On my way into the briny!

[mwemery1000]

Howdy all!

Just wanted to post to try to temper the excitement that is building up since I still have 30 days before I can live it.

Back in December I booked a trip to Grand Cayman to try out diving (grew up in Puerto Rico but, for whatever reason, never got into diving, although I have always loved snorkeling and looking at the fascinating critters under the sea). I took one of the Discover Diving-type sessions - a couple hours in the pool in the morning, and then a dive in the afternoon. Absolutely fell in love with the sport! To be able to breathe underwater, take time to marvel at the critters close up, float weightless in a foreign world - AMAZING! Unfortunately I hadn't booked other sessions ahead of time and everyone was booked up for the rest of the week. Only had that one dive but what a great time.

I am currently living in Norway and the idea of diving into the icy depths here has me somewhat - no, VERY intimidated.

Soooo... In 30 days I head off to Dahab, Egypt, for 3 weeks to learn how to dive. I am planning on getting my OW certification and, after a few dives, go ahead to the AOW cert. I am already planning my next diving trip for the end of the summer and another in October (teacher - several breaks a year to spend in the briny!) Maybe by then I will feel a little more comfortable about the prospect of cold-water diving.

I have another year here in Norway and then moving on to parts as yet unknown - but you can bet that somewhere I can dive is going to be a big factor in my choice of location! My wife and I have been thinking about Singapore or thereabouts.

I feel like a little kid again with Christmas only a few weeks away, pretty sure that the shiny new red superflyer bicycle I have always wanted will be under the tree...

 

[fjpatrum]

As one of my instructors said during my OW class, there is stuff you can see in cold water that you won't be able to see anywhere else in the world. I'd recommend trying some cold water stuff even if it's just for snorkeling. (I haven't finished my certification dives yet but I've snorkeled in some cold water and saw amazing things, including sea otters who decided they wanted to swim with me for a bit... pretty cool stuff, no pun intended.) I hear there's some amazing things to look at in Norway.

That said, I much prefer warm water to cold water, but I completely understand your excitement. I'm as giddy as a child waiting for my OW dives.

JoeyP

 

[lavachickie]

Posting here to avoid getting more excited is like... well, like a lot of other things that don't work out the way you think they will. ;-)

I agree that you should consider certifying in your locale if you can (how cold are the waters there? Are there training outlets?). Learning to dive in cold water, in my experience, gives you a challenge while learning all the basic skills, and opens up your options. I think it's harder to go to cold water if you certified and began diving in warm water, but if you start there, it's like going home.

And yes, there is LOTS of amazing stuff in cold, dark waters! And it makes the sojourns to warm, clear water that much more amazing. The yin and yang of it all, baby.

Amy

 

[Scuba.com]

I have to say that while I 100% totally understand why a person would only wish to dive warm, clear, calm waters, I wouldn't miss the chance to suit up and jump into the more "chilly" water temps. I began diving "up north" in Puget Sound some years ago. The huge diversity in sea life, the general average size of much of what you see, and the overall amount of sea life you can spend your dive with most definately make visiting colder waters worthwhile if they are at your fingertips.

You may very well find yourself pleasantly surprised!

 

[mwemery1000]

Oh, I am not shutting myself out of doing cold water dives - I just want to learn in warm waters and get comfortable with the idea of breathing underwater before I add the chill factor in. The thing about diving in Norway is the depth, the shearness of the walls (since there really isn't any shore to speak of due to the coastline being made up of fjords) and the constant outward current of the fresher water riding atop the saltier water as waters drain off the land through the fjords. I have been told the diving is spectacular but with water temps between -2°C and 5°C and depths to 1350m, I am a little intimidated at the moment!

Thanks for the responses!

27 days!

Mark

 

[franny]

Mark,

There are some major advantages to learning in cold water. The biggest is that if you learn in cold water in a thick wetsuit (or even a drysuit), your buoyancy control will be better, as there is a greater change between the top and bottom, so you learn to deal with it properly to start with.

It may also encourage you to dive locally, which is good for skills maintenance.

In short, definitely consider learning locally.

 

[mwemery1000]

Thanks Franny and all who posted. I have been looking into LDSs and found one close by. After I get back from Dahab, I will look into whether they have instructors that speak excellent English. Would not be keen on a language misunderstanding while 40' under cold North Atlantic seas! Most Norwegians do speak English well which is good because my Norwegian is not great at all (read: totally sucks!) so we shall see what happens - I am hoping for the best as I would like to be diving to get more practice, even if it is only 10 meters from shore, 10 meters down! I have several friends who dive but are in other parts of the world so my opportunities to dive with them are limited.

Again, thanks for the encouragement to dive cold waters - it has worked!

Mark