How many dives do you have?
Are you just a beginner or already have some hours of making bubbles under the water?
You probably already have your favorite dives in your memory, where everything went smoothly, you saw something very special or something you had wanted to see for a long time.
How to make an upcoming dive one of the best? How not to loose the excitement and curiosity of going under the water, how even after hundreds of dives not to loose interest?
Let’s talk about it and see what we will find out. There are many things we need to keep in mind and consider, not everything will work in every particular dive for everyone, but this list of tips might help you to increase your awareness and create new opportunities.
Tip 1: Stay positive, take opportunities to learn
Dives can be different: a broken fin strap, before entering the water for the drift dive, foggy mask, low visibility, ear problems. Would this happen all at once? Probably not, but each of this instances teach us to anticipate and take precautions at least in the parts where we have an influence. Prepare your mask in advance, not just before jumping in the water. Descend slowly and equalize often to prevent ear problems. Low visibility? Maybe time to learn how to use a compass, widening the range of conditions where you feel comfortable. Getting out of our comfort zone, that’s what stimulates our ability to grow and helps us to develop our skills. Take this challenge and widen your horizons.
Tip 2: Less expectations
Go into the water with your eyes open, do not limit yourself to see a particular creature. Enjoy the present and magic of life to be just what it is, no plans and predictions needed. The most beautiful encounters are the unexpected ones. Waiting for dolphins the whole dive limits you so much from seeing all the surroundings, and all the other creatures which you do not even recognize. There is always so much to discover in every dive, you will be surprised, just try.
Tip 3: Buddy team
Keep in mind that being a good buddy is very important for a nice and smooth dive, clear communication, responsible behavior and trust – this creates a good environment for a great, hassle free dive.
Tip 4: Increase your comfort level
Stay fit, have better buoyancy control, efficient fin kicking, work on your air consumption – all of that will widen your abilities for different diving opportunities , which opens the door to new dive sites, types of dives, conditions etc.
Tip 5: Thinking like a diver
After each dive make a debriefing with your buddy. What worked exactly as you wanted, what felt comfortable or what didn’t, did you face any challenges or how good was your communication. Build up a good connection and real teamwork to enjoy diving even more, learn from each dive, there is always room for the improvement.
Tip 6: Record and share you experiences
Fill up your logbook, so many options are available for that: a paper version, an app for your phone or you can even make your own customized one. Time will pass and little details will be forgotten, do not let them fade away.
There are never two exactly the same days in our lives, the same is with dives. If all of them were absolutely perfect we would loose the feeling of special moments, so be open and let it tell it’s own unique story.
Do you have any tips to help make dives an even better experience? Let me know in the comments, share your experience.