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Daj
Newbie
Posts: 17
Registered: 11-3-2009
Location: Los Angeles
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Diving in Baja-
I'd like to go diving this month in Baja over Thanksgiving-
where can I do this that's relatively close to Ensenada?
How much does it cost and how long does it take to get certified?
\"Broken hearts are for buttcracks\" -Frank Zappa
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DENNIS
Platinum Nomad
Posts: 29510
Registered: 9-2-2006
Location: Punta Banda
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Give Dale a call. He's a good guy.
http://www.labufadoradive.com/
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Bwana_John
Nomad
Posts: 289
Registered: 10-17-2007
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Cold water, big wetsuits, heavy weightbelts, surge, swell, waves, and kelp are not the best environment to learn how to scuba dive in unless you are
already used to those conditions.
(El Pacifico esta no pacifico)
Get your cirt and openwater dives done at home, then come to La Bufadora.
You can get certified in a weekend, but most people do it one class a week for 8 weeks, plus your checkout "open water" dives.
[Edited on 11-16-2009 by Bwana_John]
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capt. mike
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8085
Registered: 11-26-2002
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Mood: Sling time!
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Hey Daj....Bwana Juan is right. go someplace warm like baja east cape Cabo Pulmo or La paz's La Concha and do a resort course.
thick wetsuits and cold water take the fun out of it. get your cert PADI or NAUI and i'll taake you to Mulege next summer to dive with Mick Cortez
Explorers.
Love the tag...and as you know - "the present day composer refuses to die!"
formerly Ordained in Rev. Ewing\'s Church by Mail - busted on tax fraud.......
Now joined L. Ron Hoover\'s church of Appliantology
\"Remember there is a big difference between kneeling down and bending over....\"
www.facebook.com/michael.l.goering |
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DENNIS
Platinum Nomad
Posts: 29510
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Location: Punta Banda
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Cold water at the Buf? Not really. If you're swimmin' around out there and you get a little chill, just climb up on one of the icebergs and get
some sun. 
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Bajahowodd
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9274
Registered: 12-15-2008
Location: Disneyland Adjacent and anywhere in Baja
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It is a no-brainer that spending the time in the water to get certified is much more enjoyable way South. But, it costs time and money to get there.
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Daj
Newbie
Posts: 17
Registered: 11-3-2009
Location: Los Angeles
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Hmmm....
thanks guys!!!!
I would totally consider going all the way down to La Paz when this job is over..
Maybe I'll do that..
Capt. Mike- pray tell- what are the Mick Cortez Explorers??
\"Broken hearts are for buttcracks\" -Frank Zappa
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Diver
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4729
Registered: 11-15-2004
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Mick runs the Cortez Explorers dive shop in Mulege'.
There are many places to get certified in La Paz but plan to spend at least a week unless all you want is a resort certification (you have to dive
with a divemaster or instructor).
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arrowhead
Banned
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You should get your Scuba certification North of the Border. It really takes 50 hours of instruction to get a "C" card. About 1/3 of the time is
classroom instruction; 1/3 is in a swimming pool to familiarize yourself with the equipment, equalizing and practice emergency procedures (Scuba is
all about emergency procedures); and 1/3 is open water dives, with at least one beach dive and one boat dive. Try to find a NAUI school. There are
PADI schools that give out "C" cards with less instruction, but not every dive operation will recognize a PADI "C" card, and they'll make you dive
with an instructor. Other PADI shops will give you air with a PADI card, and don't care if you go down beyond the no decompression limits on your
first dive.
No soy por ni contra apatía.
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Diver
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4729
Registered: 11-15-2004
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| Quote: | Originally posted by arrowhead
.... Try to find a NAUI school. There are PADI schools that give out "C" cards with less instruction, but not every dive operation will recognize a
PADI "C" card, and they'll make you dive with an instructor. Other PADI shops will give you air with a PADI card, and don't care if you go down beyond
the no decompression limits on your first dive. |
This is very funny !!
You are obviously Naui certified and never took a PADI class with a reputable instructor.
I was initially certified by YMCA in 1965, PADI Open Water in 1978, PADI Divemaster/Assist Instructor in 1983, Padi Instructor in 1984.
Needless to say, I have no doubts about the PADI program.
I do have doubts about "resort courses" in far away places.
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capt. mike
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8085
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Daj - make it happen!!
i am with you Diver - got PADI in phx 1990, open water check out San
Carlos 1990 and PADI card accepted thus far Cayman islands, Cozumel, Cancun, Isla Mujeres, La Paz, Cabo, PSFO (well... to tell you the truth Genaro
never asked!!)
...."no more credit from the liquor store...."
formerly Ordained in Rev. Ewing\'s Church by Mail - busted on tax fraud.......
Now joined L. Ron Hoover\'s church of Appliantology
\"Remember there is a big difference between kneeling down and bending over....\"
www.facebook.com/michael.l.goering |
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dean miller
Nomad
Posts: 456
Registered: 1-28-2004
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Gosh!
"Diver" & Captain Mike you certainly know alot about dive courses!
Just what is NAUI & PADI? and how do they differ?
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Diver
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4729
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| Quote: | Originally posted by dean miller
Gosh!
"Diver" & Captain Mike you certainly know alot about dive courses!
Just what is NAUI & PADI? and how do they differ? |
I have a feeling that you know the answer to that question better than we do !! 
I do know that the coursework and required dives are very similar between both organizations.
Most important is a good dive instructor.
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Ken Bondy
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3326
Registered: 12-13-2002
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My basic and O/W certification was with NAUI, but I have never heard of a PADI C-card being refused by any shop or operator anywhere. I did some
photo work for PADI years ago and thought the people I dealt with were very competent. I got my Nitrox certification a few years ago from SSI and
thought that they did a good job with that. I think all the major certifying agencies are about the same, and as Diver said, the most important thing
is your instructor, regardless of the agency.
[Edited on 11-17-2009 by Ken Bondy]
carpe diem!
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dean miller
Nomad
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I do know that the coursework and required dives are very similar between both organizations.
Most important is a good dive instructor.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I would like to know a little more on this subject you and others who have posted with such great authority
You identify your self as "Diver" and a "Diving Instructor"...so instruct me and others...
Therefore explain the difference in the course work and required dives
What about the Instructor? How would a rank novice identify what constitues a "good instructor?"
sdm
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Ken Bondy
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3326
Registered: 12-13-2002
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Mood: Mellow
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| Quote: | Originally posted by dean miller
What about the Instructor? How would a rank novice identify what constitues a "good instructor?"
sdm |
Obviously the "rank novice" will have no idea of what constitutes a "good instructor", or whether or not he/she has one. One has to rely on the
reputation of the instructor, experience, age, facility, opinions of other divers who know the instructor, stuff like that. Kinda like most
everything else in life I guess. ++Ken++
PS dean you seem to have an edge to your questions. What is your agenda here? I don't have one, but I am curious as to what axes are being ground
here???
[Edited on 11-17-2009 by Ken Bondy]
carpe diem!
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arrowhead
Banned
Posts: 912
Registered: 5-5-2009
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Diver
This is very funny !!
You are obviously Naui certified and never took a PADI class with a reputable instructor.
I was initially certified by YMCA in 1965, PADI Open Water in 1978, PADI Divemaster/Assist Instructor in 1983, Padi Instructor in 1984.
Needless to say, I have no doubts about the PADI program.
I do have doubts about "resort courses" in far away places. |
That's true, Diver, I never took a PADI course. But there is a reason. I'm so ancient, that PADI was just a nascent organization. I actually got
certified by Los Angeles County first, but I also have a NAUI advanced open water card.
But back to the main subject, a PADI "C" card is now an 18-hour 3-day course. Supposedly the PADI "C" card is restricted to PADI affiliated dive shops
and you have to dive with an instructor, and even then you have depth limitations. I know when you get out of the US, those rules aren't followed.
In Los Angeles County, the ordinance is that you need to complete a 27-hour dive course, including at least four open water dives to get a card that
will get you air.
http://lascuba.com/pdf/lacoord.pdf
If anybody cares about the history of the "C" card. It all started in Los Angeles County when some professional divers got together and formed NAUI.
This emerged out of the Los Angeles County regulations that required ceritification to get air, because there were too many scuba diving casualties.
Los Angeles County also issued its own "C" card to divers. PADI was formed later, by some people in the scuba equipment manufacturing industry (US
Divers), and their goal was to commercialize scuba diving and bring it to the masses. They streamlined the certification process, but put "strings" on
the divers which required them to go through their affiliates and dive with instructors, until divers got more advanced training.
No soy por ni contra apatía.
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k-rico
Super Nomad
Posts: 2079
Registered: 7-10-2008
Location: Playas de Tijuana
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Bwana_John
Cold water, big wetsuits, heavy weightbelts, surge, swell, waves, and kelp are not the best environment to learn how to scuba dive in unless you are
already used to those conditions.
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I got certified at La Jolla shores via the YMCA in La Jolla. Great place to learn.
After classroom and pool training it was swim out through the breakers (in the winter BTW) with all your gear, and deal with the low vis, breaking
waves, and surge.
When diving the Great Barrier Reef, the divemaster noticed I got certified in San Diego and he said, "Oh you guys learned in cold water and the surf,
good divers, you're going to help me out." I got to lead the other divers after the divemaster explained the route. Nobody was kicking up silt in my
face and I was the first one to spot the sharks.
So maybe learning in tough conditions when you have an instructor looking after you is a good idea. I've been in many tropical places diving, after
learning in San Diego, with all the heavy gear swimming out and back through the surf, every place else was a piece of cake.
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N2Baja
Nomad
Posts: 147
Registered: 2-12-2004
Location: San Diego
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Daj, What has been posted here is true; the most important thing to consider when getting certified is not the agency, but the instructor.
There are lots of resources available to you to help you make your decision. Go to Dive Shops in your area and talk to people who work there and to
the customers. Call local Dive Clubs. There are lots of message boards like Scubaboard.com, TheDecoStop.com or diver.net that you can ask. Divers
love to talk about diving and will gladly share their knowledge with you!
Arrowhead, Diver, Ken and Capt. Mike are right on! And it bears repeating. It takes 50 hours of instruction to get properly certified. I was
fortunate to have a real hard nosed instructor. He never let us slide by with anything. If a skill wasn't performed correctly, he'd have us do it
over again and again until we got it. While I may have been cursing him during class, I can't thank him enough now. You need to know how to get
yourself out of trouble in an environment that you aren't able to breathe in, and you just can't get that knowledge in a weekend.
Diving is one of the most incredible experiences and if you're comfortable in the water you'll love it! Get the proper training, Daj. Your life
really may depend on it.
Keep us posted on your experience!
Forget about the danger and think of the fun.
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Ken Bondy
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3326
Registered: 12-13-2002
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Mood: Mellow
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Bwana_John
Cold water, big wetsuits, heavy weightbelts, surge, swell, waves, and kelp are not the best environment to learn how to scuba dive in unless you are
already used to those conditions. |
That's arguable Bwana John. If you learn in those conditions, you will know how to handle them and anything else will be easy. I got certified in
those California conditions and now, after 2000+ logged dives all over the world, cold and warm water, I feel learning in CA served me well. OTOH if
you get certified in a quickie warmwater location, you will have to learn everything all over again if you want to dive in the kelp in cold water. On
balance I think learning to dive in cold water conditions is best if you can.
[Edited on 11-18-2009 by Ken Bondy]
carpe diem!
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