologist-types can chime in here.

check out this article by sebastian naslund detailing a recent trip to the himalaya and the resulting effects of altitude on breath-holding. i don't think they did any diving per se, however, they did some breath holds while at elevation. they also took blood oxygen saturation readings both during and after the trip.

freediving and hypoxi

some other great freediving articles on the main site as well: Freediving - articles, courses, news, stories, equipment, inspiration

anyway sounds like it would be a great place to do some diving---be sure to follow up with a trip-report detailing your experiences of training at altitude.

cheers,
sean
vancouver, canada

ps.
looks like others have had similar ideas---here are a couple trip reports:

Divernet | Free Diving | ALTITUDE WITH ATTITUDE

Freediving in Swiss mountain lakes, Rodi 2005

http://forums.deeperblue.net/general-freediving/19013-constant-weight-lake.html#post242245
calculations related to cw at elevation