Just got Cert!!! Now what?

[MntbikerBamBam]

Ok so i just finished my open water cert this past sunday (THANKS PACIFIC WILDERNESS!) ok So now what? Where some of the best places to go with most fish? I mean we did catalina, but cant quite do that durring the week with that pesky thing called a job. And we did divers cove, but we stayed on the sandy bottom doing all our skills so i didnt see much wild life. I wanna see BIG fish, where should i start? Mind you i only have my open water cert, so i would like it to be 50ft or less. I know the kelp beds are great places, but dont really know where any are.
Any suggestions?

 

[LAJim]

A lot of people on this SoCal board would probably suggest that you be real conservative until you have 25+ dives minimum. Beach dives (other than the park in Avalon) are often challenging -conditions can change quickly - and you should only make these dives with a very experienced buddy. You might want to stick with a DM for a little while or otherwise be very conservative until you have the skills and experience.

 

[MntbikerBamBam]

ok cool well i have no prob with being conservative, and i do have a buddy who has been doing it awhile, along with ones that havent. Im just looking for a place to start, but i dont want to start somewhere that is going to be nothing but rock and sand, just looking for a happy medium

 

[orangelion03]

Laguna offers you several decent dives. Crescent Bay has good reef structures on either end. The east side has lots of sea life in the channels that wind through the reef over to Shaws, just be sure to be extra careful in surgy conditions (because you can get stuck in a crevasse and your buddy will laugh at you and think you're a dork). The west side offers some great rocky jumbles and flats, and the ocasional sea lion buzzing by. In the middle, just past the surf zone are the sand flats which are ideal for practicing skills. After you rack up some experience, you can dive Deadmans Reef, a few hundred yards straight out, and 60 feet down. Though surf can be nasty at Crescent, most days it's relatively calm due to the orientation. Crescent also has showers and a bathroom.

 

[LAJim]

Be cautious about buying gear. Get a good quality low volume mask that fits you well. If you buy fins now have spring straps installed - much easier to deal with in surf. Consider renting everything else for awhile. New divers outgrow gear very quickly and often make poor choices that they would avoid with more experience.

Scuba gear should be expensive. Its life support equipment. But not all expensive gear is right for all divers. Many SoCal divers dive steel tanks rather than Al 80s and backplate/wings instead of BCs. The gear configurations of divers with over 100 SoCal dives tend to be very different from that of the rental gear provided to open water students.

 

[MntbikerBamBam]

thanks for the advise about the straps, and as for buying my own gear, i do plan to rent awhile being that i figured it is still cheaper to rent untile i have roughly done 26 dives or somthing like that. and it is a huge investment so i want to make sure i will stick with it, as well as my buddies. also i want to figure out what i like/need before i got out and buy.
Thanks!

 

[SeaWorthy]

Ok so i just finished my open water cert this past sunday... Where some of the best places to go with most fish?... I wanna see BIG fish, where should i start?... know the kelp beds are great places, but dont really know where any are...

Congratulations on your certification. Now go diving as soon as conditions improve (not so good today or the past couple of days for shore diving in Laguna). Some dive sites I'd suggest:

* Shaw's Cove - a favorite local Laguna dive site for many, including me
* North Crescent Bay and Seal Rock vicinity
* Heisler Park
* Diver's Cove reef (not the sandy bottom) - has kelp
* Corona del Mar

I haven't dove Corona del Mar, but the others have big fish (barred sand bass, kelp bass, sheephead, even big garibaldi mamas, and lots of other marine life). Diver's Cove and Heisler Park are protected areas and some fish get quite big.

In addition, in Palos Verdes, Malaga Cove is a nice, easy dive site (as long as you enter and exit at the sandy beach) that offers lots of kelp. Consider having a dive knife in kelp area, just in case you get tangled in kelp.

I'd start with these until you gain a bit more experience, skill, and confidence. Then you can try other dive sites.

The following articles provide more info on the dive sites above. Especially useful is the dive site drawing at the bottom of each article. Good luck and happy diving.

http://www.saintbrendan.com/cdnmay02/ShawsCv.html
http://www.saintbrendan.com/cdnmay00/scoast5.html
http://www.saintbrendan.com/cdnaug03/DvrsCv.html
http://www.saintbrendan.com/cdnmar00/scoast3.html
http://www.saintbrendan.com/cdnjune02/MalagaCv.html

 

[LAJim]

Consider having a dive knife in kelp area, just in case you get tangled in kelp.

Snap kelp with your hands - break it - don't pull it. On the surface, crawl over the kelp - don't try swimming through it on your back as it will wrap your talk valve. Your knife is for cutting monofilament line. Avoid wads of monofilament. Cut lone strands.

 

[headhunter]

Congrats on you new cert!

I know that you're looking for something to do right away now that you are certified, but you should plan on coming to the next Wrinkles Dive to meet a whole bunch of people who can show you around and help you gain experience. The next one will be in Redondo Beach on April 14th.

One of the nice things about getting around a larger group of divers is that you will be exposed to a variety of "dive philosophies" that may dictate the kind of gear that you wind up wanting. Our group is quite diverse and very open to answering questions. Once you know what you want to do with your diving, then you'll gravitate toward the gear that will best serve your purpose.

For now, I would recommend getting comfortable at Shaw's Cove and Diver's Cove, since it looks like that is in your back yard. As your comfort level increases, you can increase the complexity of the diving a little bit at a time. That area has many places that you can use as "building blocks" for your diving and there is an active group of divers that meet regularly there.

Christian

 

[orangelion03]

I have to emphatically second Jim's suggestion about spring straps! I waited waaay too long to get a set and will never own fins without them again! Probably the best cost-to-benefit ratio of any other piece of kit you'll buy.

Here's a source:

http://www.leisurepro.com/Prod/BLRE...l&AdvSrchSortField=Relevance&SortDesc=0&Hit=1

Another piece of must-have equipment is a decent light. Not only good for night diving...our rocky reefs are full of nooks crannies and cavelets that are full of interesting critters. You also want to lay some light on the animals out in the open so you can appreciate their true colors. Buy the brightest you can afford...you may not need a cannister light, but a UK Light Cannon or Princeton Shockwave LED will come in real handy.