Only whales and whale sharks need apply Text and Photography by Michael Wood SCUBA diving or snorkeling with any kind of whale or a whale shark remains high on my adventure bucket list, though I had what you might consider a close ‘second’ on the excitement scale with something …

Sidemount diving may have been around for while now, but in the last couple of years it seems to have risen in popularity and become a very fashionable way of diving, and not just for cave divers, but open water divers too. The new SEAC KS01 Buoyancy jacket is a …

Announced a week ago at the TekDive USA show in Miami, the new Edge / Hog Gear sidemount system created a wee bit of interest to say the least. Little is officially known at this point, but that hasn’t stopped people getting excited at the prospect of a new, …

American Underwater Products (AUP) announced today the merger of two of their recreational dive companies, AERIS & Oceanic. Each of these companies currently offer similar product lines to the diving industry worldwide. Effective September 1st, 2014, these lines will be combined and sold exclusively under the Oceanic brand. The merger will …

The Nauticam Super Macro Converter (SMC) is the first underwater macro conversion lens that is fully optimized for in water use.  This unique and innovative lens claims to change the way that underwater macro photography is done. There are three key advantages to this internationally patent pending new optical design: …

Today came the sad news that Swiss surrealist artist HR Giger passed away at the age of 74.  Best known for his work designing the movie Alien, his images and artwork portrayed a nightmarish vision that forever changed the way Hollywood movies were designed. So what does this have …

For those new to sidemount, or those still trying to find the right gear configuration, Dive Rite may be able to help. Dive Rite’s new BC Hose Quick Disconnect Adapter is a simple solution to a common routing problem . If the power inflator on your sidemount rig doesn’t sit flat …

Nikon has refined its flagship DSLR, and Nauticam continues it’s tradition of continual innovation in the underwater photography world. Nauticam have announced the NA-D4S underwater camera housing for the Nikon D4S professional SLR camera and Flash Trigger for Nikon, the second in it’s line of flash trigger units, allowing use of robust and reliable …

Statistics show that almost always the cause is diver error By Dr. David Sawatzky In the last column I outlined how rebreathers work. There are many brands available and more coming on the market though the basic concepts for all of them are the same.  Rebreathers are complicated. There …

Five pieces of awesome dive gear, untested but worthy of your dive time Roland St. John Sterling Hammerhead Shark $75 Conservationist, videographer and artist Roland St. John has created this latest lovely piece for his Seaplicity Collection. It’s approximately 2 inches of sterling silver on an optional 2mm Omega chain. One of …

Five pieces of awesome dive gear, untested but worthy of your dive time   Poseidon SE7EN Rebreather $6,895 Developed from the world’s first recreational rebreather, the SE7EN reflects next generation innovation. New hardware and firmware make for a faster and more reliable unit, bluetooth connectivity means easy updates and dive …

ByJean-Michel Cousteau As an architecture student, I learned that good design is usually derived from shapes found in nature. Pure geometry is interesting enough, but it is cold. There is logic and proportion in living organisms that has the capacity to fill us with joy. My favorite shape was …

Most people have at least one phobia and some can can be dangerous for you and your buddy. Know what triggers your fearand how to stay in control in spite of it  Text by Madeline Ricchiuto When you first hit the water, either taking the Great Leap off the …

The Caribbean reef squid is a shooter’s delight and challenge Text and Photograph by David Fleetham In many areas of the world squid can be very difficult to locate during the day; not around the island of Bonaire. The Caribbean reef squid population at this diver-friendly island can be …

Ocean Adventure by Remote Control The Blue Planet DVD/Blu-ray Possibly one of the most impressive and beautiful series to ever grace the small screen. Five years in the making and narrated by David Attenborough, it’s become an all time BBC classic. Covering everything an ocean lover could desire, from plankton to …

Tonnes of fuel oil were recovered from the aging wreck but the Coast Guard says it will monitor the remote site for leakage Text by Robert Osborne Grenville Channel is the very epitome of west coast beauty. Rugged, heavily forested mountain slopes plunge precipitously into the deep, dark water …

After many months and a long journey from his birthplace in British Columbia the bronze sculpture, commissioned to mark Divetech’s 20th Anniversary, to be welcomed with a weekend celebration He has travelled thousands of miles to arrive in Grand Cayman, and on Saturday, April 12 the bronze sculpture Guardian of …

Our antipodean friends at Sport Diving magazine have just released this rather good five minute film about Chuuk Lagoon. Filmed nearly 70 years after Operation Hailstone laid waste to the Japanese fleet, it features a local captain’s historical retelling. CHUUK: Adventure on the Thorfinn from Sportdiving Magazine on Vimeo. …

Women Divers Deck the Halls Six new members were inducted into the prestigious Women Divers Hall of Fame on March 29 at the Beneath the Sea Awards Banquet. Barbara Allen: Pioneer, Instructor, Ocean Advocate. Kristine Barsky: Marine Biologist, Environmentalist, Author, Videographer. Emma L. Hickerson: Marine Researcher, Science Interpreter, Photographer. …

Text by Lynnette Ang Photography by Aaron Wong  South Korea’s aging sea women still dive for the ocean’s bounty  On this chillymid-July morning we arrive in Udo, bristling with anticipation. The tiny speck is just two miles (3.5km) off the eastern side of Jeju Island, South Korea, due south of the …

The last issue of 2013 has just rolled off the printers and it looks fantastic! Volume 39 Issue 1 will be hitting subscribers over the next week or two depending on where you live and seasonal postal services. New subscribers can download the issue onto their iPhone or iPad. …

The dive live-aboard Nautilus Swell travels back in time to an archipelago and culture thousands of years old Text and Photography by Dale Sanders   Haida Gwaii is a remote and windswept archipelago more than 60 miles (100km) off the north coast of British Columbia, inhabited by the Haida since, …

It’s true. Time flies when you’re having fun. Hard to believe but this month marks the beginning of the Aggressor Fleet’s 30th year in business. Three decades the luxurious live-aboard dive boats have been ferrying divers to the world’s great dive sites! It was November 17, 1984, when the …

First magnetometer survey of Hamilton and Scourge may reveal new debris field artefacts of the Lake Ontario heritage wrecks Text and Photos by Joseph Frey   Sailing out of Ontario’s historic Port Dalhousie on a glorious late June morning I imagine the treed shoreline of western Lake Ontario looks …

More than a decade ago a group of technical divers made a series of ‘unofficial’ deep dives on the heritage wrecks of Hamilton and Scourge in Lake Ontario. This is their story Text by Scott Stitt   It feels like we’ve been dropping forever. Descending through 150 feet (46m), …

The Niagara Divers’ Association will present its 19th annual Shipwrecks Symposium Saturday, April 6, 2013 and DIVER Magazine will be there! A popular event for Ontario and New York State area divers, the event is staged in Welland, Ontario. This one-day symposium on shipwrecks features multimedia presentations and internationally …

Available for free, for both iPhone and iPad users, this handy little app will tell you all about the luxurious liveaboard cruises offered by the prestigious Aggressor Fleet and Dancer Fleets. Get to know the liveaboard lifestyle and learn about the beautiful yachts that will take you on a memorable dive vacation to some of the …

  Some divers handle it better than others, but underwater we all deal with it for better or worse Text by Bret Gilliam The following continues a discussion on diving and stress that appears in the current issue of DIVER Magazine, Volume 37 Number 8, now available on newsstands. …

Photo: Kids Sea Camp   Text by Garth Eichel 1. Provide regular reminders Kids are hesitant to ask questions in front of their peers, especially if they’re already certified and feel like they’re supposed to know it all. In dive briefings, go over basic skills like hand signals, gear …

Photo by David Benz / Kids Sea Camp   The following are a range of dive programs available for children of all ages and abilities. Skin Diver/Junior Skin Diver (NAUI) — this certification class is for kids eight years old and older, teaching the process of snorkelling and breath-hold …

DIVER Magazine contributor Jill Heinerth is an authority on sidemount diving and she’s also a professional filmmaker, so an instructive video on this technique of rigging gas cylinders a different way, was a certainty. Heinerth and fellow sidemounter Jeff Loflin recently released their 64-minute introductory DVD on sidemount diving …

Text by Jeremy Heywood Correction: When this story appeared in DIVER Volume 37 Number 4, Dr. Mica Endsley was inadvertently referred to as he, not she. We apologize for this error. Experts agree: situation awareness is critically important to diver safety. But because it’s regarded as an advanced skill …

Dive into the underwater wilderness of the Pacific Northwest in this new book then grab your gear and go get wet! Photo by David Hall   David Hall’s sumptuous volume, Beneath Cold Seas, is a celebration of British Columbia diving and a perfect fit for this, DIVER’s first Big …

Project Pink Tank is on a mission to get to the bottom of it. Text by Lisa Sonne More than 400 scuba enthusiasts, including open water, advanced, technical, and instructor level divers, are participating in “Project Pink Tank,” a multi-phase investigation into the relationships between scuba diving and the …

Second in series of reports on Rebreather Forum 3 by Michael Menduno. Dr. Andrew Fock, head of hyperbaric medicine at The Albert Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, himself an accomplished rebreather diver, took the RF3 stage Saturday morning with an important and sobering presentation on the risks of rebreather diving, …

The longest running event of its kind, the UnderwaterPhotography.com annual photo competition is a rousing celebration of sub-sea shooting   The UnderwaterPhotography.com annual photo contest needs little introduction. It’s the longest running online event of its kind and if you’re looking to build a ‘rep’ in the cadre of …