What is the best environment to learn to dive in?

[String]

The best environment for a diver to learn in is the one where they're going to be doing the majority of their diving.

You can learn in warm, calm clear waters but then have a hell of a learning curve when you get back to cold murky waters -some people cant learn it, hate it and some die.

On the other hand if you learn and get used to diving in cold, dark, low vis, high current waters whenever you go to a nice tropical resort you'll find it ridiculously easy and your skills will be far sharper than others there.

 

[Atom]

Learned in much better conditions than I dive locally (Thailand VS Quebec/Ontario), I wished I had learned here since it would be more natural, but I didn't have too many problems adapting (although my 1st 3 dives here were with a DM & Instructor, helped me get used to cold water/dry suits in a safe envrionment).

I got the chance to dive in Florida (arround Fort Lauderdale) during the christmas vacations, it sure was easier than here, warm water, warm outside... and drift dive! (this is lazy diving, but really fun diving).

... now I'm waiting for the lakes to freeze so that I can take my Ice Diver course.

 

[uncleavi]

I Did Open Water thru Rescue in the Red Sea.
Got up to Master Scuba Diver in Key West.
Did my Dive Master and AI in Lake Superior on the Canadian Side then My PADI IDC in Vancouver BC. I did my NAUI Inst in Key West and now live in Alaska.
It is very good to dive in different climates and These guys have good points learning in these tougher enviroments just remember to ask some folks when they talk about where they dive if Girls under the age of 14 dive there as well. Some folks make it sound like they have to swim up hill both ways after they cut a hole in the ice with their Jet Fins and DIR rigs.

 

[driftwood]

We all know that to be really good divers you have to practice and for most of us that means getting used to local conditions. Most people who get certified have never heard of scubaboard and will never take another class in their life.

Best place to learn,

I like the posters who did their first dives in the springs and then moved to the gulf.

In central Texas, we have this wonderful spring fed lake with Carib vis that is a perfect transition from a pool to open water diving. The big problem is that if you lay on your stomach you can get to all of 18' deep. Great for your first day, but you need to take the students deeper. In Florida, they have the Gulf and in Texas we have lakes that are a lot less appealing. OWC should stress the student to see if their training has taken hold. Varying the environment is always a better judge of how well your students will do.

 

[Redhawk]

Our main divesite (400 miles / 600 km from nearest ocean) is an old open cast chrome mine which is fed from a spring, water temperature around 22C, large number of fish, bus, plane, helicopter, yacht, couple of boats, computer workstation etc. to explore. They have got a number of training platforms at 5m & it goes down to 33m, viz can be as much as 12-15m or as low as 1m when it is very busy with OW students. It is also an altitude dive (5500 ft) and you can get airfills, food & beverages on site! Excuse me I think I must start packing & head off for a dive weekend. Ha Ha.

 

[Monkey_Gland]

Thanks for all your very cool posts. As for me - OW in New South Wales with a blue bottle jellyfish sting on Dive 1 - pretty good vis on the whole and some rays to look at whilst waiting for the remedial class they put me in to do thier skills. All my other c-cards got in the UK in a variety of cold dark inland sites and cold dark coastal dive sites. Visits to Egypt or the Maldives seem like a fever dream - so much light and colour.

I've always loved the challenge of UK diving, though I have felt for some OW students as they are battered by waves and deal with poor vis - hopefully they'll be more confident divers in a shorter amount of time.

 

[Redhawk]

Now I know why I've met so many UK Instructors freelancing in South Africa!

 

[OldNSalty]

Come on up to NY and let's dive in the Long Island Sound. On a great day about 8-10' viz. On a not so good day, about 1-3'. Cert dives can be done. One student (maybe two...) per Instructor. The nav swim is really fun- if you can make it back to where you started from then you really understand the idea of navigation.
Divers who get used to this kind of diving usually find it real easy to dive in warm, clear water.

Seeing how you are rated as an instructor, I might take you up on that if i ever find myself in the area. I don't think the vis (or lack of) would bother me psychologically but the cold might. I think navigation might actually be interesting when you can't see the entire dive site

 

[String]

Now I know why I've met so many UK Instructors freelancing in South Africa!

That's more likely to do with massively restrictive HSE meaning diving in the UK is pretty much impossible to do without losing money.

Oh, that and the crap depressing climate, everything being massively expensive and the country generally being a cesspit !

 

[Monkey_Gland]

That's more likely to do with massively restrictive HSE meaning diving in the UK is pretty much impossible to do without losing money.

Oh, that and the crap depressing climate, everything being massively expensive and the country generally being a cesspit !

I've always found the climate very appealing - as Billy Connolly said "There's no such thing as bad weather only the wrong clothes".

Cesspit? Dunno about that, I've dived a couple under the guise of inland dive sites I'm pretty sure of that, but it's a beautiful place on the whole - you're in South Wales, String - it's stunning round there! Bet the diving is good....