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I have been lurking in the boards reading lots of good information and have finally decided to join in. I am a new diver, certified in San Jose in October. We did our ocean dives in Monterey (at Breakwater). In December I went on a trip to Cozumel, where I promptly became addicted to diving! Now I have to deal with all the questions of how much I want to invest in scuba and how much I want to rent.. not to mention where are good places for beginners.
I am planning on going back to Breakwater in a couple weeks to dive again. Any tips for good beginner diving spots around Monterey would be greatly appreciated!
I strongly recommend that you find an ACTIVE LOCAL dive club. By that, I mean a club that welcomes new divers and actually dives locally. It's a great way to find dive mentors who can held you improve your diving and give tips for gear acquisition.
You'll likely notice that the more dedicated local divers dive with gear that's largely not available in your local dive shop. Most of us have had to wait until we buy our second set of gear to get stuff that really works well with local conditions. To save a ton of money, buy your second set of gear first.
Also, feel free to post your questions and look for dive buddies on the NorCal subforum of the California Kelp Divers forum.
As said above make sure to check out the local NorCal forum.
There are tons of places to dive around the Monterey area from shore, let alone all the boat diving that is possible. I probably should dive there more, but living in the North Bay means we can get to the Sonoma coast in 1/3 the time it takes us to get to Monterey.
As Fisheater also said, check with the local divers for what gear is their favorites. Only a few local dive shops offer Hogarthian style gear, which is a favorite. Most of us have had to buy our gear twice. Which comes to the wetsuit...the best way to save money on a wetsuit is to buy a drysuit. The water was 48 degrees on Saturday. I can't imagine ever diving in a wetsuit around here again.
Congratulations, Lynn, on your new addiction! You have become a diver in one of my favorite places to dive in the world. The striking underwater topography and the incredible color of Monterey awes me every time I dive there.
If you can, get someone to show you around the Pt. Lobos State Park diving at Whaler's Cove. You have to make a reservation and pay a fee, but it is well worth it. It's much more colorful, and the viz has been better there than any time we have dived the bay itself. I've also had very good dives at Carmel River Beach. Monastery is a great site, but NOT for beginners, and never if you don't understand how the surf works there.
There are also great dive boats in Monterey -- I love the Escapade, which gives its briefings using printouts of the bathymetry of the area, which really gives you a great 3D understanding of the sites.
Thanks for all the replies! I was considering joining the Dive Club of Silicon Valley and I think now I will! Now I'm off to peruse the Norcal forum...
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