Moving to Australia

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Donpedro

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Messages
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Location
Twin Falls, ID
# of dives
25 - 49
Hi All,

I am moving to Australia with my wife in January, we are both certified and looking to dive a lot while we are there. I am looking at buying gear, thinking about shooting for divemaster someday and curious about working on gear as a tech. Any advice would greatly be appreciated.

Mike
 
Perhaps if you could narrow down where in Aus you are moving too we could help - pretty big country :wink: im on the west side other posters on the east side if that is where you are going would be able to provide more local knowledge :D
 
Wingy, Thanks for the quick reply. We are coming in on a working holiday visa. Our current plan is to start in Melbourne and travel southwest working and diving along the way. I would love to see Perth and plan on stopping in Broome to visit the NOLS branch there. I just started reading about the Ningaloo Reef out in Western Australia today! At some point we want to be on the Gold coast. We are planning on buying a van and bringing our gear with us.
 
Hi Mike
Australia is awesome but expensive for, well everything really! Where are you moving from? Where in Oz are you coming too? Australia has such a diverse climate that gear would be dependant on where you would predominantly be diving. Be aware that prices for gear in Australia may be higher than where you are moving from.

---------- Post added August 16th, 2013 at 11:25 AM ----------

Oops sorry, you guys posted more when I wasn't looking.

---------- Post added August 16th, 2013 at 11:28 AM ----------

Anywhere along the south coast is cold - dry suit territory. Once you are north of about Bunbury on the west coast the temps start to come up. For advice on diving the west coast see the forum at wadivers.com.au you will find a great bunch of people there.
 
Yep 7mm semi dry or drysuit for the south coast.
DON'T bring tanks to Australia - you'll have problems getting them hydro'd and stamped if you do and Hydro's are annual here not every 5 years. Would recommend Faber 12L steel cylinders if you're going to buy here.
If you're starting in Melbourne - Portsea is the focal point of local diving especially around the head and into the 'graveyard' of wrecks scuttled back in the 1920's.
Oh - it will pay you brush up on the metric system, we dive metric here...
 
What to wear - I live in Adelaide on the 'south coast' and I use a drysuit from May-June to about October, and from November to May I either use a 7mm semi-dry or a two piece 5 mm wetsuit. The main advantage of a drysuit is staying dry (and therefore warm) between dives.
 
Hi All,

I am moving to Australia with my wife in January, we are both certified and looking to dive a lot while we are there. I am looking at buying gear, thinking about shooting for divemaster someday and curious about working on gear as a tech. Any advice would greatly be appreciated.

Mike

First of all, I am envious; sounds like a great adventure. I just love Australia; one of my favorite places. I lived in Adelaide for a while and wish I could have just stayed there. As Maples mentioned, the waters along the southern coast are cold, despite the great topside climate. Being a warm water recreational diver myself I never considered diving in these areas, but have heard there are some good spots around Kangaroo Island. The tropical areas are way north.

Second, Australia is huge, much of which is uninhabited wilderness. So, not sure driving across the county is too practical, but it would definitely be an adventure. Think I'd rather fly, but internal flights are pretty expensive like everything else.

If I were planning a similar type of dive oriented adventure, I would probably start in Queensland, maybe fly into Brisbane and work your way up to around the Glandstone/Rockhampton/Haron Island area, then onwards north through Townsville and Cairns and up towards Lizard Island.

Hope you guys have a great time!
 
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Buying a van and travelling Aus is a great dream and many people do it but be warned the distances are massive and you will find it shockingly expensive and at times very isolated. There are quite a few people on a blog site I am on who are doing it right now, have a look there and see what you will be in for - some awesome stuff, but be aware of what things are like on the road. I use a 3mm at ningaloo, dive here in a 7mm if i do but I usually dive warmer climes. Tried out a 6.5mm semi dry the other morning but need some convincing on if i like it or not. Check out travelblog.org and search australia and have a first hand read of some peoples drives around aus trips, many tips you can learn there too. I tend to agree with Carlos unless you have a lot of money and a lot of time and resources.......but dont let that put you off :D
 
Hey everyone, thanks for the replies! I will keep the Southern Australia/dry suit conditions in mind. It might be a gold coast and Great barrier reef diving focus. We are still feeling out the van situation, just sold our 40 foot (12 meter (thanks bergersau!)) school bus here in Austin and are looking to be mobile around the country. If we spent most of our time in the North East do folks dive in 3-5 mm wetsuits up there? LAst question, what are some gear companies that have good reputations and availability in Australia; Scubapro, Mares, Cressi, etc?
 
Hey everyone, thanks for the replies! I will keep the Southern Australia/dry suit conditions in mind. It might be a gold coast and Great barrier reef diving focus. We are still feeling out the van situation, just sold our 40 foot (12 meter (thanks bergersau!)) school bus here in Austin and are looking to be mobile around the country. If we spent most of our time in the North East do folks dive in 3-5 mm wetsuits up there? LAst question, what are some gear companies that have good reputations and availability in Australia; Scubapro, Mares, Cressi, etc?

All of the above!
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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