SCUBA: explore the underwater world, online (2024)

I am trying to make an effort to connect more with my local diving community, but unfortunately all we have is a boring quarry an hour away, and pretty nice spring about four hours away (but still rather small). But still, I feel like I should get out there more to meet more divers...

What do you do to liven up a kind of boring dive?

I just got my OW, advanced, and rescue certification through a college class I took at school. After diving in the pool and in freezing freshwater lakes back in October and March, I was stoked that my dad had back to back work meetings in orange beach and Destin. I could finally get a chance to dive, like, in the ocean.

Well there’s been a major tropical storm, so I got a call from the dive shop when I initially booked a dive trip, saying that they were cancelling that dive because the swells were to big and they didn’t feel comfortable taking people out to the dive spot I initially booked, but no problem, they were going to take up out to a different spot.

So I get there, suit up, get on the boat, and the divemasters head in, and call the dive because the visibility is too poor.

I got a refund, and don’t get me wrong I would much rather be safe than sorry, and I’m glad they called it rather than trying to have us dive and it be crappy.

For the second half of the trip, we were going to orange beach, which I hadn’t booked a dive at the shop there, but was going to if the first dive didn’t work out.

Then I got sick, like way to congested even to try diving.

On top of that, even if I wasn’t sick, I’m sure it would be the same problems I found at Destin. The waves are so bad you can’t even enter the water from the beach.( so I can’t even swim at the beach either)

I feel super lucky to be able to go on vacation. It was rough on my parents trying to schedule it, and a lot of my other friends don’t get to go on vacation at all this summer.

I was just super looking forward to this trip, but it just feels like one thing after another. Idk just a major bummer.

Hello everyone!

I’ve been looking at getting my PADI for a while now. I am in a land locked state with very little access to open water and my SO offered to bring me to Hawaii with them on a work trip! I am extremely grateful and happy for the opportunity, although they wanted to make clean they will still be working 9am-6pm weekends included. With that in mind. I will be there from this Thursday to that Sunday (arriving late Wednesday and leaving early Monday). Is that enough time? Or should I just focus on finding single day dives I might enjoy with a DM? I apologize if this is a common question, I just wanted to gain some clarity before rushing to conclusions. Thank you!

Hi all,

My partner and I are going on a short scuba/snorkelling trip in Komodo. Our travel doc suggested malarone as an anti-malarial. Any experiences or recommendations around this? Thanks.

Wife and I are moving to WY this summer. I'm traditionally a warm-water diver; quite a few hours both scuba and free diving over the last decade but I've just been diving with my PADI Open Water certificate.

It's come to my attention that there are a lot of unique diving opportunities in this region (WY, MT, ID, CO, UT) to explore. In addition, we have horses/mules and can pack scuba equipment into some areas that are probably virtually never dived... this might be a terrible idea, obviously there is a vastly increased level of precaution that we'd need to take.

There are a couple scuba clubs, mostly in surrounding states - I'm open to recommendations if anyone has particulars; not looking to jump into this without some hands-on guidance from people who have done it, and certainly not without a buddy.

I'm probably going to want to add dry suit and high altitude certifications. (Full face mask too?) I have no idea if it's best to continue these courses with PADI or transfer my certifications to another agency like SSI - also open to recommendations here. Looking at some message boards it seems like Nitrox is also popular for high altitude diving, at least among people who don't have tec certifications.

Equipment... probably time to stop renting if I'm going to be doing this. I'm fully aware that dry suits run $1,500-2,500+ and regulators which will have fewer issues with ice and sediment are pretty much in the same price range. If anyone's got recommendations here I'm happy to take them; I realize that this dive environment is substantially more demanding than 80º water off Grand Cayman or Jamaica.

I'm done rambling now. Anything I'm missing? I'd love to hear from people who dive in this region regularly.

After buying two dive torches in a row that are clearly poorly designed, I'm trying to make a better choice this time. Looking through reviews of torches I see comparisons of brightness and ease of operation, but very little mention of if it will fall apart once it's been in salt water 5 times.

I'm hoping for some suggestions of brands that have a good reputation - or of torch designs that have stood the test of time.

Thank you

Hi fellow scuba enthusiasts, I recently finished editing my shortfilm of Raja Ampat and thought I will share it here too.

Maybe it can help giving ideas to those of you that plan to visit it themselves which spots to go and what travel style would be best and for those of you that were lucky enough to have been there before, let me know if I was able to capture its essence :)

Happy to answer any questions!

I used Lumix cameras, 360 cameras, Dji mavic 3 and fpv drones to document it all.

As a young small creator I‘m very grateful for any like, comment or constructive feedback in the comments

Happy bubbles!

Hi everyone, I would like to ask for your opinion about the insurance plans with DAN.

If I dive locally only, with no plans of diving abroad within a year, would it be fine to just get the domestic plan for now? Thank you!

I am looking at getting my own action camera to be able to film on dives. I have previously used GoPro Hero 10 and 11 and did not have any issues with those.

I am now thinking about getting the GoPro Hero 12. However, I was also recommended the dji osmo action 4, which seems to have several advantages over GoPro (but I have no personal experience with the brand).

Can you guys recommend one over the other, specifically for underwater usage? Or do you know of other action cameras that are even better suited?

(Info: I mainly dive in colder waters, as I live in central Europe. I have heard, that GoPro has some issues with very low temperatures.)

Hi guys,

I’m starting my divemaster course shortly, and I am aiming to become an instructor afterwards. Therefore, I am looking for a reliable dive computer for professional divers that will be used frequently.

As far as I’m aware, I won’t be getting into tech, so that’s why I have landed on the Suunto D5 and the Shearwater Tern TX.

Are there any major differences between the two? If there are any, which one would you recommend for a dive pro (and if you recommend any other options within a similar price range, I’d also like to hear about that)?

Thanks in advance!

Any idea how to remove water spots from a dive mask?

My fault for not ensuring it was dry before it went into storage, but now they seem permanent!

Hi , im going to thailand in oktober and am planing to go diving and getting my advanced open water. I have made selections of dice sites around Ko Tao, Ko Lanta and Ko chang.

Are these good spots, do you suggest different spots or specific dive shops?

Thanks for the help :)

My dive club has use of a quarry with fixed lines where we can go for convenient leisure dives and also students getting their open water training. Over the last decade or so quite a quantity of weigh belts, torches, etc have been lost - often along the guide line routes. Myself and a dive buddy are thinking of asking the club if they'd be interested in getting a cheap underwater metal detector and it's first uses would be seeing what we find at the local quarry. Amazon seems to have well reviewed one for just over £200 - anyone have any advice and experience on whether something like this might be a reasonable purchase and worth a punt to find some lead weights, belts, torches, etc?

Quarry max depth is 13m.

amazon UK's 'Nokta-Makro-PulseDive-Detector-Pinpointer/dp/B07RL3GTVV/'

Thanks in advance for any advice.

I’m new to diving but plan to go a lot. Currently diving with guides, have a console and Apple Watch Ultra. Looking to get a dedicated dive computer but really want to go with “buy once”.

I think I prefer a larger screen vs an everyday wearable.

If money were no object - what would you suggest?

I've been diving a 5' hose for the longest time but I can't help but think a 40" under-the-arm setup would be easier to deal with on a crowded boat where you're shoulder-to-shoulder with other divers that are gearing up.

What are your experiences with this? Thanks

Hi! Pretty much what the title says. I have an upcoming job interview at my local dive shop, and am wondering what they might ask me. I don't own any equipment myself, so am not sure what to expect! Any tips from dive shop owners/employees welcome! 🐟

ETA job listing specifically says:"Looking for someone to do all the standard jobs for a dive shop, including sales, customer service, online orders, servicing equipment, filling air, etc"