Are we really the minority??

[DivingPrincessE]

What are Dutch Springs and Rawlings like in season? I earned my OW at Milbrook. I've got to tell you ... after four cert dives in pretty limited vis/temp and only a few fish, I wasn't really hooked. All the same, I went back with two of my buddies and ended up diving at 30 ffw with a max of 3 ft vis. It just wasn't "all that" as a new diver. I just didn't get it.

Dutch Springs and Lake Rawlings are much better than millbrook...but they are still quarries and no quarry is going to compare to places like Cozumel and Belize. The visibility varies greatly, depending how many many people are there and if classes are going on. When I went to Dutch is was cold (early July) and the visibilty was about 20 feet...but there were several open water classes going on (including mine). Rawlings was pretty warm when I went (late august) and several people were wearing 3 and 5 mil suits and just staying above the thermocline (which was at about 50 feet) and the visibility was approx 30-35 feet. These places are much better than millbrook but they are also 3 hours away, so you have weight convenience against conditions, and convenience is going to win out 70% of the time with me.

 

[El Orans]

I'm going there at the end of the month! Never been, but a 115 ffw, non-clorinated, body-temperature pool is a dive not to be missed! And those prices are pretty good!

Nice.

Don't forget to sample the Thai restaurant on site. It's excellent.

What date exactly? I might come down to Brussels...

 

[Buoyant1]

What are Dutch Springs and Rawlings like in season? I earned my OW at Milbrook. I've got to tell you ... after four cert dives in pretty limited vis/temp and only a few fish, I wasn't really hooked. All the same, I went back with two of my buddies and ended up diving at 30 ffw with a max of 3 ft vis. It just wasn't "all that" as a new diver. I just didn't get it.

Last year one of those buddies arranged a week-long trip to Cozumel where I did 3 - 4 dives a day, earned AOW and nitrox, got to see spectacular sights, and got to "fly" through the water and enjoy it. WOW! All of a sudden I got it. Granted, 100 ft vis and warm waters were awesome, but getting that glimpse at what diving could really be really got me hooked.

So now Milbrook will be worth it this season (and maybe the other too if they're good sites, too!) I have to wonder how many new divers get certified to try something new and have some fun, but don't "get it" initially and never take the opportunity to.

I can only speak for Dutch Springs...but it's probably the best place to dive other than a Florida Spring or the ocean (and some other things...) but for a quarry it's pretty nice! Granted there are some viz problems in some areas (mostly because of classes, and since the OP was in THOSE areas I'm sure it was pretty kicked up since there are usually MANY classes going on, and it's the weekend) one good thing about it is that they are open ALL WEEK during season, and during the week, things are less kicked up, and it's less crowded. I was there on a thursday in August and a monday in October and it was pretty nice...(although the algae this year was a problem, it STILL was much better than some of the other places I've been)

 

[ItMustBeJames]

What date exactly? I might come down to Brussels...

I plan to be there the week of 28 Jan - 01 Feb, but that week is still tentative. I'll be there again the week of 11 Feb - 15 Feb for sure. PM me if you're going to be in town!

James

 

[boat sju]

hey Retro- I think I have the exact feelings about 'will I keep this thing going in my heart as long as I'd like'. I live in Edmonton Canada. Check out the mud puddles near here on a map. The only real diving in the prov is at Jasper. Ya the same place where everyone keeps there beer cold. So I 'dive' every Wed. night at the local pool with a tech dive club. I am so freaked that I will loose my skills. It is a lot of fun, we clean the pool, then practise every skill imaginable. Even surfacing the signal sausage. Can anyone make fun of that? I am absolutely absorbed with diving. I go to Coz. jan 25 for 3 weeks. I go to sleep drift diving. I am on the boards/forums every night. I'm sick. May need intervention......... kev

Kev,

My mistake was letting a year go by and then another without diving. Then I felt like I couldn't dive anymore without a refresher, etc., etc.

Sounds like you're doing it right - diving in a pool is better than not diving at all, and a few local dives now and then will allow you to feel comfortable diving when you can get away somewhere nice. Sounds like you have plenty of dive buddies too - that helps a lot.