Log dives or not

[reel-wild]

should dives be logged for history and memory

 

[dstindivr]

YES!!! Why wouldn't you want to be able to look back and remember the good times as well as the not so good?
It only takes a minute, or two to do.

 

[idivetrain]

There are many different reasons for logging dives. For one, it is proof to a dive boat of your experience. Also I find that most people who are occasional vacation divers forget how much weight to wear. If you put that information in your log book also then you have a reference to remember when I dive in the local quarry in July I wear this much weight, when I dive in California in November I wear this much weight, and when I dive in the Virgin Islands in Feb I wear this much weight. It is also a great place to look back and remember. Hopefully some day you will have so many dives under your belt that you will not be able to remember them all. You can look back to your last trip to the Keys and remember good spots, not so good spots, etc... I also use my book as a signature collection of all the different people I have been able to dive with. I fill out my logbook as I teach my students how to fill out theirs. This shows them the importance of doing their logbooks, and I have them sign my book for me too. Some people get out of filling out a logbook after they have aquired so many dives, but I still keep mine up and will continue to do so until my diving career ends.
Shelly

 

[b1gcountry]

I spend more time logging than I do diving, but I really enjoy reading all my past dive logs of the new places I've been. If I've been somewhere a bunch though, its not as detailed. I've gone so far as to design my own template, and print them out on waterproof paper...

Later,
Tom

 

[Sue_W_AZ]

Yes! For me it's a great trip down memory lane - where did I go, who did I dive with, how good was the dive operator, did I like the hotel. As idivetrain already mentioned, it's a great tool for tracking different conditions - what suit to wear at a certain temp, how much weight to wear with your 3mm or in fresh vs salt water. It also helps keep track of the details of different dive sites so that you can maximize your dive when you go back - where did you see the eel, how did you find that cool swimthrough, what's the best place to park. I also like to record any unique marine life that I saw on a site.

 

[bmcsteve]

I have to agree with all of the reasons above.... I wish my OW instructor had shown us how to fill out log books and demonstrated the same enthusiasm toward it as idivetrain does. Most of my early dives have very little in the way of logged detail, but I found as I progress in my diving, so does the detail of my log book.

I am in the process of re-logging all my dives online at a cool site I found through another SB member. Check it out:

www.diverecord.com

 

[amitsi]

Isin't needed for advanced cert as well?

 

[tc]

Not sure about advanced cert but if you ever decide to go for DM or instructor you'll need to show that you have the minimum number of dives required. Some advanced specialties might also require this.

 

[Walter]

Personal choice. I log mine.

 

[Jim Kerr]

It's pretty amuzing to look back and see how much more weight you used and how short your bottom times were when you first started diving and compare them to what they are now.