New to the Forum - PNW diver

[Evanm]

Hello everyone. I'm a relatively new diver, I have about 3 years of diving experience. I started out diving in sites around Puerto Vallarta and got hooked. My wife and I both OW certified in the Puget Sound during the winter, which meant we also had to dry suit certify. I quickly fell in love with cold water diving and started looking into other dive sites around the PNW. If cold water interests you, I absolutely recommend coming up to Oregon, Washington, or Idaho. I recently went diving in Clear Lake, Oregon, which is a caldera that formed an underwater petrified forest. Water temp is 36°F/3°C - 41°F/6°C all year, creating crystal clear visibility and some amazing topography. I did my Advanced cert in Lake Coeur D'Alene, where there are plenty of shallow and deep wrecks. Water temp in Lake CDA was around 60°F/16°C as of Saturday 10 Oct 2020. My next travel dive will be swimming with octopus in Hoodsport, WA later this fall.

My current cold water set-up is:

1. Waterproof D10 Pro ISS w/ Ultima Dry Glove System
2. Oceanic CDX 1st stage w/ Oceanic Alpha 10 2nd Stage
3. Apeks RK3 Fins

Currently in the market for BP/W or back inflate BC. My travel BC doesn't fit my dry suit and doesn't provide enough lift for my comfort.

If anyone has any questions about diving in the Pacific Northwest, don't hesitate to ask.

 

[Julius SCHMIDT]

Nice

 

[Jay Adams]

I purchased a zeagle express bp/w, works great with my DUI CF200XL I like that it's a streamlined setup. I have 2 choices, dive cold water year round or dive the clear water once every couple years. I love the cold water

 

[Lauren Kenyon]

Hi, I'm interested in PNW diving and more specifically cave diving. Are there specific regions with more diving locations?

 

[Evanm]

Hi, I'm interested in PNW diving and more specifically cave diving. Are there specific regions with more diving locations?

Cave diving in the PNW would be mostly done in Oregon. Where I’m at all we really have are lakes and rivers.
You should check out the Malheur Caves near Burns, OR. It’s a pretty well known cave system, but should give you an idea of where cave diving is done here. Hope this helps!