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murt
Aug 8, 2010
Alright cool. We don't use a pool/tub just practice in the ocean so I'll head out snorkeling right now and try that until I get over it. Thanks.

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SgtScruffy
Dec 27, 2003

Babies.


One slight thing I do is that flooding my mask entirely, to get rid of fog, used to scare the crap out of me. I wouldn't breathe out my nose, but I would get a little panicky. I then realized that you can let in the tinest amount of water you can, and it'll still be enough to defog the lenses. If they're fogging up a whole bunch, don't even clear the mask, just keep a little bit in and swish your head around every so often, if you have to.

rockcity
Jan 16, 2004

SgtScruffy posted:

One slight thing I do is that flooding my mask entirely, to get rid of fog, used to scare the crap out of me. I wouldn't breathe out my nose, but I would get a little panicky. I then realized that you can let in the tinest amount of water you can, and it'll still be enough to defog the lenses. If they're fogging up a whole bunch, don't even clear the mask, just keep a little bit in and swish your head around every so often, if you have to.

Yeah, you don't need to flood the mask to clean the fog out. Just break the seal a bit and then look down and let it swish across the lens, then blow the water out.

Also in regards to the flooding the mask. Focus on your breathing the first few times and make the mask your secondary concern. If you're not focused on the mask as your primary task, it may help you with the skill. Be glad you're not doing cavern training where you have to take your mask off, close your eyes and find your way out of the cavern using the guide lines alone. I hit my head a couple times.

Akula Raskolnikova
May 12, 2013
So got three dives in with the fiancé in a lake yesterday. We dropped to 65 feet, which was the first time she had been below 20 feet, and her first real non-training dive. All went well, but she said she felt a little loopy when she went under. She's obviously never felt narcosis before, so she wasn't sure if that was it. The lake is at 3,500 feet, so adjusted for altitude it was equivalent to an 80 foot dive at sea level. I've been to the bottom at 85 feet (100) several times, and never felt anything. We were also pretty dehydrated yesterday, so that may have had something to do with it. Anyone have any input?

Bishop
Aug 15, 2000
I talked about this a few weeks ago, but I actually had to deploy my backup mask for the first time ever because my primary lost a lense. Really wasn't a big deal. I got my backup out of a hip pocket by feel, but the other option people always forget about is that if you really have to, you can open your eyes in salt water and see. It's going to sting a bit but if you feel that you need to it's a better option than panicking. Also seconding the advice to worry about your breathing and buoyancy first even if you encounter a mask issue. A complete mask failure is really rare, usually it's just an annoying leak because some hair got stuck in the seal or whatever. It's far more important to maintain decent buoyancy awareness than getting your mask fixed. Don't let tunnel vision take over and before you know it you've risen 40 feet while messing with your mask.

Akula Raskolnikova posted:

So got three dives in with the fiancé in a lake yesterday. We dropped to 65 feet, which was the first time she had been below 20 feet, and her first real non-training dive. All went well, but she said she felt a little loopy when she went under. She's obviously never felt narcosis before, so she wasn't sure if that was it. The lake is at 3,500 feet, so adjusted for altitude it was equivalent to an 80 foot dive at sea level. I've been to the bottom at 85 feet (100) several times, and never felt anything. We were also pretty dehydrated yesterday, so that may have had something to do with it. Anyone have any input?
Everyone has different levels of susceptibility to narcosis and it can also vary day to day. Assuming you two were diving air, it's entirely possible she was experiencing it. If everything went fine consider it a good learning experience. Also always stay hydrated... this gets more important the deeper/longer you go. I'm not sure if there is a correlation between hydration and narcosis but there certainly is one between dehydration and getting bent.

Bishop fucked around with this message at 23:51 on Jul 22, 2013

murt
Aug 8, 2010
Just got back from snorkeling, I got breathing without the mask down its just when I open my eyes I start to get a little panicky and inhale some water through my nose. It seems when I turn on my eyes I take everything in and forget/stop focusing on breathing and thats when the problems start. It takes a few moments of me choking and remembering how to breathe to calm down and then everythings fine. I can clear my mask and keep on swimming. I think I just need to keep practicing and I'll get it.

Trivia
Feb 8, 2006

I'm an obtuse man,
so I'll try to be oblique.
That's about all you can do really. Make a checklist of things you need to do or remember. Go through the checklist. When I was training it helped to hold the regulator with your hand, as a subtle reminder that it's there and you'll be fine.

Bishop
Aug 15, 2000
Yeah: I have a friend who dives with me every couple years and for a while each time he did, he simply could not get past the breathing through a regulator part and had to spend some time in a pool just practicing and letting his subconscious adjust to the concept. That seems to have passed now but even before he was a pretty drat competent diver after he got over that hump.

Bishop fucked around with this message at 08:01 on Jul 23, 2013

reitetsu
Sep 27, 2009

Should you find yourself here one day... In accordance with your crimes, you can rest assured I will give you the treatment you deserve.
Turns out I was just sick, guys. :downs: Sinuses cleared up just in time for class last evening.

Anyway, one more class session and then I just have to pony up for my open water dives! :woop: I'm hoping to do that next month/paycheck. I also hadn't ever really done anything with a snorkel before yesterday, aside from paddling around a pool for a bit, and I liked even that. I'm really, really hoping this rumored winter trip to Belize happens, or at least somewhere warm where I can try real world scuba/snorkeling/both.

I'm definitely not going to go crazy buying gear, especially not before I get my certification and actually go real diving, but I am curious about necessity and general recommendation. On the one hand, my instructors suggest building up a full array of dive stuff once I'm, well, into the sport enough to drop thousands of dollars on it. One of my instructors told me his octopus was the first thing he bought. My friend, on the other hand, doesn't think it's worth purchasing a tank, BCD or octopus. Is it only a matter of opinion whether someone personally owns every piece of gear?

More specifically, apparently I don't swim so well normally in terms of actually using my legs to kick, so my instructor advised me to get "the best fins I can". I've been looking at split fins a little, but am pretty lost considering the stuff on Leisure Pro ranges from twenty bucks to over a hundred. Does anyone have any fin experiences they wouldn't mind sharing?

Crunkjuice
Apr 4, 2007

That could've gotten in my eye!
*launches teargas at unarmed protestors*

I THINK OAKLAND PD'S USE OF EXCESSIVE FORCE WAS JUSTIFIED!

morcant posted:

Turns out I was just sick, guys. :downs: Sinuses cleared up just in time for class last evening.

Anyway, one more class session and then I just have to pony up for my open water dives! :woop: I'm hoping to do that next month/paycheck. I also hadn't ever really done anything with a snorkel before yesterday, aside from paddling around a pool for a bit, and I liked even that. I'm really, really hoping this rumored winter trip to Belize happens, or at least somewhere warm where I can try real world scuba/snorkeling/both.

I'm definitely not going to go crazy buying gear, especially not before I get my certification and actually go real diving, but I am curious about necessity and general recommendation. On the one hand, my instructors suggest building up a full array of dive stuff once I'm, well, into the sport enough to drop thousands of dollars on it. One of my instructors told me his octopus was the first thing he bought. My friend, on the other hand, doesn't think it's worth purchasing a tank, BCD or octopus. Is it only a matter of opinion whether someone personally owns every piece of gear?

More specifically, apparently I don't swim so well normally in terms of actually using my legs to kick, so my instructor advised me to get "the best fins I can". I've been looking at split fins a little, but am pretty lost considering the stuff on Leisure Pro ranges from twenty bucks to over a hundred. Does anyone have any fin experiences they wouldn't mind sharing?

Why you'd buy an octo first is beyond me. If I had to rank the importance of items to buy, this is how i'd rank them.
1. Mask/Snorkel/Fins
2.Thermal Protection (if you're a tropical vacation diver only, disregard. Some of us dive lovely cold water and being cold loving sucks and is a safety issue, so i rank thermal protection highly)
3. Regulators - Packs well/light for vacations and you are sure it has been maintained properly.
4. BCD- (If you're a vacation diver swap 4-5).
5. Computer- Yes i know computers are becoming standard dive gear, but you can dive tables just fine too so i put this lower priority than other stuff.
6. Tank- Really only own a tank if you are a frequent local diver.

What kind of diver do you think you'll be? Frequent local diver or sparse vacation diver? That will also determine what gear and when to get it. If you're only doing a few days diving a few times a year renting is cost effective. If you plan to dive once-twice a month, rental fees will add up QUICK and you'll want your own gear.

Cru Jones
Mar 28, 2007

Cowering behind a shield of hope and Obamanium

Crunkjuice posted:

Why you'd buy an octo first is beyond me. If I had to rank the importance of items to buy, this is how i'd rank them.
1. Mask/Snorkel/Fins
2.Thermal Protection (if you're a tropical vacation diver only, disregard. Some of us dive lovely cold water and being cold loving sucks and is a safety issue, so i rank thermal protection highly)
3. Regulators - Packs well/light for vacations and you are sure it has been maintained properly.
4. BCD- (If you're a vacation diver swap 4-5).
5. Computer- Yes i know computers are becoming standard dive gear, but you can dive tables just fine too so i put this lower priority than other stuff.
6. Tank- Really only own a tank if you are a frequent local diver.

What kind of diver do you think you'll be? Frequent local diver or sparse vacation diver? That will also determine what gear and when to get it. If you're only doing a few days diving a few times a year renting is cost effective. If you plan to dive once-twice a month, rental fees will add up QUICK and you'll want your own gear.

Ask your instructor about fixing your kicking technique, don't just throw money at the problem.

The thing about tanks though, an AL80 is like one of the cheapest things on your list. Always nice to have air on hand in case you want to head out and can't get a rental.

Mr.AARP
Apr 20, 2010

I was born after Kurt Cobain died. Now you feel old.

morcant posted:

One of my instructors told me his octopus was the first thing he bought. My friend, on the other hand, doesn't think it's worth purchasing a tank, BCD or octopus.

Just to be a grammar nazi, I believe you mean regulator. The octo is a backup second stage reg that is part of your overall regulator setup (1st stage/2nd stage/octo/pressure gauge). :)

reitetsu
Sep 27, 2009

Should you find yourself here one day... In accordance with your crimes, you can rest assured I will give you the treatment you deserve.

Crunkjuice posted:

What kind of diver do you think you'll be? Frequent local diver or sparse vacation diver? That will also determine what gear and when to get it. If you're only doing a few days diving a few times a year renting is cost effective. If you plan to dive once-twice a month, rental fees will add up QUICK and you'll want your own gear.

It more depends on whether I have anyone to dive with. The only friend I'm aware of that is certified refuses to dive in quarries/lakes/anywhere not tropical, so I don't know how often I'll end up going after getting my certification. Still, I was definitely intending to start with the mask/snorkel/fins because they seem reasonably inexpensive and useful outside diving besides. I do have my eye on thermal protection as well - even in class, in an indoor pool of about 70F I'm shivering by the end of class, but I am also possibly a big baby.

Cru Jones posted:

Ask your instructor about fixing your kicking technique, don't just throw money at the problem.

The thing about tanks though, an AL80 is like one of the cheapest things on your list. Always nice to have air on hand in case you want to head out and can't get a rental.

That's a good point. I also have access to the other pools at this gym, so I could practice on my own time as well. Before this class, it'd actually been multiple years since I'd been in a body of water bigger than a hot tub.

And I pretty quickly found the AL80 on Google, and have bookmarked that. Does $270 sound about right? They also seem to come in pretty rad colors, which I guess I should have picked up on, being that my tank in class has either been pink or lime green.

Mr.AARP posted:

Just to be a grammar nazi, I believe you mean regulator. The octo is a backup second stage reg that is part of your overall regulator setup (1st stage/2nd stage/octo/pressure gauge). :)

No, being a grammar nazi is good - I still have a quiz to pass tomorrow at class and not misusing basic terms would probably be helpful. :downs:

Crunkjuice
Apr 4, 2007

That could've gotten in my eye!
*launches teargas at unarmed protestors*

I THINK OAKLAND PD'S USE OF EXCESSIVE FORCE WAS JUSTIFIED!

morcant posted:

And I pretty quickly found the AL80 on Google, and have bookmarked that. Does $270 sound about right? They also seem to come in pretty rad colors, which I guess I should have picked up on, being that my tank in class has either been pink or lime green.

Jesus no. http://www.scubatoys.com/store/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=AL80 . The candy colored (neon ones) run about 20 bucks more and its free ground shipping over 100 bucks with an extra handling charge for the weight. I think leisure pro has catalina al80s for like 162 shipped.

As for thermal protection, 70 is loving cold for no wetsuit. Our pool is 82 and we put our students in 3mm shorties because even THAT gets cold after a while. I might even personally wear a full 3mm, just because i'm seriously lovely with dealing with cold water.

Crunkjuice fucked around with this message at 22:45 on Jul 23, 2013

The Vikings
Jul 3, 2004

ODIN!!!!!

Nap Ghost
Any recommendations on dive shops in the LA area? We are up north of the city so an hour drive each way just to check out a shop on the coast is something I want to minimize. Getting pretty annoyed with sport chalet, hope not to go back after finishing the AOW class next weekend.

Minty Swagger
Sep 8, 2005

Ribbit Ribbit Real Good
I like these guys: http://www.yelp.com/biz/eco-dive-center-culver-city

Bishop
Aug 15, 2000

morcant posted:

And I pretty quickly found the AL80 on Google, and have bookmarked that. Does $270 sound about right? They also seem to come in pretty rad colors, which I guess I should have picked up on, being that my tank in class has either been pink or lime green.
Oh goodness no... an AL80 should run you around $150 in my experience. Maybe a bit more with online shipping.

As far as fins go, don't spend too much money if you are wavering on how much diving you plan to do. Based off of what you said, as long as you are comfortable with them and they aren't going to fall apart on you within 10 dives, almost anything should work. If you plan on doing fun ocean dives don't over-think fins too much as long as they work.

Bishop fucked around with this message at 01:27 on Jul 24, 2013

Aquila
Jan 24, 2003

The Vikings posted:

Any recommendations on dive shops in the LA area? We are up north of the city so an hour drive each way just to check out a shop on the coast is something I want to minimize. Getting pretty annoyed with sport chalet, hope not to go back after finishing the AOW class next weekend.

I think the instruction at Hollywood Divers is absolutely excellent. Both the owner (Hal), and my instructor (Nikki) are genuinely helpful to new divers and very friendly. Everyone else I've met there has been very cool as well. Classes are usually small with 4 students max to an instructor for OW and less than that for AOW. A fair number of instructors and dm's out of that shop are seriously into the dir/gue thing, but they don't let it filter down to ow/aow unless a student asks for / about it. They certainly would like to sell you a full Halcyon bp/w setup, but that doesn't mean you need to buy one. It does mean you get to rent a very nice bp/w for only a little more than renting a normal bcd.

What part of town are you in and are you looking for a dive buddy? I'm hoping to go out diving at sometime in August.

Gindack
Jan 30, 2010
So dove with a Steel 100 recently and man there is a huge difference, felt like the drat thing was trying to make me do rolls all dive. Also was overweighted on the first dive so my ears discovered what it was like to go from surface to 15 feet in seconds, good thing I pressurize my ears on the surface. I realized after the fact that I had forgot to do a proper weight check after removing what I thought was the correct amount of lead.

I think I may just stick with AL for now especially for buying my first tanks.

Mr.AARP
Apr 20, 2010

I was born after Kurt Cobain died. Now you feel old.

Gindack posted:

So dove with a Steel 100 recently and man there is a huge difference, felt like the drat thing was trying to make me do rolls all dive. Also was overweighted on the first dive so my ears discovered what it was like to go from surface to 15 feet in seconds, good thing I pressurize my ears on the surface. I realized after the fact that I had forgot to do a proper weight check after removing what I thought was the correct amount of lead.

I think I may just stick with AL for now especially for buying my first tanks.

What temperature is the water you dive? Generally steel is awesome for colder water while aluminum is just fine for tropical waters.

Gindack
Jan 30, 2010

Mr.AARP posted:

What temperature is the water you dive? Generally steel is awesome for colder water while aluminum is just fine for tropical waters.

Around 74 degrees and 68 around 30 feet didn't go lower than that since I was in a shorty, but the main reason I wanted to try it because I can cut down on the lead I gotta haul around.

reitetsu
Sep 27, 2009

Should you find yourself here one day... In accordance with your crimes, you can rest assured I will give you the treatment you deserve.

Crunkjuice posted:

Jesus no. http://www.scubatoys.com/store/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=AL80 . The candy colored (neon ones) run about 20 bucks more and its free ground shipping over 100 bucks with an extra handling charge for the weight. I think leisure pro has catalina al80s for like 162 shipped.

As for thermal protection, 70 is loving cold for no wetsuit. Our pool is 82 and we put our students in 3mm shorties because even THAT gets cold after a while. I might even personally wear a full 3mm, just because i'm seriously lovely with dealing with cold water.

Bishop posted:

Oh goodness no... an AL80 should run you around $150 in my experience. Maybe a bit more with online shipping.

As far as fins go, don't spend too much money if you are wavering on how much diving you plan to do. Based off of what you said, as long as you are comfortable with them and they aren't going to fall apart on you within 10 dives, almost anything should work. If you plan on doing fun ocean dives don't over-think fins too much as long as they work.

Well hell. Good to know. Granted, a tank is pretty low on my list after mask, snorkel, fins and wetsuit. Which themselves might be even further off if various nerd conventions I'm attending next month bankrupt me. Thanks for the link, though - I've bookmarked it for when I do have the funds for all this.

I'm not sure on the actual temp of the pool we've been using - I just know that after 20 minutes, if I'm not completely submerged, I feel pretty chilly. And this one other guy, super skinny, shivers a whole lot. It's better for me at least since I started eating before class, and anyway we only have one more day in that pool, if that. Tonight's the last night and I honestly can't remember if there's anything we'll need to get into the water for.

Minty Swagger
Sep 8, 2005

Ribbit Ribbit Real Good
With the tank, remember that unlike all the other gear, you need to go to a shop to get the tank refilled every time, so if you're going to end up having to go to a shop to get a tank filled, it might actually be better to just rent one each time. This is all dependent on how often you go of course.

I wouldn't mind having a neon green one I could paint with random poo poo though. :allears:

Mr.AARP
Apr 20, 2010

I was born after Kurt Cobain died. Now you feel old.

Had an awesome hour-long night dive at Veteran's Park in Redondo last night. Felt nice to be back under the water after 3 weeks backpacking around Europe. Saw more baby octopi than I could count along with the biggest sheep crab I've ever seen, a spanish shawl nudibranch, and a couple of salps. Max depth 65 feet with the water dipping to a chilly 55F down there.

raffie
Feb 28, 2004
hopeless incompetent
I checked out the local Scubapro and Hollis dealers to try on the jet fins and F1s. The F1s fit better but they don't bring in the ones with the yellow tips and "you'll have to wait months for an order to arrive", so I ended up buying a pair online.

Hopefully they'll get here before my weekend LOB trip next week.

MMania
May 7, 2008
So I'm starting to look into picking up a computer, I dive with a group that is pretty aggressive and I'd like to be able to keep up. The Scubapro board doesn't really have a well organized list (that I can find), am I correct in assuming that anything from the top name brands will work just fine?

If anyone has any specific suggestions, I'm looking for a standard wrist computer that can do Nitrox if I ever decide to go through the training, don't really care about the crazy bells and whistles that the high end ones offer.

Transcendent Man
Dec 23, 2012

"Death gives meaning to our lives. It gives importance and value to time. Time would be meaningless if there were too much of it." - Ray Kurzweil
How long does it take for your body to get used to the pressure? The deepest I can tolerate is like 6 feet and I've never felt any progress.

Loving Africa Chaps
Dec 3, 2007


We had not left it yet, but when I would wake in the night, I would lie, listening, homesick for it already.

Repaired a leak in a drysuit with a bike patch. Going to test it tomorrow on my dive to complete BSAC sport diver :toot:

Crunkjuice
Apr 4, 2007

That could've gotten in my eye!
*launches teargas at unarmed protestors*

I THINK OAKLAND PD'S USE OF EXCESSIVE FORCE WAS JUSTIFIED!

Transcendent Man posted:

How long does it take for your body to get used to the pressure? The deepest I can tolerate is like 6 feet and I've never felt any progress.

Everyone is different. Some people take 10 minutes to descend to 30 feet while others can drop like a stone (relatively) and get there quickly.

macado
Jun 3, 2003

How to keep an idiot busy, Click here.
Back from another Cozumel trip; Already booked again for September. Love diving with Aldora. Steel 120s and Steel 100s are great for Caribbean diving. With 32% and 36% our average dives were between 70 and 80 minutes. My longest dive on the trip was 101 minutes. :-)

My Hollis DG03 was not very happy, hit some deco on just about every dive. My Oceanic backup computer is pretty aggressive but never actually hit deco.

Also got to snorkel with whale sharks & manta rays. I've been wanting to do that the last 10 years but finally had a day free to do it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=up-0lZTlgw4

Diving Brenton Reef Lightship LV 39 on Saturday. Not quite the 83f that Cozumel was but it should be fun if conditions are good.
http://www.northernatlanticdive.com/shipwrecks/brenton_reef/brenton_reef_39.htm

macado fucked around with this message at 20:25 on Jul 25, 2013

Paradox Personified
Mar 15, 2010

:sun: SoroScrew :sun:
So labyrinthitis is an uncommon thing then, right?

Kaddish
Feb 7, 2002
Anyone have first hand experience diving in the Dominican Republic? We went to Cozumel last year and we want to try a new place. Obviously we're not expecting Cozumel levels of enjoyment but I hope there is more than sand and the occasional wreck.

We're probably going to stay in Punta Cana.

micron
Nov 15, 2005


Kaddish posted:

Anyone have first hand experience diving in the Dominican Republic? We went to Cozumel last year and we want to try a new place. Obviously we're not expecting Cozumel levels of enjoyment but I hope there is more than sand and the occasional wreck.

We're probably going to stay in Punta Cana.

I personally do not, but a coworker is heading there next week. I'll give ya a trip report via him.

After loving my middle ears up 2 weeks ago I'm finally better. A check up tomorrow with a ANT doctor and I should be good. Yep, I'm the idiot that pushed too hard in a lake at 10 foot of water and gave himself middle ear barotrauma....I haven't dove in years and was a bit "cocky" I guess. If it doesn't feel right then its not, don't press things..

macado
Jun 3, 2003

How to keep an idiot busy, Click here.
I had a beautiful 25 minute mud dive at 170fsw on Saturday. We shot lined the wreck and I guess we ended up being about 100ft away from actual wreck.

3 divers found it but it took them 15 minutes. The rest of us spend entire planned bottom time searching for it. Tied off to shot line and did a search for it but we had to have missed it by like 20-25ft.

It was slightly disappointing but still a successful trimix dive.

Runtime: 72 minutes. Water temperature: 47f Visiblity: 10-15ft.

HookShot
Dec 26, 2005
Hey guys, I've got a question about decompression sickness.

My husband and I have done four dives each before, although we've never been certified, they were just the "intro dive" type things on the Great Barrier Reef. We're thinking of doing some again on our trip to Hawaii, but because of scheduling we'd like to do it at a time that would leave us basically exactly 18 hours before our inter-island flight.

Is it safe to assume that after two basic beginner dives, waiting 18 hours, then taking a one-hour flight to the Big Island our odds of decompression sickness are pretty low, or should we do the dive the day before and wait 36 hours just to be safe?

Thanks for the answers, I don't know much about decompression sickness at all.

Luceo
Apr 29, 2003

As predicted in the Bible. :cheers:



HookShot posted:

Hey guys, I've got a question about decompression sickness.

My husband and I have done four dives each before, although we've never been certified, they were just the "intro dive" type things on the Great Barrier Reef. We're thinking of doing some again on our trip to Hawaii, but because of scheduling we'd like to do it at a time that would leave us basically exactly 18 hours before our inter-island flight.

Is it safe to assume that after two basic beginner dives, waiting 18 hours, then taking a one-hour flight to the Big Island our odds of decompression sickness are pretty low, or should we do the dive the day before and wait 36 hours just to be safe?

Thanks for the answers, I don't know much about decompression sickness at all.

You'll be fine. The PADI guidelines are 18 hours for repetitive dives.

Crunkjuice
Apr 4, 2007

That could've gotten in my eye!
*launches teargas at unarmed protestors*

I THINK OAKLAND PD'S USE OF EXCESSIVE FORCE WAS JUSTIFIED!
ignore

HookShot
Dec 26, 2005

Luceo posted:

You'll be fine. The PADI guidelines are 18 hours for repetitive dives.

Ok awesome, thanks!!

DarkHorse
Dec 13, 2006

Vroom Vroom, BEEP BEEP!
Nap Ghost

Kaddish posted:

Anyone have first hand experience diving in the Dominican Republic? We went to Cozumel last year and we want to try a new place. Obviously we're not expecting Cozumel levels of enjoyment but I hope there is more than sand and the occasional wreck.

We're probably going to stay in Punta Cana.
I was in Punta Cana this year and took the lazy route of booking a trip through on-resort scuba shop since diving wasn't the focus of the trip.

They said there's not very great diving on that side of the island. Instead we took an hour-long bus ride across the island to the Caribbean side, then a half-hour or so boat ride to a wall reef. It went down at least 60 feet before leveling off, and probably went deeper, though we had lots of newbies in the group and they didn't want to push it. There was another feature a half-hour boat ride away called the pool that had shallower diving with fewer reef features, but a decent concentration of fish.

All in all it was definitely some decent diving. Nothing mindblowing by Caribbean standards, but that's still a great trip. The only downside is all the transit time, meaning you can only fit a few dives in a day before you have to pack up and get back.

I took some pictures with my parents' underwater camera, I'll see if I can get a hold of them.

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Kaddish
Feb 7, 2002

DarkHorse posted:

I was in Punta Cana this year and took the lazy route of booking a trip through on-resort scuba shop since diving wasn't the focus of the trip.

They said there's not very great diving on that side of the island. Instead we took an hour-long bus ride across the island to the Caribbean side, then a half-hour or so boat ride to a wall reef. It went down at least 60 feet before leveling off, and probably went deeper, though we had lots of newbies in the group and they didn't want to push it. There was another feature a half-hour boat ride away called the pool that had shallower diving with fewer reef features, but a decent concentration of fish.

All in all it was definitely some decent diving. Nothing mindblowing by Caribbean standards, but that's still a great trip. The only downside is all the transit time, meaning you can only fit a few dives in a day before you have to pack up and get back.

I took some pictures with my parents' underwater camera, I'll see if I can get a hold of them.

Cool, thanks for the info. This is in-line with the research I've done as well. We'll have to decide if this is a decent trade-off for visiting a new island. DR is attractive because it's still pretty cheap. We were thinking about Bonaire but it's too expensive for what we want. We might just end up going back to Cozumel since the diving was so fantastic.

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