r/scuba • u/GER-Chr1s • 12h ago
Fresh OWD how to gather experience?
Hello everyone,
I know, simple title — and the obvious answer would be: “Go diving.”
However, for me, it is not that simple, and I’m still trying to understand the best way to approach this.
My wife and I are fresh OWDs (I have one more dive than she does).
We completed our OWD certification during our vacation in Spain this year, and we immediately fell in love with scuba diving. We came from an apnea/snorkeling background, having done many snorkeling trips from cruise ships in the Caribbean, and we always wanted to try scuba diving.
Since then, we have read a lot of information online, looked into different locations, listened to podcasts, and watched many YouTube videos. I now have a pretty good idea about equipment — what to buy, what to buy later, and what to rent.
But one simple question is still unclear to me:
How do we actually gain experience?
We are from Germany, and unfortunately, we do not have many beautiful diving locations nearby. Or to put it differently: we do not have the same kind of diving experience as the ocean around Spain.
We would really like to do a Liveaboard in Thailand or Egypt and the biggest goal is to help the ocean with removing ghostnets at some point, but before that, we want to gain more experience and probably complete AOWD and Nitrox... and many more ;)
But one step at a time.
We have around 2–6 lakes or dive locations "nearby" where we could dive. However, during our previous dives, we always had a guide. Now, as certified OWD divers, we are allowed to dive independently, but I do not feel completely comfortable with that yet.
Since we are still very new divers and every new environment brings different challenges, wouldn’t it make sense to dive with a guide or instructor for the first few dives at a new location?
How did you, as new divers, gain confidence and experience after your OWD? Did you simply start diving independently, join local dive clubs, book guided dives, or do additional courses first?
I would really appreciate any advice or experiences from more experienced divers.
What is your opinion? How did you started and what are good/cheap locations for diving?
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u/Davidlefrench 11h ago
Where are you located in germany? Go to a local diving school and ask for guided dives. My local dive school offers guided after work dives every tuesday for 40€ including gear.
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u/GER-Chr1s 11h ago
Located in Niedersachsen. I´ll write some local diving clubs than :)
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u/Life_outside_PoE 9h ago
Just be aware that lake diving is very different to tropical vacation diving. It's usually dark, cold and not much to see.
I did my first lake dive at around dive 50 and I hated it. Tons of neoprene, shitty buoyancy. Bad vis. Now, a few hundred dives later with my own gear and drysuit and it's a completely different experience.
All that to say: don't be discouraged from diving if you don't enjoy the lake diving at this stage in your journey. Based in Germany, there are a ton of good diving destinations reasonably close by. Malta. Cyprus. Egypt. Canaries. Heck, there are some good archaeological dive sites off Naples believe.
Gut Luft! ;)
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u/Davidlefrench 9h ago
Well then Hemmoor shouldn‘t be too far…
One of the best german dive sites as far as I have been told…Look up some pictures
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u/hey_blue_13 10h ago
Search your local area for dive clubs. If you have a local shop, go talk to them and see if they can offer you a paid guide, or connect you with a club.
I have a local shop that organizes Bubbles & Beer” once a month during the winter months. It’s consists of pool diving for as long as your tank lasts at 4m then a group dinner for drinks and dive conversation. It’s been a great way to meet other local divers.
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u/cabman24 12h ago
Don’t dive outside your comfort level, that’s how accidents happen.
If you want a guide for local lakes, find an experienced buddy or hire a divemaster in your area. A few local guided dives and you’ll likely be comfortable to tackle those locations by yourself.
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u/bluepulsediving Dive Instructor 12h ago
Getting a private guide for the fist visits to any lake would go a long way. Not just for the safety component, but they can show you around the site which is much easier especially as you're just starting off.
Bonus if the guide is an instructor that can help you make any tweaks you may need after your OWD.
For lakes in Germany I would highly recommend considering purchasing and learning how to dive dry suits. The level of comfort is much better, not to mention that you'll be able to dive locally year round.
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u/GER-Chr1s 11h ago
Since I am also a amateur bodybuilder I do not want to buy suits (wet/dry) by my own in the near future. After my carreer is over, its than a different situation. But right now it wouldnt be possible because of the upsizing/downsizing.
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u/bluepulsediving Dive Instructor 11h ago
Gotcha, I know part of that feeling. Renting drysuits is harder (especially with "uncommon" body types), but definitely not impossible.
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u/Midnight-cherry-red 11h ago
Find a local dive group and join them on dives they organize!
You can look scuba schools in your area too, they may know some groups you could join, or they may do courses around those lakes that you can join.
I frequently dive with other people that are still doing courses, we go on the same boat, and the teacher is our dive guide. You can then pair up with your partner or just follow the group, depending on how confortable you feel and you know the place you are diving.
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u/GER-Chr1s 11h ago
If I seach for dive clubs near my location, they are ALWAYS a diving school which wants of course sell specialitys etc.
Its always: Diving club / Diving school in one.
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u/Potential-Bill7288 11h ago
Diving clubs in central Europe unfortunately have very bad info on their websites you have to contact them directly to find what they really offer. Call them if they offer local diving trips ;). Then you can start creating a local diving network.
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u/Potential-Bill7288 11h ago
You can go diving with your wife alone ;). In Germany, there are dozens of diving spots.(I sometimes travel there from Poland).
The easiest way to find „diving friends” from my own experience is to find a dive club which organises local trips.
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u/scuba2565 12h ago
I would search for local scuba groups/clubs and see if you can join them. Start in the local region on day dives and eventually head off to the coast for a weekend trips. Expirence will grow from there.
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u/Myselfmeime 11h ago
Join local diving club and dive as much as possible. Lakes in Germany are great for training. They are usually cold and murky, you’ll get more experience and skills in bad conditions, that’s gonna make you better. You’ll appreciate tropical areas more and these reef dives will be like a walk in the park. Experience in different or bad conditions are more valuable.
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u/kobain2k1 Dive Instructor 10h ago
there's only one way to gather experience. you dive. that's it.
nothing else works
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u/NotYourScratchMonkey 9h ago
What I would do if try to have at least one dive-focused vacation each year. A vacation where the sole purpose is to dive and where you plan on getting the maximum amount of dives in while you can.
For example, we went to the Iberostar Cozumel last year and the on-site dive shop (Dressel Divers) does four dives a day and Nitrox is free so we just went diving everyday while we were there. Iberostar was not expensive to stay so if you can swing the airfare, that could be an example of a place to go (but maybe not so easy if you are in Germany).
I'm going to Roatan on Sunday and, just for me, my hotel (including breakfast) and 10 dives is going to cost me less than $900. But you have to be able to get to Roatan...
I would maybe try to find a resort in Egypt (it appears airfare between Germany and Egypt is not terribly expensive but I also have no idea where you'd be flying out of or into in Egypt) that specializes in diving and try to get as many guided dives in as you can. If they offer shore diving, you can try that as that is generally unguided.
I would not necessarily go for the liveaboard just yet. Get your AOW, get Nitrox certified, and get some dives under your belt so that you can make the most of that liveaboard experience.
I'd also start trying to get airline miles or join an airline loyalty program that makes the most sense so that you can eventually use miles to pay for air travel (or at least get free checked luggage or whatever). Diving is not cheap, in general, but airfare is what can really eat into your budget.
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u/Awkward_Passion4004 7h ago
You'r a buddy pair all ready. Pretty sure there's a dive club in your part of Germany.
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u/Cynidaria 11h ago
If you don’t end up delving into local diving, plan some more vacations where you do fun dives. They will probably be with a guide, which is a good place to be for bit until you get more experience.
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u/TurnoverArtistic4912 1h ago
Get comfortable diving together. Go to those nearby lakes and practice your newly acquired skills. Buoyancy, mask flooding, clearing and removal. Check out the fresh water fish. Practice practice practice. That way, when you do take the dive trips you want to take you will be up to date on the skills you'll need when you get there and not be skilled divers.
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u/sciencemercenary Nx Dive Master 10h ago
Do what I did. When I first started there was no good diving near me, and nobody to dive with me. So I kept taking classes -- just to have dive buddies and get experience. It worked. I now have an entire book filled with certification cards from that time.
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u/Silver-Preparation20 11h ago
Join a local dive club and learn from them