Recreational dive sites include specific places that recreational scuba divers go to enjoy the underwater environment. This includes publicly accessible recreational diver training sites and technical diving sites beyond the range generally accepted for recreational diving. In this context all diving done for recreational purposes is included. Professional diving tends to be done where the job is, and with the exception of the recreational diving service industry, does not generally occur at specific sites chosen for their easy access, pleasant conditions or interesting features.
Contents
- Bodies of water commonly used for recreational diving
- Popular features of dive sites
- Regions where recreational diving is a major tourist industry
- The Cape Peninsula Cape Town South Africa
- Tropical
- Reef dive sites
- Quarry dive sites
- Water Conditions
- Equipment Required
- Wreck Sites
- Types of Fish
- Examples
- Temporary list of Wikipedia dive site articles
- References
Bodies of water commonly used for recreational diving
Popular features of dive sites
There are a wide range of underwater features which may contribute to the popularity of a dive site:
Regions where recreational diving is a major tourist industry
The Cape Peninsula (Cape Town, South Africa)
The Cape Peninsula marks the boundary between the cool temperate South-western Cape bioregion, which extends from Cape Columbine to Cape Point, and is dominated by the cold Benguela current, and the warm temperate Agulhas inshore marine bioregion to the east of Cape Point which extends eastwards to the Mbashe River. The break at Cape Point is very distinct in the inshore depth ranges, and the waters of the east and west sides of the peninsula support noticeably different ecologies, though there is a significant overlap of resident organisms. There are a large proportion of species endemic to South Africa along this coastline.
Tropical
Reef dive sites
Coral reef areas
Quarry dive sites
Scuba diving quarries are depleted or abandoned rock quarries that have been allowed to fill with ground water, and rededicated to the purpose of scuba diving. They offer deep, clean, clear, still, fresh water with excellent visibility, and have no currents or undertow. They are often used as training sites for new divers, where classes and certification dives are carried out. Scuba diving quarries are often stocked with fish, for the divers to enjoy, and often feature contrived “wreck” sites, such as sunken boats, cars, and aircraft for divers to explore while diving. Many have some manner of dive shop on site to offer air fills, replacement diving equipment, and rentals. Oftentimes lodging or camping is available on site as well.
Water Conditions
Quarries lined with stone, instead of earth or clay, may have remarkably clear water, with greater visibility than in many inland lakes. Clean, clear ground water is the primary source of the water that fills these quarries once they are no longer pumped out for mining operations. Many quarry mining operations are located in areas where filling from other, less clean sources, such as rivers and surface runoff of rainwater is not as likely.
Over time, however, most quarries tend to be contaminated with erosion products and nutrients from surface runoff, causing many to acquire a green tint due to algae growth, and silty bottoms, with silt accumulations of several inches.
Equipment Required
Fresh water scuba diving does not require much different equipment then oceanic diving, although some cold water diving gear is very important, depending on the geographic location and time of year that is being dived. With water temperatures decreasing as depth increases, water temperatures at depth have been known to be as low as 35 degrees Fahrenheit. In those types of temperatures dry suit diving is recommended, but in slightly warmer temps, heavy wetsuit diving is possible, and with the use of hoods, gloves and core warming wetsuits, a diver can dive in relative comfort for long periods of time in water temps down to 40-45 degrees Fahrenheit. Diving in fresh water is less harmful to most scuba gear then salt water, and requires less post dive maintenance.
"Wreck" Sites
Operators of many scuba diving quarries often add objects or debris fields to the bottom of the quarry for divers to explore while scuba diving. Mostly these are man made objects such as boats, cars, and trucks. Some quarries have such large objects as school buses, small buildings, and even commercial airliners on the bottom. Often these sites are mapped out and marked with guide lines under the water.
Types of Fish
Often, operators of scuba diving quarries make efforts to stock the quarry with fish, to provide enjoyment for divers using their facilities. Most common are the same types of fish that thrive naturally in local lakes and rivers. Some quarries are known for the size and quantity of these fish, and some quarries have schools of rare, not often seen species of fish living in their waters, which are not native to the area.
Examples
Temporary list of Wikipedia dive site articles
Temperate rocky reefs