Diving has gripped me tight

[sf8193]

Hey all,

First dove in Thailand last August, absolutely loved it. Came home (Chicago) and started looking into the best places to get certified. I decided to do it with UTD as their scientific approached appealed to me. Been in colombia this summer diving, absolutely loving it. Decided to get AOW through padi last week, and now here I am.

Looking forward to gleaning knowledge off of everyone here!

 

[Compressor]

Welcome to SB. Its a wonderful place to be between dives.

 

[Marie13]

Hey all,

First dove in Thailand last August, absolutely loved it. Came home (Chicago) and started looking into the best places to get certified. I decided to do it with UTD as their scientific approached appealed to me. Been in colombia this summer diving, absolutely loving it. Decided to get AOW through padi last week, and now here I am.

Looking forward to gleaning knowledge off of everyone here!

I’m in the Chicago area. The local diving on Lake Michigan is fab. Wrecks, wrecks, and more wrecks! Lots of shallow stuff for newer divers. Can’t be a wuss about cold, though!

 

[JohnnyC]

I was just about to recommend trying to link up with @Marie13 she's in your area and is quite passionate about the local diving opportunities.

 

[sf8193]

I’m in the Chicago area. The local diving on Lake Michigan is fab. Wrecks, wrecks, and more wrecks! Lots of shallow stuff for newer divers. Can’t be a wuss about cold, though!

Awesome, I've really enjoyed the wrecks i've seen so far! Since I don't have my own equipment yet, what are some good shops I could start with to hire a divemaster and take me out?

Yea, san diego water was freezing, 52 degrees F (with a 7mm wetsuit!!). Would not recommend.

 

[Marie13]

Awesome, I've really enjoyed the wrecks i've seen so far! Since I don't have my own equipment yet, what are some good shops I could start with to hire a divemaster and take me out?

Yea, san diego water was freezing, 52 degrees F (with a 7mm wetsuit!!). Would not recommend.

I dive wet to 43F. 7mm. I’m a freaking polar bear.

Dive Right in Scuba in Plainfield has a charter arm called Double Action Dive Charters. The good boat goes out of Hammond Marina. $110 the for the shallow wrecks to 60ft. You can rent gear and tanks and the shop will get it to the boat for you for $35 (on top of rental fees) with 3 days advance notice.

Great Lakes boats do not lead you around with the group following a DM. They moor/anchor on a wreck and down you go! The DRIS boat sometimes has a DM on board. Sometimes the DM just crews the boat, helps divers, etc. Sometimes the DM will actually dive and pair up with someone on the boat without a buddy. That’s happened with me. But sometimes it is just the captain on the boat. Great Lakes boats will not set up your gear for you. They will often assist divers (I need some help up the ladder due to knee issues), but don’t expect valet service. The DRIS boats have fin on ladders. Center post with rungs. You don’t take your fins off. Love it.

I often show up on the boat without a buddy. Doesn’t matter. But to hire a DM to dive with you? Won’t probably happen.

 

[sf8193]

I dive wet to 43F. 7mm. I’m a freaking polar bear.

Dive Right in Scuba in Plainfield has a charter arm called Double Action Dive Charters. The good boat goes out of Hammond Marina. $110 the for the shallow wrecks to 60ft. You can rent gear and tanks and the shop will get it to the boat for you for $35 (on top of rental fees) with 3 days advance notice.

Great Lakes boats do not lead you around with the group following a DM. They moor/anchor on a wreck and down you go! The DRIS boat sometimes has a DM on board. Sometimes the DM just crews the boat, helps divers, etc. Sometimes the DM will actually dive and pair up with someone on the boat without a buddy. That’s happened with me. But sometimes it is just the captain on the boat. Great Lakes boats will not set up your gear for you. They will often assist divers (I need some help up the ladder due to knee issues), but don’t expect valet service. The DRIS boats have fin on ladders. Center post with rungs. You don’t take your fins off. Love it.

I often show up on the boat without a buddy. Doesn’t matter. But to hire a DM to dive with you? Won’t probably happen.

43F!!!! My god.

Do you always find a dive buddy when going alone? Being so new to diving, i'd like to stick to the buddy system.

 

[Marie13]

43F!!!! My god.

Do you always find a dive buddy when going alone? Being so new to diving, i'd like to stick to the buddy system.

I’m not solo certified, so I always dive with a buddy. But whether you’re paired up with another single diver, are a 3rd, or pair up with the DM, you will always have a buddy on the boat.

 

[Marie13]

Memorial Day weekend wreck diving.

 

[kelemvor]

Do you always find a dive buddy when going alone? Being so new to diving, i'd like to stick to the buddy system.

Many boats do not allow solo diving. Therefore, you either need a buddy or a dm (to be your buddy). Some boat operations provide a divemaster as a matter of standard practice. Some require you to dive with their DM even if you don't want to. Having a pre-arranged buddy means you don't need the divemaster. However, you can do a 3-way dive if you want one and have a buddy.

When I first started diving, I did a few dive trips (in Florida) without bringing a buddy. I always made sure to tell the boat people when booking the trip that I was alone. They either found another solo person or odd man out to buddy me or gave me a DM. The former is called an instabuddy and it's as much a gamble as anything at vegas. Some are good, some are bad. You are super fortunate to have found a seasoned diver (@Marie13) in your area who seems like they may be interested in diving with you.

Personally, I found buddies on scubaboard. Also, I kept in touch with someone I met in open water class, and I went to various dive "events" like dinners and whatnot that dive shops throw occasionally. Gradually I made enough friends who dive that buddies became less of a problem than cash to pay for the dives! Later, I talked my girlfriend into taking a scuba class.. then I married her. Now I've almost got "too many" buddies, but that's kind of like having too much money - NOT A PROBLEM!

@Marie13 seems to have amazing cold tolerance. You couldn't melt me down and pour me into lake Michigan with a wetsuit. I wear 7mm full suits in 72f spring water and get cold. Do any shops in your area rent drysuits? They're generally very expensive to buy (I eventually got one, it's the third most expensive thing I own after house and car). If you can find a way to get into drysuit diving, I highly recommend it given your local water temps. Unfortunately, there are some skills involved in diving a drysuit safely. If you didn't learn during open water class, you'll probably have to take a drysuit class.