Get Diving!

By Julia Holmes

The Port Elizabeth coastline covers kilometres of fun and entertainment,where, amongst the numerous activities on offer, scuba diving is one! Scuba Diving offers an alternative hobby, where stress and routine can be escaped by discovering ‘another world’ beneath the ocean’s surface.

Situated at Hobie Beach, Pro Dive, a 5 star PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) Scuba Dive Center, offers an extensive range of diving related services, including courses and diving equipment. As there are many health and safety risks at play, Pro Dive ensures that all members are provided with thorough training, and the utmost care when in the water (both pool and ocean).

In the process of obtaining your Open Water Divers certification, for example, divers receive theoretical and practical training, where, before entering the ocean, they are taught essentials such as: how to make use of the various equipment, how to communicate under the water and at which levels to, whilst returning to surface, to stop to release the correct amount of carbon dioxide from your body, avoiding compression. Additional certifications are made available, such as obtaining your Advanced Open Water Divers license and improving your skills further by becoming a night diver, wreck diver, rescue diver or any of the other specializations made available through PADI.

“Learning to dive in the red tide was definitely a stand out experience”, says Jess Gossow (22), a third year Quantity Surveying student at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU). Jess, who partook in her first ‘basic dive’ ona holiday in Mozambique in 2008, grasped the opportunity to join the diving community when moving to Port Elizabeth in 2013.

A fan of the outdoors and a refreshing run alongside the beachfront, Jess dives on a monthly basis, where, including the rental of soft and hard gear, an average dives totals to R400. Initially nervous to “go deep down into the ocean with just an oxygen tank”, Jess says that she “just need to see her first shark” to calm her nerves and be comfortable. Her future diving ambitions include a trip to the Red Sea, where, as a result of the clean water, she says: “is it a very clear dive and many, many, beautiful creatures can be seen”.

Jess compares diving to “going on a safari every month”, where “each dive is different”. She refers to the Pro Dive community as “a friendly group of people who are excited to share the adventurous experience with you”, and who “love it when new members join”.Included in her diving highlights, is exploring the reef for luminescent sea slugs, and, as the sights of each dive vary, comparing notes such as “did you SEE that giant stingray ?” with fellow divers.

Experienced diver and NMMU BCom RAT Law student, Tayla Biggs (22), describes Port Elizabeth’s reefs as “very colorful” and “gorgeous”. Having travelled extensively and dived in popular destinations such as Madagascar, Thailand, she refers to PE’s reefs as “one of the best that she has seen”. Furthermore, she explains that the overall colour of a reef can be effected by various factors, including water temperature and depth, where, if the water temperature is too warm the reef dies and turns white, and, if the reef is too deep, sun rays struggle to reach the reef. Fortunately, with theoverall locationof PE’s reefs being relatively high, and the tendency of water temperature to be quite cold, an ideal, colorful experience is created for current and potential divers.

For more information on diving within Port Elizabeth, contact Pro Dive on 041 583 536 or “like” them on Facebook: Pro Dive Port Elizabeth. Their interactive Facebook page effectively updates the public on local events, specials, sales, and shares interesting images of Pro Dive experiences, including “creature of the week”.

Email Julia if you like her writing:  holmes.julianatalie@yahoo.com