I was OW certified in Hawaii back in January/February. I racked up 12 dives during/since certification, but the most recent was back in February...so I've been out of the water (at least as scuba is concerned) for about 5 months now.
I'm looking to dive more, and locally (that being Monterey, CA most likely), and even have a few dive buddies (with more experience) lined up. And while I've done a dozen dives (and did quite well, I was told), all were in warm water from a boat, not in cold water from shore, as I imagine my dives locally would be.
Being safety-conscious (and new), I'm figuring that I need or want some training/experience/refresher/class/something that'll prepare me for diving in California. In your experience, would that be another class (AOW?), a refresher course (since it's been 5 months), or something else? I've heard stories about cold and kelp here, and I'm sure it's quite different from Hawaii...I just don't know how different.
All opinions and ideas welcome. (And if you're local and have a shop/instructor recommendation for those in this situation, it's especially welcome.) Thanks!
I'm looking to dive more, and locally (that being Monterey, CA most likely), and even have a few dive buddies (with more experience) lined up. And while I've done a dozen dives (and did quite well, I was told), all were in warm water from a boat, not in cold water from shore, as I imagine my dives locally would be.
Being safety-conscious (and new), I'm figuring that I need or want some training/experience/refresher/class/something that'll prepare me for diving in California. In your experience, would that be another class (AOW?), a refresher course (since it's been 5 months), or something else? I've heard stories about cold and kelp here, and I'm sure it's quite different from Hawaii...I just don't know how different.
All opinions and ideas welcome. (And if you're local and have a shop/instructor recommendation for those in this situation, it's especially welcome.) Thanks!