Just Saying Hi

[KausticMike]

Hello hello! Newbie diver here. Just saying Hi.

My backyard is the southern California coast. Got my Open Water in Guam in 2016. But, since I have been woefully unsuccessful at convincing my people from getting in the water with me, I have remained a Vacation diver since then. My skills have not improved with such spaced apart opportunities to fine tune them. My solo trips have gotten me a few introductory dives to a few different scuba paths (as well as Advanced by extension). Wreck dives were especially cool. Seeing the bow of an oil tanker loom out slowly from a haze of dark water was a big Oooh.. Ahhh... moment.

I've been lurking around here trying learn as much as I can about slowly starting to own my own gear. I'm under the impression that this will encourage me to dive the cold waters down here in San Diego more often.

 

[drrich2]

Welcome. Sometimes the diving available to do has a special value. When your experience base, proficiency and comfort level are far enough along you might enjoy some solo diving, in which case talking other people into going with you becomes unnecessary.

As you dive in different environments, you'll see there are different things to appreciate. Yes cold water diving is more of a hassle than warm water 'tropical aquarium type' conditions, but that's were you find kept forests, garibaldi and a range of great wildlife to enjoy...including California sea lions and harbor seals. (Disclaimer: my California diving was on a 5-day liveaboard trip hitting the Channel Islands; I haven't been to San Diego).

Richard.

 

[KausticMike]

I'm ashamed to say that the only diving I've done in San Diego have been mostly Bay cleanup events and handful of meetup boat trips a few years back. Not glamorous but definitely awesome getting a chance to be in waters around stationary ships not normally open to recreational diving. I grew an appreciation for cold water that DOESN'T turn your breath flammable. haha.

The paths before me are:
-get better and be confident enough in my scuba skills like you say and enjoy myself some solo diving without needing an instructor/ dive class every single time. (might take a while)
-marry a diver; seems to be who youtubers and travel influencers turn to as dive buddies. (hard pass)
-get over the social anxiety of diving with strangers just so I can dive more often. (maybe this one for now)

 

[drrich2]

-get over the social anxiety of diving with strangers just so I can dive more often. (maybe this one for now)

For the benefit of others new to California diving it might be worthwhile to point out some distinctive features I learned of when researching for my trip years ago, and saw during my one trip there. These are generalizations about the 'dive culture' I took to be in effect; if there are exceptions that might be helpful to others, I hope other SB members will point them out.

1.) Dive boats don't tend to put a free guide in the water to lead the group on a tour of the reef (or whatever), arriving back under the boat at around 45-minutes.

2.) Dive boats may not try to assign buddies. At least some may leave the option of solo diving without a formal cert. - that was true of the one I was on years ago. The attitude was 'You're an adult.' I don't know if that's still a 'thing' there.

3.) So at least one of your needs at least some rudimentary navigational ability.