Considering Hanging it up...but...what to do after scuba??

[DivinLion01]

I second the motion for getting your gear serviced and packed up carefully. My 15 daughter got into it this summer and now has decided that it will become her career path (school is just not her forte). She dreams of being a course director and diving all over the world. Some of my fondest dives are now with her and she's logged just shy of 100 since May. Kid is dive obsessed and it makes me love it even more than I already do.

The point is, wait a while before you yardsale...

 

[Wibble]

Buy a sailing boat. OK it’s more expensive than scuba and takes a lot more of your time.

Hmm, that’s why i gave it up to do scuba. But when my scuba career is over in the next ten years it’ll be back to sailing again. My mum and stepdad are still sailing in their nineties and it’s what they say keeps them fit.

 

[Big Dan K]

Enjoy the time with the family doing whatever your kids and family like. Fishing and hunting still consume a lot more of my time and money than diving. But the kids will move on someday, free time and economics change, and you will find yourself on a vacation, looking out at the ocean, and realize that you should be under it

 

[Andrew Dawson]

Not sure which steel tanks you have, but a pair of LP50s, light and skinny, might fit the bill for kayak diving.

Ha, a buddy was going to lend me his LP50s to try out...they are a bit too floaty for him.

Don’t know what to do “after” diving, nearing 68 and not there yet. Slow down, there are no goals, get a camera and look for stuff. An hour drive would be a dream, I do 3.5 just to shore dive.

I expect the next phase for me will be warm water only in another 10years.

DAng, 3.5hrs each way?? That is dedicated!!

I second the motion for getting your gear serviced and packed up carefully. My 15 daughter got into it this summer and now has decided that it will become her career path (school is just not her forte). She dreams of being a course director and diving all over the world. Some of my fondest dives are now with her and she's logged just shy of 100 since May. Kid is dive obsessed and it makes me love it even more than I already do.

The point is, wait a while before you yardsale...

Well, I have mulled this over for over 6mo...still exploring it, too

Buy a sailing boat. OK it’s more expensive than scuba and takes a lot more of your time.

Hmm, that’s why i gave it up to do scuba. But when my scuba career is over in the next ten years it’ll be back to sailing again. My mum and stepdad are still sailing in their nineties and it’s what they say keeps them fit.

I wish! My wife's family are big sailors...I grew up power boating...but, as you say, it is expensive.


Wow, I sure appreciate the feedback from each and every one of you! Kind, considerate, honest, constructive feedback from all!!

I bought the fishing kayak by mistake...at least the fishing part of it. We will not be fishing much out of it. I service my own gear so storing it serviced, etc, will not be an issue.

I relate to those who said they cannot picture life diving without diving...it has been an identity for me. Which, is why I have taken a long time thinking on this...no final decision has been made.

I really like the feedback about getting into backpacking or more into camping, hiking is a bit hard on my body, tho, just is what it is. Photography is an idea.....I might get better kayaks.

I need to have some sort of outlet...so I also do not eat a bullet from depression...diving has saved my life as I said earlier, it is hard and scary to let it go.

The hard part is diving the same two or three spots all the time have been great, but tiresome over all these years, now.

I might get those LP50s from my buddy and give them a try on the fishing kayak...that sounds like fun, which, is new in this effort to see about my continuing in scuba or not.

I really, really appreciate the considerate and kind shares from everyone. I genuinely thank each and every one of you. I will reread these messages a few times

Any more comments or thoughts, please add them if anyone wishes

 

[kaylee_ann]

While on my break from diving, I've gotten really into photography (even more than before LOL) and exploring abandoned places. It's super fun, like a time machine to the past. I've found houses that have been left behind since 1991 with everything left in them. It's not really a legal activity unless you get permission from the owner...but harmless. This has been a big hobby of mine, along with photography and photo editing, since I was 10. There are also places open to the public, perfectly legal to walk around and photograph. Also safe!
Photography is really fun. Go out and start taking shots of even just your neighborhood...you may get the bug.

 

[CycleCat]

Motorcycles.

 

[tursiops]

While on my break from diving, I've gotten really into photography (even more than before LOL) and exploring abandoned places. It's super fun, like a time machine to the past. I've found houses that have been left behind since 1991 with everything left in them. It's not really a legal activity unless you get permission from the owner...but harmless. This has been a big hobby of mine, along with photography and photo editing, since I was 10. There are also places open to the public, perfectly legal to walk around and photograph. Also safe!
Photography is really fun. Go out and start taking shots of even just your neighborhood...you may get the bug.

I walk my neighborhood at holidays and take pictures of the house/yard decorations. Then I post them on Flickr for all to look at. Looking forward to Halloween....

 

[Marie13]

I drive at least 90 minutes to dive sites. Current favorite one is four hours each way. Requires at least one night in a hotel.

 

[Tracerbullet]

Check out astronomy. So many things you can do within the hobby. Deep space objects, Astro photography, asteroid hunting, planet viewing, etc.

 

[TMHeimer]

After diving? Probably a lot of what I do now, TV and playing around on places like here. Similar to lexvil, I am 68 with 962 dives in also 17 years like yourself.... Hope to hit # 1,000 by this coming Labour Day 2023, so that has become a goal. After that, I think I'll slow down some. Same as you, I've done the shore dives here many times and it can get somewhat boring (though there is always the possibility of finding a decent shell specimen, being a lifetime collector). I may get back into diving with a buddy and less often-- possibly to some of the deeper shore dives that I have been avoiding as my personal rule diving solo.
But, you don't sound near as old as me, so I agree to keep the equipment, or at least a good chunk of it.