Advice on acquiring 50 deep dives

[Steve_C]

Do not know what the financial situation is but for all those recommending running off to a foreigh location that does cost money. Quarries are fun to practice in but we have a couple neary and they are always cold and dark below 60 ft. So may require extra gear while even in NC there are lots of ocean dives in the 80 ft range with summer water in the 70s. Assuming you have nitrox you could to 4 80 ft dives a day but booking an AM and a PM dive to the Hyde.

 

[The Chairman]

Summers off, eh? Apply to www.Reef.org and/or to www.CoralRestoration.org for one of their internships. You'll be in Key Largo and able to dive your butt off on your off days as well as the diving you get to do as part of being an intern. Win/win!

 

[drrich2]

Quarries are fun to practice in but we have a couple neary and they are always cold and dark below 60 ft. So may require extra gear

Good point, and worth asking...for a given diver, is that a 'bug' or a 'feature?' Learning to deal with cold water & related exposure protection, and low light conditions, can be a real plus...or an unpleasant burden. Does our midwest diver anticipate doing any California or other cold water diving?

Richard.

 

[Marie13]

I suggested quarry diving because if the OP is near one that is deep enough, it's going to be cheaper than going somewhere tropical.

It's always easier to go from cold/low viz to warm/high viz, rather than the opposite. And if he really wants to be a DM, then the experience would be helpful.

 

[Steve_C]

Good point, and worth asking...for a given diver, is that a 'bug' or a 'feature?' Learning to deal with cold water & related exposure protection, and low light conditions, can be a real plus...or an unpleasant burden. Does our midwest diver anticipate doing any California or other cold water diving?

Richard.

Good point. I will note that we have a new Quarry (depths to 125 ft) that is 2 hours and 8 minutes from the Docks at Wilmington for those windy days when the boats do not go out (Mystery Lake Scuba Park)

 

[Steve_C]

Great Lakes: Unsalted and shark free

One plus and one minus.

 

[Marie13]

One plus and one minus.

TWO pluses! I'll dive salt water...eventually! Local is cheaper, plus I can drive and not be reduced to diving AL80s! (you'll pry my steels out of my cold dead hands!).

 

[Steve_C]

I have rented steel 100s more than once in both Florida and NC.

 

[tursiops]

The OP is female, by the way.
I suggested going somewhere else because a DM that has only dived in the local quarry is not going to be very well trained and certainly not prepared to be a functioning DM. The zero-to-hero, barely-meet-the-minimum-standards mentality leads to poor divers, poor professionals, and dangerous dives.

 

[TMHeimer]

One plus and one minus.

Agree.....Assuming the minus is unsalted and the plus is shark free. Of course, there is the plus of unsalted regarding equipment rinsing.