Recommendation for Cave course in Florida

[Chun Zhou]

Hi everyone,
I am planning to go Florida for cave course learning. Now, I have completed Normoxic and Intro cave but I am still new for tec dive. I want to learn more course in Florida and then dive in China's cave.

The question for me is how to select instructor, dive shop, what is the accommodation in Florida and tips.

Thank you!

 

[Caveeagle]

Wow, tough questions... kind of like what's the "best" flavor of ice cream....

I will try to give you my admittedly biased opinion..


I like the general area of High Springs, due to proximity and options for food and shopping. Close to Gainesville etc.

As far as shops, I like both Cave Country Dive shop and Amigo's for different reasons.

Cave Country would get my recommendation if you need a full service Dive shop with full support and the "normal" retail experience, plus all the cave/tech stuff you could ever hope for.

Amigo's is all together different. Mostly self service, and a lot of flexibility. If you catch Wayne on site, you can be sure to feel like family within a few minutes. I like this place for the atmosphere. If it's not blazing hot, you can often find both locals and visitors around the campfire in a very relaxed setting.

Accommodations will depend a lot on what you need as well. There are not many high end options close by, but there are options. Several options for rental rooms, houses, or trailers perfect for divers. There are even a couple of the local dive shops with inside contacts that will get you in contact. I would just say to make very sure you have a solid reservation with dates and specifics. I have heard a couple bad stories of people showing up that had to "share" a house, whe. They were expecting a more private experience.

I don't like to recommend instructors, because it's just way to personal. I would just say there are a couple great options that post regularly here. Do your homework!

 

[Bobby]

High Springs has great diving, instruction, etc.. Another great place is the Mill Pond in Marianna FL, Cave Adventurers is a full service shop with demo gear, rental gear, instruction and many choices on lodging. You can also rent a boat to go cave diving which is a cool experience.

 

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

www.nsscds.org

Search for the best instructors there.

 

[sheeper]

check in with my friends at Cave Excursions (www.caveexcursions.com).
they are a full service operation and have a cadre of the best of the Florida cave instructors. Many of them are Instructor Trainers for their agencies. Plus their facility has on-site lodging available.

 

[Kristi@CCDS]

Hi everyone,
I am planning to go Florida for cave course learning. Now, I have completed Normoxic and Intro cave but I am still new for tec dive. I want to learn more course in Florida and then dive in China's cave.

The question for me is how to select instructor, dive shop, what is the accommodation in Florida and tips.

Thank you!

Good to 'meet' you! I know you will have a wonderful time learning cave in Florida! We had a few guys from China a few months back come in and do some training and they told us about your wonderful caves. I hope to someday make a visit!

As far as finding an instructor goes, I always recommend interviewing each instructor before deciding. Get to know them a little bit, their diving habits out side of teaching I find is a very important question, their gear or configuration preferences, find out a little about their teaching approach. Every instructor is a little different and it's worth asking a few questions to see if they are a good match for your needs.

There are several good shops in our area and quite a few great dive sites! Fall and early winter are the best times to visit, just fyi. Once late winter/early spring hits it may start to get wet and flooding can occur in the area causing some of the cave systems to temporarily shut down. Right now conditions are stellar just about everywhere.


Best of luck!

 

[Jack Hammer]

There are lots of good instructors out there. I'd start with reading the stickied thread in this forum by @Capt Jim Wyatt, titled How to choose a Cave Instructor.

 

[tbone1004]

as much as it pains me to say it, have you looked at doing training with the guys from UTD that are doing the China cave exploration project?

UTD Cave Exploration Project - October 2017 - Guangxi, China - Overview · UTD Scuba Diving


edit: seeing the GUE contingent over there I would recommend going that route instead.

 

[kensuf]

Interviewing potential instructors is a great start. Some things I'd suggest asking them:

1. How often they teach -- there are pro's and con's to full time and part time instructors.

2. What kind of diving they do when they're not teaching, and how often they are diving when they're not teaching -- try to find an instructor that does the kind of diving you're interested in doing. We all have to cover the same basic material, but our approach may be different based on the diving we do; for instance, I'm a long distance / deep cave diving kind of guy and if you want to eventually do multiple mile penetrations I may be a good resource, but if you wanted to learn how to squirm through tiny holes I'm probably not the best resource for that.

3. Ask for their path to become a cave instructor. Some cave instructors have mentored/apprenticed under multiple different cave instructors.

You should also listen to the questions they ask you. In my opinion, a good cave instructor should ask you questions about your motivations, diving background, and desires rather than the method you'll be paying for your course.

 

[Kristi@CCDS]

Interviewing potential instructors is a great start. Some things I'd suggest asking them:

1. How often they teach -- there are pro's and con's to full time and part time instructors.

2. What kind of diving they do when they're not teaching, and how often they are diving when they're not teaching -- try to find an instructor that does the kind of diving you're interested in doing. We all have to cover the same basic material, but our approach may be different based on the diving we do; for instance, I'm a long distance / deep cave diving kind of guy and if you want to eventually do multiple mile penetrations I may be a good resource, but if you wanted to learn how to squirm through tiny holes I'm probably not the best resource for that.

3. Ask for their path to become a cave instructor. Some cave instructors have mentored/apprenticed under multiple different cave instructors.

You should also listen to the questions they ask you. In my opinion, a good cave instructor should ask you questions about your motivations, diving background, and desires rather than the method you'll be paying for your course.

well stated Ken.