RickInOz

In a rare lull in my otherwise busy life today was a perfect opportunity for a dive. The weather was almost ideal, with minimal wind and swell, but the water was a little chilly at 14 degrees.

We did two dives today, both off a boat. The first was to the wreck of “The Claris”, an old fishing trawler. Being mostly made of wood it hasn’t survived well and is starting to break up. The second was to the Glenelg Dredge wreck. This used to keep the channel clear of silt, but when it became unserviceable, the coastguard towed it offshore and deliberately sunk it to attract fish life and provide a playground for divers.

Today also marked the completion of my next diving qualification. Pending some paperwork, I am now a PADI Advanced Scuba Diver. This means I can now dive to 30m without the need for an instructor. Having said that I’m not stopping here. The next stage will be to complete a few more dives to gain various Speciality Course qualifications. Then it will be time to learn how to use different gas mixtures. This means rather than using “normal” air, divers use oxygen-enriched air as it enables you to stay deep for longer and avoid problems with decompression sickness (aka: The Bends). Hopefully eventually all I will have to do is the Rescue Diver course and I will have already done enough to automagically become a Master Scuba Diver, the highest grade of recreational diver. Then I will be able to enjoy diving for fun and incorporate it into holidays.