Hike and Dive Remote Freediving Adventures with PFI Ambassador Rachel Novak -

Hike and Dive

Remote Freediving Adventures with PFI Ambassador Rachel Novak

Interview with Rachel Novak

While most online freediving content focuses on tropical saltwater destinations, there are a host of inland freediving destinations all over the world, from lakes, to rivers and springs. In this blog post, we talk to PFI Freediver Instructor and Brand Ambassador, Rachel Novak, to briefly discuss planning considerations for remote freediving trips and to learn about the Hike and Dive Community.

What do you consider a remote freediving excursion to be?

“While most freediving training and fun dive sites can be accessed by boat or a short walk to the water, I’ve spent the last few years backpacking to alpine lakes and other bodies of water with freediving buddies to explore them on one breath. Some of them involve hiking distances of up to 10 miles to get to the dive site. Trips like this can either be planned as overnight trips or as day trips depending on the distance and elevation gain, but all of them take additional planning to do safely.”

Where are some notable remote places that you’ve been?

“I’ve spent a lot of time exploring alpine lakes in the Pacific Northwest of the US. I originally began exploring after coming back from the Philippines from my freediving instructor internship several years ago, and freediving became a way to manage my stress while working as a healthcare provider in Washington during the pandemic. As travel restrictions loosened, I began exploring places throughout the state with friends. I would trail run to different sites of interest on solo trips, and then bring freediving gear and friends to the ones that looked like they might be fun to explore. Freshwater dive sites differ greatly from the salt water dive sites I was used to, from free falling salamanders, to egg sacks of amphibians, to thousand year-old trees preserved in these freshwater dive sites. I was able to find some amazing views, both above and underwater, including spots in Mount Saint Helens National Park, Mount Baker National Park, Mount Rainier National Park, the Olympic National Park, and more! The freshwater springs of Florida provide incredibly clear water, and the hot springs of Utah can make for some nice fun diving in the winters too. The steam coming off of the waters as you take your final breath and dive below are a memorable sight to behold.”

What kind of training is essential for these kinds of trips?

“Freediving safety training is a definite necessity! All of the people I have planned these trips are certified to provide freediving safety to depths of up to 20 meters/66 feet. As you and your dive buddies may be the only ones within several miles to recognize and manage freediving-related emergencies, it is essential to keep your knowledge of freediving emergency recognition and management fresh. If you are diving in places at a higher elevation than you are normally training at, be aware that your urge to breathe may come sooner. Lastly, if you are planning longer or overnight trips, be aware that your gear kit will need to include more than your usual dive gear. You may be backpacking in heavier overnight equipment like water filters, a tent, and a sleeping bag. Some of the places my buddies and I have explored are very exposed to the elements, so it is important to be prepared for different wildlife and weather conditions that you may encounter. Lastly, your ability to explore a new dive site as a group will be determined by the people that you choose to be your buddies. Having a high fitness level in the entire group will help ensure that you all can make it to the site you want to explore and still have the energy to explore it when you arrive.”

What considerations should people keep in mind if they want to plan remote freediving adventures?

Some of the things I consider before I head to remote areas include the weather and water temperatures, the elevation gain and dive site altitude, the fitness level and experience level of myself and my freediving buddies, and the type of gear I’ll need. One fun and exciting fact is that most of these dive sites are freshwater sites, which means that my buddies and I have to carry less weight to put on our weight belts. The downside is that the clearer the lake, the colder it usually is. This is definitely a determinant of the gear and buddies I bring on the trip. I want to stress that this list is a VERY brief synopsis, but if people want to know more, they should consider reading content that can be found on the Hike and Dive Community website to educate themselves.

Lastly, it is very common for my freediving buddies and I to strike up conversations with hikers on the trail. Discussions usually involve, “Why do you have those big flippers with you?”, “The water is pretty cold…did you bring a wetsuit?”, and “What kind of training do you have?” As freediving is still a very new sport, my buddies and I always stress the importance of taking a freediving course and not diving alone. While the depths that we often dive would be more akin to “spicy snorkeling”, having a perfect safety record will help ensure that park rangers and administration have a positive impression of the sport of freediving. We are so thankful for the opportunity to explore these remote sites, and I am acutely aware of the restrictions that have been placed on sites I’ve wanted to explore because someone wasn’t diving safely.”

What is the Hike and Dive Community?

“The Hike and Dive Community is a passion project that I started at the beginning of 2024. My goal in starting it was to connect hikers and freedivers to grow the community of freedivers who may have information about hiking destinations with unique bodies of water. There is a Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/1047888126344604) that people can join for free to connect with other freedivers who might be interested in Hike and Dive adventures. On the Hike and Dive website (https://www.hikeanddivecommunity.com/), I’ve created a directory of all of the freediving communities across the US that I could find. I’m hoping that it will serve as a resource for freedivers traveling to a new place to find freediving buddies to train and adventure with. Throughout the year, I will be sharing interviews with freedivers of interest, as well as highlighting freediving communities and destinations across the US. Check our the website to learn more!

Rachel Novak is a PFI Freediver Instructor, Brand Ambassador, and the owner of Aquanauts Freediving LLC. She offers freediving courses, mermaid courses and experiences, and professional mermaid entertainment in Las Vegas and surrounding areas. She was an underwater stunt performer on Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever, was featured as the Sea Queen of Nevada in the MerPeople documentary on Netflix, and was an athlete on Season 15 of American Ninja Warrior, where she shared her mermaid and freediving journey with viewers of the show. As Miss Mermaid Nevada, Rachel has been a strong advocate for freediving safety and believes that access to freediving safety education will demystify the sport of freediving and help make it more accessible to those who want to get into the sport. To learn more, check out her website at www.aquanautsfreediving.com. You can also find her on Instagram and Facebook at @thesailingsiren and @aquanautsfreediving and email her at aquanautsfreediving@gmail.com.