Why we dive

[Scuba Lawyer]

Initially, to please my father.
Later, to get all the hippy chicks who loved watermen.
Now, because it's part of my being.

M

 

[potato cod]

To explore another world. I'm a scientist on the topside, and the curiosity drives me. And it is beautiful.

 

[diveUAE]

To get away from everything.

To be in the present.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I can't like the original post enough! Can I "like" each of your reasons individually? I share almost every one of them, although you articulated them better than I could have.

I might have one to add, though it could also fall under the "camaraderie" you mention. Diving is something my wife and I do together. We make time to do this together on a regular basis. I have friends who don't seem share any sort of hobby or sport with their wives.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

To learn, study and document the huge amount of life on this planet that most will never see. I'm fortunate to live near an area that is rich in invertebrate life. We don't usually get the visibility of the offshore islands, but there is so much more to see when we can actually see it. The West Coast of North America from Mexico to Alaska has some of the best diving in the World. The cold water keeps most divers from traveling here but that's alright. More for us.

We have a lot of shipwrecks to explore. The life on some of our local wrecks is what attracts me. If I wanted to see a broken down boat, there are plenty of shipyards and marinas to visit. Some shipwrecks are nothing more than an auto junkyard with water dumped on them. Others are an oasis in a sandy desert. The most fish I've ever seen in California was on the UB88, a WWI German submarine six miles off of San Pedro.

We have reefs that are dominated by sponges of all shapes and colors. Other reefs are nudibranch havens. Still others are barren sand with concrete pilings strewn about that attract large wreckfish.

We have kelp forests that provide habitat for millions of animals. They are enjoyed by curious divers, photographers and hunters alike. There is more to see than I can find in a lifetime, so there is no way I can ever tire of exploring my home waters.

 

[aldertyler]

It's the only place my wife can't follow me.

 

[BlueTrin]

For some reason being underwater makes me feel calmer.

 

[Scuba Lawyer]

For some reason being underwater makes me feel calmer.

^^^^ This.

Plus, it's kinda weird, but if I'm a mile back in a cave system in Mexico swimming through a labyrinth of stalagmites and stalactites with solid jungle floor overhead I'm the calmest I have ever been.

 

[TMHeimer]

Because it is there

That's pretty much what it comes to for me now. My only reason to dive was to vastly expand my shell collecting hobby. Pretty much accomplished, at least to a point. Then again, most of my diving is here in NS and in the NYC/CT area, so I will not be finding anything there that I don't already have.
Then there was the DM idea--took the course and did that for 4 years.
What's left seems to be reaching 1,000 dives (#800 completed yesterday) before I'm 70 (am 65).
I guess a goal will still be to dive the tropical Pacific and some other far flung places--for the different shells and different diving in general. Donations accepted at this time.

 

[lowlysubaruguy]

First thing that came to mind, I do not know why I waited so long to start diving.