Shipwrecks have fascinated divers from the early history of diving. The thirst to unravel the mystery of what lies beneath our oceans is a common trait in a diver – What happened to the ship? Why did it sink? What is in it? Who were the people sailing her, and what happened to them?
I recall the exhilaration of my first wreck dive – it was a sensation of hope combined with thrill when descending down the anchor line as it disappeared into the deep blue water. My hope was to witness the remains of bravery and conquest, coupled with the excitement of discovering unknown treasures! Actually finding treasures was the hardest bit in the dive! Leaving the descent line I could barely make out the shape and lines from a distance but as I got closer, the wreck seemed bigger than life!
My imagination began to understand the immediate, physical presence of history – amazingly accessible with only a short boat ride! Unfortunately as it was my first wreck dive, I could only look on with envy as the other experienced wreck divers moved into the wreck while my buddy and I explored the aquatic life thriving outside the wreck. Experienced wreck divers will be the first to tell you that you need formal training to truly enjoy wreck diving because safe wreck diving requires some unique procedures, techniques and specialised equipment.
Thankfully it is possible to get into the adventure of wreck diving safely and have lots of fun too! The PADI Wreck Diver Specialty Course helps you to get the most out of wreck diving. If you’re looking to experience another dimension in underwater exploration I would strongly recommend taking the Wreck Diver Specialty Course – your key to knowing the ins and outs of discovering a wreck safely! Wreck diving heightens your personal diving experience and is all about fun, adventure and skill. You’ll be able to satisfy your curiosity and experience firsthand what’s in the wreck. Wrecks attract abundant marine life that flourish on these artificial reefs, presenting amazing photo and video opportunities.
Some divers have strong interest in history or they engage in research or work with archeologists and historians whereas some divers are simply fascinated by wreck diving skills and techniques. Regardless of the reasons, divers have always congregated in and around wrecks. You only need to look at the number of dive travel packages that include wreck diving to see how popular it is. Wrecks are tangible historical resources that you have direct access to.
The PADI Wreck Diver Specialty Course teaches you all the fundamentals of wreck diving and explains techniques to help explore a wreck safely. The course contains four scuba dives for practicing these skills in the open water. One of the great things about wreck diving is that you don’t necessarily have to travel any farther than your local lake, river or nearby coastline to find some really interesting wrecks – presenting you invaluable opportunities to appreciate history. A wreck worthy of a dive doesn’t have to be a battleship, freighter or even a boat. You can have exciting dives on “wrecks” such as sunken planes, cars or motorbikes.
More information on the PADI Wreck Diver Specialty Course.
