Scuba School in a Gentle Sea

by Bill Harrigan

Does this sound familiar? You want to take a dive course, anything from beginning scuba to instructor, but where you live the water is cold and dark. If that's you or someone you know, head for the Cayman Islands! The diving conditions are nearly always excellent and the water is usually clear, warm and calm. And, there are few places in the world where you can find so many choices for diving instruction.

Choices, Choices
In the '50s and early '60s you could buy a tank and regulator in any large sporting goods store and go diving. There was no formal training and no certification program; the only safety features commonly available were quick-release harnesses and J-valve tanks. Unfortunately, divers in these early days had some accidents that could have been avoided with proper training and equipment. The diving industry opted to self-regulate in order to correct these problems before the government was prompted to intervene. The results are visible every day on any dive boat, where buoyancy compensators, octopus regulators, pressure gauges and other equipment improvements are standard. Several agencies were also formed to provide training programs and today divers can choose from an alphabet soup of acronyms such as PADI, NAUI, YMCA, SSI, PDIC, NASDS, IANTD, TDI, ANDI, NASE and IDEA. Which training agency is the one for you? Some of the differences among the agencies are philosophical, some are practical, but there is no wrong choice because they all cover the necessary material. Whatever agency you prefer, you'll find qualified instructors in the Cayman Islands.

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