Seatrekking is a sport that consists in exploring the shorelines of oceans, seas, bays, lakes or rivers both above and below the water over the course of several days, without the aid of a boat or a watercraft. Seatrekking involves swimming, snorkeling, freediving and hiking, and combines all these disciplines into a distinctive form of sport and outdoor experience. [1] [2] [3] Unlike coasteering, seatrekking includes overnight camping and involves trips of longer distances. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Seatrekking adheres to the Leave No Trace principles. [9] Additionally the sport is specifically committed to the conservation of natural environments along the coastline by travelling in small groups [4] to minimize the impact on the environment and the disturbance on wildlife, and by complying with any local regulations and obtaining any necessary authorizations. [10]
Seatrekking can be dangerous, [11] and is a physically demanding activity due to its engagement with the sea and open bodies of water. [12]
Seatrekking "...often involves a series of jumps into deep water.". [13] Jumping from a height of 20 feet (6.1 m) results in a person hitting the water at 25 mph (40 km/h). [14] Impacting with the water surface at this velocity is capable of giving a person temporary paralysis of the diaphragm, [15] a compressed spine, broken bones, or concussion. [14]
In the United Kingdom between 2005 and 2015 there were 83 people injured and 20 people who died whilst jumping from height into water. [16]
When diving and flipping into water along the intertidal zone there is an increased risk of receiving an injury including a spinal injury [12]
| Height falling from | Velocity reached at water surface |
|---|---|
| 5 feet (1.5 metres) | 12 mph (19 kmh) [15] |
| 10 feet (3 metres) | 17 mph (27 kmh) [14] |
| 20 feet (6 metres) | 25 mph (40 kmh) [14] |
| 50 feet (15 metres) | 38 mph (61 kmh) [14] |
| 85 feet (26 metres) | 53 to 62 mph (85 to 100 kmh) [14] |
A good physical condition, swimming proficiency, knowledge of outdoor safety, self-rescue and usage of adequate equipment are important to practicing seatrekking safely. [19] Recommended safety equipment may include a wetsuit, personal locator beacon, hand-held VHF radio and/or mobile telephone, dive flag, throw line and a whistle. [12] Weather and ocean patterns and forecast require particular attention. It is crucial for personal safety to keep up-to-date with local conditions regarding tide, swell, wind, ocean currents, rip currents as well as the weather.
Seatrekking requires the use of a waterproof bag; [20] [21] this contains all equipment and food, and is dragged in the water using a rope or leash. [3] Hydrodynamic properties of the bag are essential to reduce drag. It also acts as a supplementary safety flotation device in the water, especially when the bag can be inflated and maintain internal pressure. On land, the bag is carried as a normal backpack along hiking sections.
At sea, other equipment consists of common items used for swimming, snorkeling or freediving, such as mask and snorkel, fins, and optionally a wetsuit depending on water temperature. [22] On land, essentials are hiking clothes and shoes, as well as bivouacking equipment. [23] [24] Additional equipment is selected for its lightness, fast drying time and suitability for prolonged use in a marine environment.
Snorkeling is the practice of swimming face down on or through a body of water while breathing the ambient air through a shaped tube called a snorkel, usually with swimming goggles or a diving mask, and swimfins. In cooler waters, a wetsuit may also be worn. The snorkel may be an independent item or integrated with the mask. The use of this equipment allows the snorkeler to observe the underwater environment for extended periods with relatively little effort, and to breathe while face-down at the surface.
Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or skin diving, is a mode of underwater diving that relies on breath-holding until resurfacing rather than the use of breathing apparatus such as scuba gear.
Spearfishing is fishing using handheld elongated, sharp-pointed tools such as a spear, gig, or harpoon, to impale the fish in the body. It was one of the earliest fishing techniques used by mankind, and has been deployed in artisanal fishing throughout the world for millennia. Early civilizations were familiar with the custom of spearing fish from rivers and streams using sharpened sticks.
A diving suit is a garment or device designed to protect a diver from the underwater environment. A diving suit may also incorporate a breathing gas supply, but in most cases the term applies only to the environmental protective covering worn by the diver. The breathing gas supply is usually referred to separately. There is no generic term for the combination of suit and breathing apparatus alone. It is generally referred to as diving equipment or dive gear along with any other equipment necessary for the dive.
Diving activities are the things people do while diving underwater. People may dive for various reasons, both personal and professional. While a newly qualified recreational diver may dive purely for the experience of diving, most divers have some additional reason for being underwater. Recreational diving is purely for enjoyment and has several specialisations and technical disciplines to provide more scope for varied activities for which specialist training can be offered, such as cave diving, wreck diving, ice diving and deep diving. Several underwater sports are available for exercise and competition.
Recreational diving or sport diving is diving for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment, usually when using scuba equipment. The term "recreational diving" may also be used in contradistinction to "technical diving", a more demanding aspect of recreational diving which requires more training and experience to develop the competence to reliably manage more complex equipment in the more hazardous conditions associated with the disciplines. Breath-hold diving for recreation also fits into the broader scope of the term, but this article covers the commonly used meaning of scuba diving for recreational purposes, where the diver is not constrained from making a direct near-vertical ascent to the surface at any point during the dive, and risk is considered low.
Audrey Mestre was a French world record-setting freediver.
Coasteering is movement along the intertidal zone of a rocky coastline on foot or by swimming, without the aid of boats, surf boards or other craft.
Scuba Schools International (SSI) is a for-profit organization that teaches the skills involved in scuba diving and freediving, and supports dive businesses and resorts. SSI has over 3,500 authorized dealers, 35 regional centers, and offices all over the world.
Cliff diving is the leaping off a cliff edge, usually into a body of water, as a form of sport. It may be done as part of the sport of coastal exploration or as a standalone activity. Particular variations on cliff jumping may specify the angle of entry into the water or the inclusion or exclusion of human-made platforms or other equipment. Cliff diving and its close relative tombstoning are specific to water landing. Cliff jumping with the use of a parachute would typically be classified as a form of BASE jumping.
Cressi is one of the largest manufacturers of water sports equipment in the world serving the scuba dive, snorkel and swim industries. The company's five divisions cover four markets—scuba diving, snorkeling, spearfishing, and swimming. Cressi maintains a significant presence in each major economic region around the globe and delivers some 300 distinct products to more than 90 countries. Formerly Cressi-Sub, the Italian company was founded by two brothers, Egidio and Nanni Cressi in 1946 in Genoa, Italy. Still family owned and operated, the company is headed today by Antonio Cressi and its headquarters and manufacturing facilities remain in Genoa.
Performance Freediving International (PFI) is a freediving training agency founded in 2000 by Kirk Krack. Krack coached World Champion Freedivers and Mandy-Rae Cruickshank. PFI teaches freediving clinics around the world and is involved in both team and athlete development. Since 2004, PFI has hosted DejaBlue, which is an international freediving competition. In July 2019, PFI was purchased by International Training, the owner of companies including Scuba Diving International and Technical Diving International.
A snorkel is a device used for breathing atmospheric air when the wearer's head is face downwards in the water with the mouth and the nose submerged. It may be either a separate unit, or integrated into a swimming or diving mask. The integrated version is only suitable for surface snorkeling, while the separate device may also be used for underwater activities such as spearfishing, freediving, finswimming, underwater hockey, underwater rugby and for surface breathing while wearing scuba equipment. A standard snorkel is a curved tube with a shape usually resembling the letter "L" or "J", fitted with a mouthpiece at the lower end and made from plastic, synthetic elastomers, rubber, or light metal. The snorkel may have a loop or a clip to attach it to the head strap of the diving mask or swimming goggles, or may be tucked between the mask-strap and the head. Some snorkels are fitted with a float valve at the top to prevent flooding if the top opening is immersed, and some are fitted with a water trap and purge valve, intended for draining water from the tube.
Underwater sports is a group of competitive sports using one or a combination of the following underwater diving techniques - breath-hold, snorkelling or scuba, usually including the use of equipment such as diving masks and fins. These sports are conducted in the natural environment at sites such as open water and sheltered or confined water such as lakes and in artificial aquatic environments such as swimming pools. Underwater sports include the following - aquathlon, finswimming, freediving, spearfishing, sport diving, underwater football, underwater hockey, underwater ice hockey, underwater orienteering, underwater photography, underwater rugby, underwater target shooting and underwater video.
Outdoor recreation or outdoor activity refers to recreation done outside, most commonly in natural settings. The activities that encompass outdoor recreation vary depending on the physical environment they are being carried out in. These activities can include fishing, hunting, backpacking, walking and horseback riding — and can be completed individually or collectively. Outdoor recreation is a broad concept that encompasses a varying range of activities and landscapes.
Diving equipment, or underwater diving equipment, is equipment used by underwater divers to make diving activities possible, easier, safer and/or more comfortable. This may be equipment primarily intended for this purpose, or equipment intended for other purposes which is found to be suitable for diving use.
Dive RAID International is a dive training organization which was founded in 2007 to support diver training for the Poseidon Mk VI Discovery Rebreather. It has since extended its scope to include open circuit scuba training and training for both recreational and technical diving sectors as well as snorkeling and freediving.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to underwater diving: