Diving into the Deep, Dark and Delicious!

As usual, we have a real mix of courses on right now. Last night we had an Advanced Open Water Student taking his night adventure on the reef where he had done his Navigation in the day. As usual, plenty of pleasure divers jumped in with our second staff member and took advantage of the beauty that comes out in the night time.

We were really lucky, with octopus, morays, cuttlefish and squid all coming out to play! Even a Sea Hare! Plus all the usual shrimp and fish.

We've also had lots of people taking the great deal on the Deep and Wreck

course combo, achieving new depths and learning all about diving safely in and around wrecks.

Now, there's no course involved, but there certainly was some expert pancake munching going on after the night dive! Good call on the snack stop, Al!

We've also had some nice surprises on the house reefs this week. Just a short swim out onto Mercanti reef and Sarah spotted an electric ray! While morays and cuttlefish graced the Discover Scuba Dives near the confined area.

Why we're worth it! - Doing it by the book...

Often when customers come to us, they are surprised when we ask for log books and proof of certification. Then their eyes really go wide when we arrange their first dive as a check dive. It seems as though we are in an elite group of centres that really do things by the book.

In return, we are often surprised to see divers with depths logged far beyond their certification should allow and we even have to persuade some people to take their Deep course in order to do dives that others have allowed them to do despite being unqualified.

This might seem very strict, but we believe that not only is it a required standard - its also a massively beneficial action for the center, the divers and for diving as a community.

All divers who are new to us go on a check dive first - whether they are Open Water students or experienced instructors. Far more than judging anyone's skill in the water - we feel check dives are excellent for checking your weighting and thermal protection is sufficient for our local environment. Nobody wants to get to a dive site and find they are too cold to enjoy the views. It is also the customer’s time to check that they are happy with us and make sure their equipment is functioning well. All this is in the aim of all dives after this running smoothly for you because the proper preparation was done.

Not that check dives have to be boring! Our house reef is teeming with life! Octopus, Cuttlefish, bream and morays! I can't think of a nicer place to start your dives!

When we check your log book, it lets us know what kind of diving you are comfortable with, so that we can pick the best sites to suit you during your stay with us. Log books are also a pleasant diary of all your fun experiences in the past. They are scribbled with the emails of new found friends and little tips and hints to make your future diving better - when log books are not kept regularly, you don't do yourself justice of proving your experience - and this could end up limiting the range of sites you might visit. So always remember to enjoy filing in your log.

As far as Deep dives go - the Deep Course is really a must! - Its great to extend your range - but why do it without proper training and knowledge to keep you safe?! The second major issue is that your insurances only cover you to your certification depth - if you have a problem deeper than your cert allows - no insurance! And nobody wants that!

Casualties in diving are no good for anyone - it gives diving a bad reputation which can mean that legal implications drive costs up for you the diver. Keeping our community safe and sound on dives is beneficial to all involved.

Beyond all of that, the Deep course, like so many of our specialties, is fantastic fun and really adds to your enjoyment of your stay here.

When it comes to safety - we believe you're worth doing everything properly!