Night diving. Don't be afraid of the dark!

The PADI Night Diver Specialty Course

The sun is setting earlier now.  This means that doing a night dive may not entail a late night of rinsing and putting gear away.  Divers who have early morning jobs, may still be able to dive during the week and make it to work on time.


The PADI Night Diving Specialty Course is designed to teach the fundamentals of organizing and planning a night dive.

Many of us have been diving in the same area for years.  As the seasons change, the area may look slightly different but we still know what to expect. A night dive completely changes a divers view of the site and adds some extra challenges. Navigation is a bit harder without daylight.  The natural navigation references that we may use on regular dives are no longer visible.  Even keeping track of depth changes and cylinder pressure becomes more challenging while using a dive light.

Why dive at night?  Is it exciting? You bet!

 The variety of marine life that comes out at night is amazing. It is not uncommon to see lobsters out of their holes and squid hunting together.  On several night dives in Stonington Borough, we have seen skates, sea robins and northern puffers.  Many divers say that they prefer night dives because they would never see the same things during a daylight dive.

Sign up today for your Night Diving Specialty Course and schedule your three exciting adventure dives.
Contact Sharon or Mike at  seaviewscuba@sbcglobal.net

For more information about this and other PADI specialty courses:
http://www.padi.com/scuba/padi-courses/diver-level-courses/view-all-padi-courses/night-diver/default.aspx


 

Ready....set....rescue!!

The PADI Rescue Diver course is the next step toward becoming a dive leader. After completing the Advanced Open Water course, the Rescue Diver course helps you to develop the skills needed to help others. During a combination of classroom and open water sessions, a diver learns how to recognize and manage the stressful situations that may lead to a diving emergency. A series of simulated dive accident scenarios, allow for development of rescue skills and techniques in a safe and controlled environment.


A good dive is the result of good planning.  Some components of pre-dive preparation may be:

    1. Checking weather conditions for the location and time of the dive.
    2. Upon arrival, divers should look over the dive site for potential problems and/or hazards.
    3. Before arriving at the dive site, prepare and inspect dive gear.
    4. As a buddy team,  plan the dive. Agree on factors such as maximum depth, time, navigational direction and purpose of the dive.  (ie. spearfishing or photography)

   

 The PADI Rescue Diver course is designed to give you the knowledge and confidence to handle most diving emergencies. As a certified Rescue Diver, you will start to become aware of possible factors that could ruin a dive or put divers at risk. If a dive emergency does occur, you will have practiced the techniques for rescuing both panicked and unresponsive divers.

Seaview Scuba is conducting the next PADI Rescue Diver course on June 7th and 9th. Please call 860-442-7279 or e-mail us for details on this exciting and important course.

Things to see.........

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This is one of my favorite times to dive.  The springtime brings a resurgence of sea creatures that have been absent during the long and cold winter. If you dive all year long, you will notice distinct differences in the species of marine life that appear seasonally.

There are two types of anemones that come out in the spring.  The burrowing anemone (Ceriantheopsis americanus) lives in a soft tube in the bottom sediment.  Only the tentacles are exposed as they open to sweep in passing food options.  The tentacles quickly withdraw if a diver disrupts the surrounding area.

The frilled anemone (Metridium senile) or common anemone, attaches itself to rocks, shells or wood.  The body column is smooth and has a distinct collar below the tentacles.  The area around the mouth is comprised of hundreds of small slender tentacles that give the anemone a feathery appearance. These anemones are found in colors like brown, orange and white. Very nice for underwater photography.

Fort Wetherill in Jamestown, Rhode Island is where we go see the anemones. For more information, contact us at seaviewscuba@sbcglobal.net.

Be prepared......to scuba dive!!!

There is an exciting new opportunity for the Boy Scouts of America......................the Scuba Diving Merit Badge!!

Working in co-operation with PADI*,  the Scuba Diving Merit Badge is a challenging and exciting addition to the already numerous opportunities of scouting.


 Seaview Scuba is proud to work with our local troops.  We offer a Youth Program discount and we can design a schedule around some of the busiest schedules. Our PADI Open Water Diver Course consists of 4 classroom sessions, 2 pool sessions and 4 open water dives. As part of the exciting pool sessions, the scouts will learn the basic skills of diving, like regulator recovery and mask clearing. In the ocean, students will learn the fundamentals of navigation, the "buddy system", and fish identification.


After completing the Open Water Diver Course, the requirements for completion of the Scuba Diving Merit Badge include completion of the Swimming Merit Badge and First Aid Merit Badge.

A PADI Open Water certification is a great start to a lifetime of adventures under the surface of the oceans, lakes and quarries.  Once certified, the opportunities for advancement are endless.  Some colleges and universities even offer credit programs for PADI certifications. Certified Rescue Divers have opportunities with local dive rescue teams or can opt to continue on to professional levels.

For more information, please call Mike or Sharon at 860-442-7279


*Professional Association of Dive Instructors   www.padi.com

Choosing the right gear.......

How do I go diving today and stay comfortable? 

If I go out today, it will be in a trilaminate drysuit with my Fourth Element Arctic undergarment. I will also be wearing a 7mm hood and three finger mitts.  The key to a successful dive in January, February or March is planning.  When I arrive at the dive site, my gear is already set up.  This means that my BC and regulator are on the cylinder, my mask is defogged, my fin straps are loosened and my weight system is ready for donning.  The less time I have to spend with last minute preparations, the better able I am to stay warm....especially my hands.

I dress like I am going to the arctic circle with layers of thermal protection, a hat and good thick gloves.  I am able to change into my drysuit in the van, but if I didn't have that option I would be just stepping out for a moment to get into my drysuit.  Keep your head covered until you are ready to put on the drysuit hood. Always protecting your hands will allow for more dive time after you are submerged.

Hands....My biggest weakness for diving in the winter.  I use three finger mitts with velcro straps. The velcro straps can be cinched to keep the flow of water to a minimum.  I glued the straps on to the gloves myself.  I have also used hand heaters inside the gloves to give me a little more warmth and extend my dive time. The only reason I will cut a dive short now is because my hands are too cold.

How cold is too cold?  When you start to shiver or have pain in your hands, it's time to get out of the water and get warm.  After the dive, I take care of myself first by leaving my gear set up and focusing on getting warm and comfortable again.  If I allow myself to get too cold or uncomfortable, I know that I won't want to dive anymore. "Work smarter not harder!"

Once again dressed for the Arctic, I put away my gear and joke with my dive buddies about what "hard core divers" we are. I am warm, dry and pleased with my diving adventure.  Springtime is four months away, and there is no way I can stay out of the water that long!

The festive Christmas Tree Worm....

photo by Michael Mulford

 Christmas tree worms are tube dwelling annelids (worms) found in tropical ocean waters all over the world.  They have beautiful twin spirals of plumes or gills that are used for feeding and respiration.  The Christmas tree worm is the most easily recognized polychaete (Greek- with much hair) worm because of their shape and range of vibrant colors.  They can be found in orange, yellow, blue and white.

The worms have two spirals, both shaped like Christmas trees. The spirals consist of radioles or feather-like tentacles used for feeding on particles of food or plankton.  These tentacles of cilia (fine hairs) are also used for respiration and are sometimes referred to as gills.

Christmas tree worms feed by catching particles of food and plankton as it goes by in the water.  The food is passed down a groove or ciliary tract by little hair like extensions.   These hairs generate water currents to move along food and mucus to the mouth. As food particles are sorted, larger particles are discarded and sand is stored to be used for tube building.

The Christmas tree worm is anchored into a burrow that bores into live coral. When male and female worms reproduce, they cast eggs and sperms into the water.  The eggs are fertilized and the growing larvae settle on to a coral head.  The worm then builds a tube on the surface of the coral. As the coral grows, it buries the tube in the skeleton of the coral.  The worm is then protected by the coral with only its head showing.

The worms are very sensitive to disturbances. The slightest touch or shadow causes the worm to quickly retract the feather like tentacles.  As a scuba diver approaches with a camera, the worm may quickly disappear.  If the underwater photographer waits about a minute though, the feather like spirals re-emerge slowly and majestically.

The PADI Underwater Digital Photography specialty offers a lot of helpful information on how to capture photos like this for yourself.

Come in to Seaview Scuba and talk to our specialty instructor about opportunities for training.  You may even decide to go on a Seaview Scuba dive trip to guide you to the best photo opportunities.

A few of Mike's favorite things......

No.....not whiskers on kittens!  Although Mike "loves" to hear about my cats......not!

1. Ikelite PC lights.........    durable and reasonably priced. Three sizes to choose from.

2.  PADI Digital Underwater Photography Specialty.

Start the course on-line and finish with two ocean dives with your PADI Master Scuba Diving Instructor.......Mike.

3.  Spring straps......replace your current fin straps with the easily donned spring straps. A great stocking stuffer!!