First Dive after Certification - what's your log say?

[nwscubamom]

Was just looking back in my dive log and chuckling.
First dive after certification:
----------------------------------------------
Date: Dec 6th, 1999
Mahi Shipwreck, off O'ahu, Hawai'i.
Depth: 90 feet.
Bottom time: 20 min
Water temp: 78 degrees
Viz: 80 feet
PSI start: 3000. End: 500

Notes: Equalizing was easy with every breath on descent. Saw dolphins on the way out.
WOW! Trails of bubbles, schools of fish, Manta Ray, eel in anchor area. Went inside with flashlight. Coral cuts (minor), saw little holes on bottom of sand.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Looking back I know it wasn't a Manta ray, but a Spotted Eagle Ray. The Divemaster brought me down to NINETY FEET!!! I must have been narced because I was mesmerized by little holes all over in the sand. Then he shoved a dive light in my hand (and I thought, "I can't hold anything right now, I have to use my hands for swimming!!") and led me INTO THE WRECK!!!.

Classic examples of what NOT to do right out of OW class.

- Janna

[Joshua Smith]

Gawd. I stopped logging my dives years ago. I regret not having a written diary of my exploits, but I'm not good at keeping records like this. I don't even know how many dives I have- 400? 600? I don't know. I admire those of you that take the time to record this stuff.

[spatman]

great idea for a thread, janna! like josh, i'm not much of a logger, i usually just record the basic data and track weighting and such. my first dive out of OW was this:


--------------------

Playa Crash Boat, near Rincon, Puerto Rico
Depth: 48ft
BT: 52min
Temp: 80F
Viz: 60+ ft
PSI: 3200/700

Notes:
Saw a green turtle. Fun dIve!

----------------------

[ArcticDiver]

Was just looking back in my dive log and chuckling.
First dive after certification:
----------------------------------------------
Mahi Shipwreck, off O'ahu, Hawai'i.
Depth: 90 feet.
Bottom time: 20 min
Water temp: 78 degrees
Viz: 80 feet
PSI start: 3000. End: 500

Notes: Equalizing was easy with every breath on descent. Saw dolphins on the way out.
WOW! Trails of bubbles, schools of fish, Manta Ray, eel in anchor area. Went inside with flashlight. Coral cuts (minor), saw little holes on bottom of sand.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Looking back I know it wasn't a Manta ray, but a Spotted Eagle Ray. The Divemaster brought me down to NINETY FEET!!! I must have been narced because I was mesmerized by little holes all over in the sand. Then he shoved a dive light in my hand (and I thought, "I can't hold anything right now, I have to use my hands for swimming!!") and led me INTO THE WRECK!!!.

Classic examples of what NOT to do right out of OW class.

- Janna

Now that is a coincidence. My first dive after certification was also the Mahi. I signed up for an AOW Course because its' five dives were cheaper than buying a five dive package. After a bit of an orientatin the instructor silently watched me put my gear together then said "Follow Me". We splashed and after a quick tour around the bottom of the hull spent the rest of the dive exploring the nooks and crannys inside the the vessel. Of course then it wasn't near collapse the way it is now. We saw octopus, all kinds of fish, little squirmy things in the corners, beautiful stuff attached to the hull, and discovered that even in day diving using a flashlight brought new beauty to the scenery. Fortunately I had one; pretty pale in comparison to what I use now. It also was my first experience with a dive computer. That company and instructor didn't allow diving without one and furnished one to any diver who came unequipped. i still did my tables as a crosscheck, a practice now long abandoned.

One of my favorite sights that has stuck in my memory was seeing the squadron of spotted eagle rays flying by. Such beauty and grace was truly impressive. I've seen many eagle rays since then but that sighting was the best.

For me that was the perfect "real world" introduction and set the stage for much that followed.

One sadness this thread brings to mind is that a few years later the owner of that dive company died on the Mahi.

Memories.......

[2loud4u]

I am not much of a note taker, but I (for now) log my dives in my book.

Dive #5 (#1 after 4 class dives)

8-8-09
Molokini Crater Maui
3000 psi start 550 end
112 feet max depth
12 pounds weight
40 min total dive time
120 feet vis (as stated by divemaster)


Notes:
1st boat dive!! Saw red pencil urchin, some black ridged nudi (had no idea what that was back then) 2 frog fish, eels, needle fish, 2 white tip reef sharks.


Brendan

[cardiver]

I am not much of a note taker, but I (for now) log my dives in my book.

Dive #5 (#1 after 4 class dives)

8-8-09
Molokini Crater Maui
3000 psi start 550 end
112 feet max depth
12 pounds weight
40 min total dive time
120 feet vis (as stated by divemaster)


Notes:
1st boat dive!! Saw red pencil urchin, some black ridged nudi (had no idea what that was back then) 2 frog fish, eels, needle fish, 2 white tip reef sharks.


Brendan

A "divemaster" took you to 112 on your first dive out of ow?????
Wow.

[lizard0924]

Great idea for a thread.

I can still vividly remember my first dives after OW. We went to Cozumel (in December) as a warm up trip to Bonaire (in January), so that I could get comfortable in the open ocean before we took a dive trip with four of our friends who were experienced divers. On the first boat dive I was really nervous. When the DM went thru the dive plan and said our max depth would be around 90', I quietly asked him if that was ok since I had just gotten OW certified and was only supposed to go to 60'. He laughed and said "oh, those are just guidelines."

You gotta love diving in Mexico!

Dive #5
12/9/07
Cozumel, Mexico
Santa Rosa wall
max. depth = 83'
bottom time = 28 minutes
air temp = 85 F
water temp = 78 F

"saw a lobster and a huge ray"

[nwscubamom]

Yes, the same thing happened to me on the first dive there in Hawaii. Although I didn't go to 112', I did go to 90'!! Still WELL beyond the 60 feet we're supposed to limit out at.

I had called the shop before traveling out there even, said I was a new diver, needed to stay under 60 feet, they said sure, no problem. Then I find on the boat ride out there, when they're briefing the dive, that we're going to NINETY feet. I flipped, but some nearby divers said, "Oh, the water's so clear, you won't even know".

Yeah, so the DM took me down to 90 feet, and then handed me a dive light and took me into an overhead environment! How many 'RULES' did I break that first time out?!?

Things sure are more relaxed in other parts of the world! Then again, the diving is a lot easier than it is here.

- Janna

[ktb]

Wow--opened my dive log to contribute to this thread and realized that as of this Monday (4/5), I will have been certified a year. YAY!

So my first dive out of class was at Les Davis . . . no notes, horrible stats (32 minutes, max depth of 31 ft.). Of course I didn't make any notes--what the heck would I see at 31 ft there??

I started making notes a few dives later. The funny one is Dive #9 at LD, where I was so excited to see . . . wait for it . . . a shrimp colony! So much has changed in just a year.

[BASSMAN]

I'm going to have to crack open my Log book when I get home.
I have resorted to logging all of my dives on my PC though my dive computer downloads.
Stay tuned, I'm sure it says something like, "Wow!"

[2loud4u]

Just to clarify a bit...

On our boat ride out, we were split into 2 groups, one would go deep, and one would stay at about 70-80 feet. I opted for 70-80 feet until I saw how clear the water was when I jumped off the boat doing my much practiced giant stride. I took one look down and asked how deep the bottom was I am looking at. They told me about 100-130 feet depending on where we went.

The dive at 100+ feet was easier that my 60 feet dive here.


Brendan

[Mattleycrue76]

I just looked at my logbook. I was one of the guys who did OW and AOW back to back so dive 10 was my first out of class. I was with a DM so I figured this would be perfectly exceptable

My log says:

Mukilteo T-Dock

Depth: 128
BT: 41

Start pressure 3300
End pressure 600

Went down and saw Fredo (Mannequin). Spent about 5 minutes at depth and then worked our way back up. Felt narked but not too bad. Remember to watch air and no deco time!

Reading that now makes me

[Alexitt]

Wow, mine seems pretty tame after reading some of these... Mine was at EUWP with a Discover local dives, my instructor was leading the dive and I was using the same rental gear I'd used in my class... 1/30/11 38' ,39 min., 2900psi start, 900psi end, 20' vis, 45 degrees bottom temp, 38 degrees air temp... Notes: Dove w/ Jerry and group of 8, buddied w/ James (17 + ow) Good vis, Good dive. Saw many big lings and cabz... Frakkin' Sweet!!

Up until the Club dive @ cove2 Edmonds was the only place I'd been, except for my Discover Scuba Dive in Kona that got me hooked on this to start with (and that was pretty frakkin' sweet too...).

[Peter Guy]

Janna, Thanks for starting the thread. It made me go back to look at my logbook which is something I haven't done in quite some time. Like others, my first dives after OW were into the AOW program with the first dive a PPB dive at Cove 2. My first "independent" dive was several dives later at EUP with LCF. That was our first time diving as a couple and I think we made it at least 3 minutes before we started fighting over how the dive was to go!

Now it generally takes us at least 20 minutes before one of us questions the decisions made by the other.

[dieseldude]

Honolua Bay Maui 4/20/08
Start psi 3000
end psi 700
water temp 75
vis 20-30'
Max depth 35' bottom time 1:00

"We waited 3 days due to poor vis from a southern swell to be able to dive. We snorkled yesterday with 20-30' vis. Some places terrible by Maui standards. Good enough for us!
10lbs was light. Had to pick up a big rock.
Todays vis was actually worse thand yesterdays vis."

April 4th 2010,
I miss 75 degree water, 20-30' vis is an awesome dive, I would still sooner pick up a big rock to finish a dive than have to abort all together but I have to admit I probably wouldnt even need 10lbs now, & I still dont think AL80 were made for anything other than large stage bottles.
(sob) With the last 2yrs economy & my scuba addiction, I may never see Maui again.
MJ

[2loud4u]

Honolua Bay Maui 4/20/08

MJ

I bet that was awesome!! We snorkled there a few times, and I kept thinking this would be a great shallow place to dive!!

[selkie]

Great thread, I like Josh am horrible at keeping logs or journals. I have several nice leather bound journals with only one entry. I lived on the boat for ten years and bought a new log every two years with every good intention of keeping a good log. Now I have five ships logs with one or two entries each. Dive logs hmmm, now that I have a computer I down load dives when I remember. However, I was certified to dive in Bend Oregon in July 1982. My first dive after that was in August on a trip with my dive instructor to the Oregon Coast were we dove the fingers in Newport. What I remember of that dive is the visibility was bad (maybe 5-10’), the current was ripping because I remember pulling myself along the bottom hand hold by hand hold. I remember an eerie green/brown environment were crabs the only thing I remember seeing tumbled passed me along the bottom. On the plus side being young and invincible, I loved it and don’t remember the climb over the big jetty boulders as any big deal. If I did log the dive the log has been lost by now in twenty eight years of moves and life changes but the memory I hope to keep forever.

[edm81363]

Here's my log of dive 5;


Looking back, I'm happy to see that I recognized that gas consumption rate was important, but hadn't quite figured it out on my own.

I'm creeping up on dive #200 and my logbook looks similar, but with more relevant data.

[eliseaboo]

Interesting thread.

I went straight from OW to AOW, but my first non-class dive:
Depth: 15'
Time: 52 min
Starting psi: 3000
Ending: 2000
"Saw lots of weeds and fish. Warm enough to dive w/o gloves or hood. Boulders in the water further up. (New Diver Dive)"

[Ken G]

Pressure- 200bar/50bar
Depth- 11meters
Time In- 12:55
Time Out- 1:40
Vis- 7meters
Koh Marn Wichai, Thailand
Boat Dive
Comments- Sting Ray, Hard Corals


Just found my first and only log book. I thought I would have taken time to write more than the technical facts.

[psundquist]

I lost my first dive log book, but from my memory:

Date: Summer 1987
Devils Lake State Park, Baraboo, Wisconsin
Depth: 30'
Bottom time: 40 min
Water temp: 65 degrees
Viz: 15 feet

First scooter dive, my dive buddy and I shared one that we rented from Three Little Devils dive shop. http://3littledevils.com/index.html Didn't see much of anything except silt, mud, boulders, rocks, branches, water grass, crawfishm and a fish or two. We started on the north end of the lake and headed south. Any day diving in the PCNW is better than all of the lakes in Wisconsin, with the exception being Lake Michigan.

[eliseaboo]

I lost my first dive log book, but from my memory:

Date: Summer 1987
Devils Lake State Park, Baraboo, Wisconsin
Depth: 30'
Bottom time: 40 min
Water temp: 65 degrees
Viz: 15 feet

First scooter dive, my dive buddy and I shared one that we rented from Three Little Devils dive shop. http://3littledevils.com/index.html Didn't see much of anything except silt, mud, boulders, rocks, branches, water grass, crawfishm and a fish or two. We started on the north end of the lake and headed south. Any day diving in the PCNW is better than all of the lakes in Wisconsin, with the exception being Lake Michigan.

Hey, my first dive was there too! I love that lake, the bass are very friendly...I would definitely not scooter it though, as anything worth seeing is going to be a bass or crawfish...3LD, it seems, is going under however. Apparently it's not officially closed, but the shop is never open and they don't answer their phone...sad.

[60south]

7/24/1987
USA
Santa Rosa, NM
Site: Perch Lake
Objective: Natural navigation
Time: 45
Depth: 47
Vis: 10
Advanced class dive #1, to sunken Beechcraft airplane. Used lift bags for ascent/descent lines.

[ORDiver]

My first dive after OW was at Octopus Hole and is still the worst vis I have ever seen. I'm surprised I continued diving local after that.

5/3/08
Time in: 4:00pm
Time out: 4:40pm
Max depth: 80fsw
Visibility: 0-6'

" Very, very bad viz to 65'. About 6' viz 65 to 80' (w / assistant instructor). Had 30# weight belt. Could use about 35#. Black Dark @ 70-80'. Had to use lights. Brown polyp type stuff all over. At 70-80' saw crab, shrimp, anemone. Very interesting dive. Like night dive during day. "

The vis was so bad above 30' my dive buddy and I had to hold hands not to lose each other. It looked like we were diving in poo.

[Huskychemist]

Dive Site: Maury Island Barges, off of coachrenz's boat
Time: 15 minutes
Max Depth: 18.3 meters

Notes: "Wooohooo!

My first Open Water (Post-Certification) Boat Dive. I struggled with my weight belt at first...and had to get back in the boat. The weight belt nearly fell off my butt, as I don't have much in the way of hips. It was hanging down by my thighs. But I tightened it up a bit and continued on the dive. We had a piling to go down, which helped in my descent. (Although I still spent quite a bit of time and energy going down. It was weird...) We spent some time on the bottom, then ascended up the pilings. My ascent was pretty controlled, so that was nice.

Thanks Tim! I'm glad we're dive buddies."


The notes quote is a direct copy-and-paste from my SmartTrak dive log.