Newbie from Chicago

[OceanApricot]

Hi Scubaboards : ^)

I just finished up my open water certification a few weeks ago! I'm from Chicago and I'm interested in getting more involved in the local scene here.

My biggest scuba interests aren't very local though, I love sharks and I'm fascinated by cave diving - I hope to get my cave certification someday but obviously, I have many years to go with that one : )

 

[grantctobin]

Welcome. Some parts of the local scene are fairly active, others less so. @MWUE probably offers a little more in the way of variety (a la diving places other than Haigh and with at least monthly meetups), but there are tech communities in Wisconsin as well.

 

[OceanApricot]

That sounds great, I will check them out -- thank you!

 

[MWUE]

Congrats on the open water cert! We have some shark obsessed members - and plenty of cave divers, and love helping new divers develop into safe and competent tech and cave divers. A decent number of our members are Chicago based as well, so there will be lots of opportunities for diving!

Our event calendar is heavily skewed towards charters as the season wraps up, but we have a community event and GUE fundamentals class at Mermet Springs in October.

 

[Adventurous Frog]

From one great lakes region diver to another, Welcome! I wish you luck on getting cave diving certified.

 

[b1gcountry]

Chicago has some decent wrecks nearby. There are a few dive spots in WI as well and some caves 7 hours away in Missouri, but they are hard to dive for non locals. Florida and Mexico are objectively better destinations that are easier to reach in some ways...