Långban Mine Diving Weekend

Late in November I was able to do a trip to Långban mine for a weekend of diving with Daniel and Gustav. We had the pleasure of sharing the mine with Team Reel Diving doing a rebreather course with Phil Short to great depths (~130 meters).

Introduction to the Mine

As this was the first time for me and Gustav in the mine, Thomas Gustén provided an introduction to the mine. First we walked through the area on land and checked out the 'cenotes' where one can surface in case of emergency. It also provided a good understanding of where we would later be swimming when underwater.

The new diving platform on the other side of the road of the mining village is just perfect. It's very comfortable to get in and out of the water.

After the dry tour we geared up and jumped in the water for a guided tour of shallow part of the mine.

The Dives

As I was a Mine 1 diver, we had to stay at the shallow level within two navigational choices. Diving with nitrox we also had to stay at the shallow levels.

The first dive was a required introduction dive led by Thomas Gustén. It was a very nice and relaxed dive to the Loka shaft. We also did a little tour in the Kollegiegruvan which is on the other side of the platform.

Next dive went to the little circuit, Krubban, where a brand new drill has been lodged. Not a lot to see in the tunnels but cool dive regardless.

Next two dives were down the Loka shaft a bit and in to a tunnel leading to some track equipment. Here is a short video of the last dive:

An Incident

Diving in mines (and caves) is a lot more up and down than a typical ocean dive, which translates to a lot more adjustments of drysuit buoyancy. On the last dive I didn't have enough gas in my small drysuit inflation cylinder. It ran out as I was sinking down the Loka shaft. Suit got pretty well squeezed before I had signalled team and stopped the descent. As I now only had my wing for buoyancy, I decided to move up a bit, to where if my buoyancy was to fail completely, I wouldn't sink to the bottom of the shaft (130 meters down or so). Once there it was easy enough to change over to inflation hose from one of my sidemounted tanks.

I learned a few things from it:

• Always double-check drysuit inflation cylinder pressure before dive
• Larger drysuit inflation cylinder for longer overhead dives is probably a good idea
• 13 liter wing is enough to handle loss of drysuit buoyancy with twin 18 liters steel tanks, but not more (it was completely filled up)

Accommodation and Food

Långban mine village offers simple but nice housing for a great price. There are a few bedrooms with bunk beds and a large kitchen with fridge, stove and all the other amenities one might need.

Right next to the living quarters you'll find a lunch restaurant that serves truly fantastic food. It's not cheap but well worth it.