Do you have your Divers certification?

[Zoaelite]

Just wanted to find out if alot of reefers were also divers? I just completed my certification and will be traveling to Cozumel for 2 weeks to use it:mrgreen:! I went through PADI what about everyone else?
Levi

[Snappy]

Just wanted to find out if alot of reefers were also divers? I just completed my certification and will be traveling to Cozumel for 2 weeks to use it:mrgreen:! I went through PADI what about everyone else?
Levi
Diving is awesome, I love it.

[surgeonfish]

I have been diving since 1982 and an instructor since 1992. It was my love of aquariums as a kid that got me interested in diving.

[Delphinus]

"Not yet." One day I'll get it ... at a point in my life when I can use it for something more interesting than Minnewanka at a frequency higher than "once every 10 years."

[Veng68]

I wish :( [can't swim] :(

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

[Zoaelite]

I wish :( [can't swim] :(

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

What do you mean you can't swim? The only excuse for not being able to swim is if your missing all 2 legs and all 2 arms...

[danny zubot]

Was going to get it with my wife but then we got pregant. One day I'll get it, hopefully before all the reefs are gone.

Danny

[Jason McK]

I was diving last 2 weeks ago.

J

[Veng68]

What do you mean you can't swim? The only excuse for not being able to swim is if your missing all 2 legs and all 2 arms...

Missing a toe nail ;)

I guess I should learn :P Just have to find the time and a very patient teacher ;)

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

[Zoaelite]

Missing a toe nail ;)

I guess I should learn :P Just have to find the time and a very patient teacher ;)

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

Or a cliff and a very impatient one :lol:

[Brighteyes_13]

got my open water before going to the cayman islands for a "school environmental science field trip" and my advanced shortly thereafter.

[Todd]

Love the 'cold water' diving out on the coast here. Just getting into and am almost all geared up. Once I get over this cold I am going to finish my advanced course and start diving alot.

[untamed]

I wish :( [can't swim] :(

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

Then you would love diving...because the object is mostly to just sink. When you are on the surface, you just inflate. I suppose one should probably know how to swim in order to dive, but I bet someone could fake it for decades before anyone figured it out!

[untamed]

I was diving last 2 weeks ago.

J

I never got into dry suits and so gave up cold water diving after...oh...1 dive. I've only been down 42 times for a cumulative total of just over 24 hours of my life spent submerged.

[revgeoff]

I try to go out at least one day a month...amazing diving over here! Finally got around to getting my Rescue Diver cert too.

[Dale]

AOW PADI
I like my diving like I like my women... cold, murky and with a slightly silty bottom :wink:

[marie]

AOW PADI
I like my diving like I like my women... cold, murky and with a slightly silty bottom :wink:

And that conjures up visuals that I'd rather not have...thank you very much :razz:

:lol:

[JOEL]

You will love Cozumel The water is so clear and warm

[Marlin65]

AOW PADI
I like my diving like I like my women... cold, murky and with a slightly silty bottom :wink:

LOL Not sure what to think about that.:lol::lol::lol:

PADI for me as well.

[Dobber]

i love scuba and i really dont want to do too much padi bashing but man
SSI Rules

[spoot]

I've got have my PADI open water. Did the first two dives, then didn't have time to do the second two. It's been over 2 years and just haven't had the time to go and do it.

[Treebeard]

My fiancee' is a certified dive instructor (NAUI) and is teaching me now. I will do my open water tests during an August vacation to Vancouver island, and have my certification for our Mexican honeymoon in November.

[Sushiman]

I wish :( [can't swim] :(

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

You don't need to swim to dive, just sink!!:mrgreen:

Anyways, I'm a Divemaster & I did my swiftwater rescue tech many years ago. I still go quite often on our local wrecks with some of the guys & gals at work.

[BC564]

Padi ....and have been diving for about 16 years. Mostly the west coast off Van. island...but have dived in Can cun area. Of course I enjoyed Cancun area more. But there is lots to be said about diving the west coast.

[justinl]

two years diving, all coldwater (some very cold winter diving). PADI recreational diver and scientific diver cert. All of my diving has been confined to Howe Sound because i work on a grant and my work centers in the Sound. I realllllllly want to get out diving on the outer coast of Van island.

[mark]

Me, not yet. Brother did the work in a dive shop / dive master thing and then commerical diving for a bit, never has had a tank (fw or sw).

[andestang]

I have advanced certificates with both PADI & NAUI (remember them to be more popular back in the day ) My instructor would teach up here during the summer & head down to the caribbean to take out tours & do some photography during the winter. I wanted to become a commercial diver, but wasnt very favorable for family life.

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

I have 2 certifications, PADI Advanced Open Water Diver and the Open water diver. I was trying to work my way up to PADI Master Scuba Diver but I moved here to Vancouver and I refuse to dive in cold water after trying it once...:mrgreen:

I have not gone on a dive for like 2 years now :( I used to get to go about once a month in the keys). Our last dive was the Great Barrier Reef though :)

[dareefguy]

20 miute certifacation in mexico. but i voted no because it will never hold up anywhere else. lol. It was awsome though and would like to get certifide but I can't swim.

[Jason McK]

So anyone in the GVRD want to plan a huge group dive?
Maybe get some of the peaple who haven't been out in awhile out again

J

[spikehs]

I got my PADI certification a few years ago. Did my inclass stuff here in Calgary, then did my open water dives in Mozambique!

[lorenz0]

I still haven't done my PADI and i have about 25 dives. One being a wall dive which ended up being 120 feet. But i plan on taking my course in the next few months. I was suppost to go with my dad to belize this year to help him out on a couse this year that he used to run for geologists.

[whatcaneyedo]

I got my PADI Open Water last year. For all of those people who keep posting that they wont take the course because they cant swim: swimming while diving is like swimming with a lifejacket on. Your BCD allows you to sink or float and if you've never worn fins before you basically need to unlearn everything you knew about swimming to get used to them anyways. So go try it because your excuse isnt good enough and you're missing out on an amazing experience!

[Veng68]

I got my PADI Open Water last year. For all of those people who keep posting that they wont take the course because they cant swim: swimming while diving is like swimming with a lifejacket on. Your BCD allows you to sink or float and if you've never worn fins before you basically need to unlearn everything you knew about swimming to get used to them anyways. So go try it because your excuse isnt good enough and you're missing out on an amazing experience!

I've heard from some friends who are divers that you don't need to know how to swim but others say that you do need to pass a swimming test.

I am a bit confused.

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

[Zoaelite]

I've heard from some friends who are divers that you don't need to know how to swim but others say that you do need to pass a swimming test.

I am a bit confused.

Cheers,
Vic [veng68]

Yes this is true, when becoming certified (With PADI atleast) you have to swim 8 laps and tread water for like 10 mins.
Levi

[kwirky]

For the longest time I thought "yeah i'm gonna totally go diving when we go somewhere tropical for our honeymoon" then I did some research on certification and such. Realized my sinus problems won't let me really dive below 2m. When I go swimming my eardrums hurt like MAD when I go below 2m depth. So scratch that idea looks like i'm snorkelling instead like your average tourist :(

[lorenz0]

I have a similar problem with equalizing. Ever since a dive where i got pushed up by an updraft my right ear has been damaged. Those were some of my last dives, i am honestly interested in what its like now.

[Delphinus]

Sean, FWIW, first time I saw the GBR, I only snorkeled. I could hold my breath and swim down 20 feet to get a good look at the reef in spots where it was that deep, but my sinuses were killing me. That and fighting the extra buoyancy you get in SW, by the time I could equalize my ears at that depth, I was out of air and had to come up.

Next time I went back and dived with an instructor (I don't have my certification, but that doesn't mean you can't ever go out). Sinuses still hurt but having an air supply meant I could equalize without running out of air, and thus stay down.

You might want to still give diving a try. Do it like I did, find an outfit who will take you out with an instructor after a quick lesson. They won't take you anywhere deep, but realistically, the stuff we aquarists are interested in are in the top 10 to 20 feet anyhow.

[kwirky]

so then what about the question of where to get certification? How does it work? Do you get most of your certification at home (at u of c or the likes) then get the rest out at the tropical dive site? or do it all over there? How does that work?

[Delphinus]

I think there's a fair amount of instruction, I'd only consider doing the whole thing over there if I had a lot of time to be there.. otherwise it might be the whole vacation. The half and half situation seems like a slam dunk to me. Do the mundane stuff at home, then do the open water part on the reef. That's what I'm doing, I think, before I go anywhere warm next time. The last time I looked into this, I checked out the Dive Shop, Adventures in Scuba, and Aquasport. Aquasport had the most reasonable rates. I got all my gear from them too, they had the nicest stuff at the lowest prices. I'm kind of annoyed though, my mask and snorkel and fins have been to far more tropical places than I've ever been to because my friends keep asking to borrow them. :neutral: Sheesh, cheapskates who don't buy their own. :lol: Anyhow, I digress. I highly recommend Aquasport, they are in Marda Loop here in town, here's their website: http://www.aquasportscuba.com/

[whatcaneyedo]

Interesting, I dont recall our instructor making us swim those laps or tredding water to get our PADI Open Water... I think he just took our word that we could so that he could do the certification faster. I guess I shouldnt say who he was or he might get in trouble.

[Bayside Corals]

Got certified through PADI with a friend that could not swim. She doggie paddled from one end of the pool to the other and the instructor said that was good enough. She didn't have to do all of the laps to complete the test.

We went diving in Cozumel several times and loved it! You do not have to know how to swim in order to dive as my friend did very well and can not swim at all!

Colby

[JOEL]

Diving is great, I love it. You will also love Cozumel I did.

[dareefguy]

I cannot swim but have gone diving in mexico. Diving is awsome and tried to do the lessen thing when I got home without much success. Now that I hear of other people who can't swim getting their certificate I may check into it a little better.

[surgeonfish]

I just came back from Jamaica in April. I left Montigo Bay one week after the high jacking. I did 19 dives during my two week trip. I was really disappointed with the reefs. There were lots of fish traps. There were also not many fish. I did not see one single large predator fish (shark, barracuda, jack or large groupers). There were several remoras swimming around trying to attach to divers, I assume because there was no large fish around because all the small fish had disappeared. There were also a lot of algae on the corals, probably because there were very few surgeonfish and other algae grazers around. However, I was able to get a few nice dive pictures.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3400/3419858219_f2cfcd18da_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3363/3452153504_687947ac4b_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3346/3420675352_1f14304a56_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3620/3420685588_c4f37d858a_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3640/3419837481_d661e18853_b.jpg

[lobsterboy]

I got my National Geographic Open water diver 4yrs ago.

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

I got my National Geographic Open water diver 4yrs ago.

What is the difference between the NG open water and the PADI Open Water Diver?

I have the PADI open water and have always thought about the NG open water. I was going to take it in Thailand last year but I never made it there after deciding to stay in the Philippines instead. Always wondered what I missed???

[Haloreef]

I have had my Padi open water and Padi advanced certs for years. I love the diving here on the west coast. I have dove in Hawaii, California and Mexico. Mexico was awsome. Still one of my favorite dives was at Lund, a spot called the "Iron Mines" Coolest drift dive I have ever done. Night dives here are crazy fun!
One of my dive instructors said " If you learn to dive here you can dive anywhere." I can see what he ment now after diving in warm water with nothing but a t-shirt and shorts and 150' of viz. as apposed to a 8mm dry suit, 30lbs of lead and 15' of viz.
Winter diving seems to be the best time to dive here. The viz is usually better in the winter, the dive sights are not crowded and the "newbs" don't usually want to dive during the winter and drag themselves along the bottom stirring up the sand/silt.
Keith.

[Mrfish55]

I agree, haven't dove in years but the Iron mines are impressive, we have some world class dive spots around here, and some of the best night diving is in Oakover inlet, take a goody bag, lots of treats to be had:biggrin:I have had my Padi open water and Padi advanced certs for years. I love the diving here on the west coast. I have dove in Hawaii, California and Mexico. Mexico was awsome. Still one of my favorite dives was at Lund, a spot called the "Iron Mines" Coolest drift dive I have ever done. Night dives here are crazy fun!
One of my dive instructors said " If you learn to dive here you can dive anywhere." I can see what he ment now after diving in warm water with nothing but a t-shirt and shorts and 150' of viz. as apposed to a 8mm dry suit, 30lbs of lead and 15' of viz.
Winter diving seems to be the best time to dive here. The viz is usually better in the winter, the dive sights are not crowded and the "newbs" don't usually want to dive during the winter and drag themselves along the bottom stirring up the sand/silt.
Keith.

[lobsterboy]

What is the difference between the NG open water and the PADI Open Water Diver?

I have the PADI open water and have always thought about the NG open water. I was going to take it in Thailand last year but I never made it there after deciding to stay in the Philippines instead. Always wondered what I missed???

the only dif is two extra dives, basically is about preserving the enviroment, and taking care of it. dont touch, dont remove, name some fish, corals etc.
it was fun, just another excuess to hit the water, and you get a c-card with NG;s logo on it, lol.

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

I have had my Padi open water and Padi advanced certs for years. I love the diving here on the west coast. I have dove in Hawaii, California and Mexico. Mexico was awsome. Still one of my favorite dives was at Lund, a spot called the "Iron Mines" Coolest drift dive I have ever done. Night dives here are crazy fun!
One of my dive instructors said " If you learn to dive here you can dive anywhere." I can see what he ment now after diving in warm water with nothing but a t-shirt and shorts and 150' of viz. as apposed to a 8mm dry suit, 30lbs of lead and 15' of viz.
Winter diving seems to be the best time to dive here. The viz is usually better in the winter, the dive sights are not crowded and the "newbs" don't usually want to dive during the winter and drag themselves along the bottom stirring up the sand/silt.
Keith.

I was living in Florida when I learned to dive so I started in warm, clear water. Then when I came here and tried once, I couldn't do it. Just me...I can't deal with dark water or the cold. I will stick to tropical diving!

[Jack]

Im a diver.

Dove in Cozumel in January - you'll love it.