Tehachapi News

I wanted to Scuba at Club Med when I was in my early 20's and they said my pulse rate was to high; it has always been high even when I was young and in shape; but I got to snorkel at least. Then about 20 years later, I took my daughter on the 4-day cruse to Ensenada Mexico and we went snorkeling at Catalina, I chose to wear the full wet suit because I am such a baby about cold water, well I got over heated and then got sea sick because of the waves but once I zipped down the suit and filled up with cold water I was able to have some fun with it. I am not in the same shape as I was in my 20's and it pooped me out. So lesson learned, if I should get a chance again, short wet suit no matter what the temperature of the water is and hopefully the surf won't be so strong. I love to see all the color's of the fish thats fun.

I love the water too CG, I'm a water sign - Pisces. I didn't last too long, lol. My claustrophobia got the best of me. I recommend contacting a dive shop, they usually have certified divers that teach classes at a local school or park to begin with. You have to pass a swimming test, which includes swimming for 50 underwater, or at least that's what my (first) husband and I had to do. He got certified...I didn't, I just couldn't stop the panic that would overwhelm me. If you can overcome that fear...it's awesome. A whole nother world...keep us posted.

Joty you have given me hope! I've always thought it would be awesome to SCUBA dive, but I to am claustrophobic. You've done it though!! How long did you last? You didn't freak out? Do you have a constant supply of air, is it regulated or what? I love the water and this is an activity I've always wanted to do, but I figured I never would be able to. Well, I guess now I really have to start pressuring the hubby to actually bring me somewhere where I could do this! lol

I'm so bummed I never was able to learn to SCUBA dive.  There was a class offered at my old college, but that one, along with ocean kayaking, always filled up too quickly for me to get in.  So I learned to shoot instead!  But at least that's one hobby I can keep up here without having to drive a few hours to the ocean.

I've snorkled in Hawaii and Jamaica...even that was freaky for me. In Hawaii we did it from the beach, the water wasn't real clear, and kinda rough but I did get to see one of the infamous turtles of Turtle Bay! We did it from a catamaran in Jamaica, the water was incredibly clear and calm...but I still kept thinking "What if I suck a bunch of water down thru my snorkle?" I ended up going back to the cat and drinking beer - that's the type of snorkling I can handle...lol

I hear ya, Greg & Joty. I think it's kinda claustrophobic, too. And I've heard that SoCal waters are colder than most folks would believe. but how cool would it be to find treasure?

We decided to try scuba while on vacation to Fiji. We took the day training course in the resort pool, then had plans to go out the next day to an area just offshore of the island we were staying on to get our first practice dive under our belt.

Well, at breakfast one of the dive leaders came over to our table & explained that they were taking some expert divers to "one of the top five dive spots in the world." We could go along, at no extra charge. Not knowing what we were getting into, we agreed. Silly tourists!

So there's nine of us diving, with only three having that "expert" designation. With three crew members, we start out to Namena. It's a forty-five minute boat ride, and since I knew I might get seasick I was sure to load up on Dramamine before we left. No dice; I started urping up as soon as the boat stopped (I was fine as long as we were moving!)

After the crew checked us newbies & our gear, we start jumping in the water. The current was strong, and soon all of us were spread out way too far apart for only two crew members to keep track of. I tried to follow the rope down to the diving area, if only to get out of the current & waves up top. I got about 20 feet down, I would guess.

Suddenly, I felt something bopping me on the top of my head. I looked up to see one of the other newbie gals coming down the rope quickly & her fins were grazing my head & shoulders; I started to imagine what those fins could do if they got tangled in my tank gear. I started to panic, and signaled to one of the crew I was going back up. By the time I got over to where the boat was, I could barely pull myself out of the water & up the ladder.

By this time, divers were popping up all over the water. The one guy left to man the boat threw out a tow line & drove the boat over to the divers in order to tow them back to the dive area. I spotted for him from the back of the boat; I can't imagine how he would have handled herding us all back together had I not been there to spot for him!

After the dive, we visited a quiet cove for lunch before the second dive. Needless to say, I wasn't very interested in food. They tried to convince me to try again on the second dive, but I'd had enough at that point. My hubby had a much better time of it, and actually got some really cool underwater pictures! I think he'd really get into diving, if given the chance.

Anyway, while I appreciated the enthusiasm of the crew wanting to include us on this "once in a lifetime dive", I don't think they were really prepared to take out such a large group of newbies. I can't help but feel that something really bad could have happened that day, if things had been a bit different!

I suffer from claustrophobia...no scuba for me!. My first husband was a certified diver...nothing like fresh abalone! He liked to dive around the Channel Islands. My best friend who was in the Coast Guard is also certified. I keep trying to talk her into buying a boat...I'd be good at sitting on deck! 

I am not certified, but I did go on dives at Club Med after taking their week long training classes.  It was about 15 years ago in Cancun, and we dove to about 60', it was a total blast!  But after diving in water so warm you didn't need and wetsuit, I decided I would just leave it at that, instead of trying to get certified and dive in the cold and murky waters of So Cal!  But I would love to dive in other parts of the world, and especially those sunken ships from nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands, I hear they have great diving there.