Did you get certified in a Lake, Quarry, or Ocean?

+3 votes
asked Jun 8, 2017 in Scuba Diving by George1224 (5,147 points)

11 Answers

+3 votes
answered Jun 13, 2017 by Cvet (3,369 points)
Having grown up in Florida my friends had dive shops and I didn't get certified until I moved to California. I was certified in Monterey in cold water. Big change from Florida wearing a bathing suits to 7mm wetsuit. After two years I switched to a drysuit.
+2 votes
answered Jun 13, 2017 by Lietzke00 (713 points)
Ocean for me! A lot of new divers around my area get certified in a spring-fed lake (brrr!), but I already had a trip planned to the Bahamas just three weeks after my classes ended, so I got a referral to do my checkout dives there. The vis was amazing and the water was warm, so I was completely comfortable. It felt just like the swimming pool I'd trained in, only with much more interesting sights than tiled walls!

I've been out to the lake where new divers train, and while it's a fun place to go diving with lots of purpose-sunk wrecks to explore, it's still a lake in the Northeast, so it's cold pretty much any time of year. I'm glad I was able to get my first full experience of diving in the ocean instead!
+1 vote
answered Jun 11, 2017 by NinjaShark (3,775 points)
None of the above! I got certified in a Spring ;-)

Ginnie Springs, FL to be specific. Also got to dive Devil's Den (neat dive experience but not something I would go back for multiple times lol).

Good times.
+1 vote
answered Jun 16, 2017 by REsnard (260 points)
A really cold, really cloudy lake!  My first ocean dive was like an epiphany!
+1 vote
answered Sep 25, 2017 by Deanaguf (410 points)
I got certified in the freshwater springs of North florida...in November. I prefer the warm waters of the ocean now!
0 votes
answered Jun 8, 2017 by cquade7 (3,269 points)
I was lucky and got certified in Dominica, if you can go dive there it is so beautiful and the local people are very nice. I got lucky and my sister was going to medical school down there and she needed a extra few people for luggage, so me and the family went down there and I got certified down there. How and where did you start out on?
commented Jun 8, 2017 by George1224 (5,147 points)
I originally got certified in Lake Ouachita located in southern Ark. We have been taking students to Vortex and Morison Springs in Florida for cert dives. The water is clear and cold.
Lake Ouachita is cold too but it has about 10 feet of vis on a good day. Lake Quachita is closer but not as clear. Students are more at ease when they can see.
0 votes
answered Jun 8, 2017 by hurfish (3,024 points)
Ocean, on a two day trip at the Channel Islands - I did it right!
0 votes
answered Jun 16, 2017 by richardehyman (2,630 points)
Prepped in quarry but certified in ocean.
0 votes
answered Jun 25, 2017 by dwnc (1,254 points)
In a cold, mucky quarry.  I remember a bass or perch kept trying to eat my earlobe during one of my test dives
0 votes
answered Jun 29, 2017 by scubagirlie (613 points)
We made our certification dives in a very cold, dark quarry. It was a hot summer day which made the water temp more appealing, but the walk up and down the hill to get to the water and back up for the surface interval with gear and weights on was terrible.
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