Starter Guide to Scuba Diving
Exploring the sea and its nature is simply amazing in any possible way. From snorkeling to free diving or just swimming for kilometres in still waters. Just the simple act of opening your eyes below the water’s surface leads to to a complete new world. Especially in the most colorful and wildlife rich areas.
But when you are willing to go a bit further deeper, or to enjoy the seabed more quietly, there’s no better way than breathing underwater.
“After the magical moment when my eyes were opened to the sea, I was no longer possible to see, think and live as before”. – Jacques Cousteau –
Before starting, we might need a quick recap of the differences between the three main activities
Snorkeling:
swimming on the surface with mask, eventually fins, and a pipe called snorkel. All you have to do is float looking down, while breathing with your mouth trough the snorkel. You can obviously dive down every while, just holding your breath and blowing the water out of the pipe once reached the surface. Surely the easiest way to explore the sea, but best for shallow waters
Free Diving:
in depth swimming just holding your breath. Everyone can do it just swimming down for a few metres, but real free divers needs lot of training. They can go down for several dozens of metres, helped by long fins and weights belts. Part of the training also consist of yoga and relaxation methods. But in any case you won’t have much time to quietly look around.
Scuba Diving:
the main topic of this post. Probably the most complex but physically effortless of the three. It will allow you to stay up to 30 metres deep for about 40 minutes, on recreational diving. But you need special gears and training.
How to do Scuba Diving
Pretty much everyone able to swim (or at least float) can do snorkeling. And with a bit more physical and mental training try out free diving. Just always remembering to don’t push too much your limits.
Scuba Diving, instead, requires some special rules to follow, as it is potentially pretty dangerous
First of all you need a certain level of diving licence, depending of the dive you’re willing to experience. There are different providers, but the most common worldwide is probably Padi, also the one I got my licences from. The main levels differ basically for the maximum depth allowed. 18 metres
for the Open Water and 30 for the Advanced. 40 metres with the deep diver speciality. Above the advanced lever there is the Rescue -kind of a scuba lifesaver course, and the Divemaster. Something like a diving guide, the first step toward the professional levels. You will need a minimum number of dives to access and graduate from some courses, respectively 40 and 60 for the divemaster.
Being an Advanced diver also opens to many diving specialities, like Cave, night, Ice, or shipwreck diving, just to name a few
In some cases it is also possible to have a trial dive up to 12 metres. After a basic introduction course called Padi Discover Scuba Diving. Usually with some first attempts in a swimming pool or shallow waters. You will always be followed by an Instructor and some Divemasters, like in most cases when diving with a proper scuba center.
Even if you are already certified, the shop will arrange a Dive buddy for you, if you don’t have one. And a Diving guide with good knowledge of the area.
That was my job, among with many easier ones, when I was working on the Great Barrier Reef.
You can dive pretty much everywhere in the world, as long as you have the right gear and training. The most common and usually nicer diving destinations are Tropical Islands, the Great Barrier Reef and the Mediterranean. But some for the braver ones also the Nordic seas and frozen lakes seems to be beautiful. Obviously with the needed special gears. Starting from dry wetsuits you can wear your winter clothes underneath.
Dangers and Risks of Scuba Diving
With the proper gears and attention to the rules, diving accidents are luckily not so common. But breathing with dozens of metres of water above you head can obviously hide some hazards. The easier to imagine is running out of air – or if you like movies be eaten by a shark.
But guess what? Sharks don’t like neoprene suits. Or plastic diving gears. And even human meat to be fair.
It can be risky for surfers, mistaken for fish because of the boards shape, but hardly for scuba divers.
However, the actual main risks are coming from Decompression Sickness. It is caused by the Nitrogen particles, absorbed by the tissues through breathing. The deeper you go, the most compressed the air and all its particles are, when entering the body. Consequently, a too fast ascension can cause those particles to turn into big bubbles before being released by the tissues.
Among the main symptoms are fatigue, joint and muscle pain and confusion, sometimes appearing after sever hours.
It is crucially important to see a doctor in those cases.
The only remedy is to spend several hours inside an hyperbaric chamber, or in the milder cases just breathing pure oxygen. The chamber basically recreates the submarine environment pressure, and slowly decrease it to let the nitrogen go. While breathing pure oxigen or enriched air.
The Nitrogen can also be cause of another risk, called Nitrogen narcosis. At deeper depths, usually above 25 metres, breathing larger nitrogen quantities can cause sort of a drunkness. That is not so dangerous by itself, but possibly leading to some unreasonable choices, or safety rules disrespect.
I’ve personally never experienced something like that, not even 40 metres below. But there is still the possibility.
Another risk source can be the Marine Wildlife, obviously depending on the location. Other than sharks, already determined as being not so dangerous, the underwater world can hide some little big troubles.
I’ve firstly figured it out when studying for my new licence in Australia, globally known as home of the most dangerous wildlife in the planet. Keep on eye for deadly jellyfishes, Stingrays, Blue-Ringed octopus, fire corals and various kinds of Sea Snakes, to name some.
But generally speaking, remember people are usually more harmful for the environment than any natural creature for the them.
So, as any good diver knows and hopefully practice, do not touch anything underwater.
It will prevent you from hitting something dangerous, and also anything to be damaged by you. Win-win. And also remember to look after your fins movement.
Follow the Diving safety Rules
I need to specify I didn’t point out all the risks to stop your enthusiasm about diving. It was rather a way to show the importance of getting a good training and following the important diving rules, such as:
- Breath continuously and do never hold your breath. Be always calm and move slowly
- Often equalise while descending. It means to blow air into your ears cavity to compensate the amount reduced by the compression. It will prevent the water’s pressure to bursting and ear drum. It can be done by blowing through your nose while holding it closed with your fingers, or simply swallowing. Remember to don’t go diving with a flu. And to ascend a little if you realise you didn’t equalise correctly, or your ears hurts.
- To avoid the risk of decompression disease ascend slowly, and keep breathing. Make the safety stops, as suggested by your Diving Computer or planned before using the chart. The time basically depends on diving depth and length. While the location is usually around 5 or 3 meters deep.
- Also remember to do not fly during the following hours. At least 12 after a single dive and 18 for repetitive ones. Even if the general guideline suggests to keep a safe 24 hours window. It is always crucial to inform your diving planner of any flight schedule.
Carefully follow the rules, and find a reliable diving Center. They will take care good care of everything for you
Where to go Diving
It is possible to go diving pretty much everywhere about the planet. With the proper gears and training to face the different conditions.
The best known diving destinations are probably the Mediterranean, Tropical Paradises and around Australia. Everywhere around south east of Asia and the Carribeans. But I’ve heard about people really go diving pretty much everywhere
I don’t think is possible to choose the best diving spot in the world, as there are too many variables involved. Like any alive environment the sea is always moving and changing, and can sometimes be hugely different even from a day to the following. And amazing seabed can look bad if the day if for any reason the visibility is bad. Or a strong wind and rough sea makes you experience just too bad to even enjoy what you are seeing. On the other hand, the perfect water conditions or right buddies can make an ordinary spot something special. Or a long and boring dive in the middle of nowhere can suddenly be boosted by the arrival of a giant sea turtle.
My best Diving experience
I don’t think is possible to choose the best diving spot in the world, as there are too many variables involved.
Like any alive environment the sea is always moving and changing, and can sometimes be hugely different even from a day to the following. And amazing seabed can look bad if the day if for any reason the visibility is bad. Or a strong wind and rough sea makes you experience just too bad to even enjoy what you are seeing. On the other hand, the perfect water conditions or right buddies can make an ordinary spot something special. Or a long and boring dive in the middle of nowhere can suddenly be boosted by the arrival of a giant sea turtle.
So far I’ve been diving in only a few places in Italy, Australia, Maldives and Philippines. And despite some higher expectations in better known spots, my personal best underwater experience has been in the last one. It was out of Malapascua, around the tiny Gato Island to be accurate.
After an unlucky diving morning, waking up a 4 am for the failing attempt to see the famous Thresher sharks. I have actually booked that second dive only because of the discount I got with the first one. Luckily, as it turned out simply amazing. For the first part, swimming around the Vibrant and colorful wall. And even more for the second, going through the natural cave crossing the island from side to side. When the quiet shark living there swam along the exit just in front of us. I’m so upset I didn’t have my camera at that time
All of that said, I do really believe diving is one of the activities everyone should try at least once. So wherever around the world, check it out if you have the chance!
I’m sure you won’t be disappointed
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