Do Your NAUI Instructor’s Course This September

Ever thought of becoming a Scuba Professional? This is a fantastic way to work your way around the world, visit exciting and exotic destinations, make friends with people from all four corners of the globe or start up you own diving operation.

Indigo Scuba Diving Centre will be running a NAUI Instructor’s course this September. Book today!! Call Deon on 083 268 1851 or email us on info "at" indigoscuba.com for more information.

We will teach you how to teach beginner classes, advanced level classes and leadership classes. The training will take place in the classroom, confined water (or pool) and natural environment and you will experience firsthand the NAUI concept of academic freedom.

During this training process, you will not only learn how to teach, but to be a good, competent professional and a trustful and dedicated scuba diving educator.

Becoming a NAUI Instructor today is a trademark of quality, professionalism and commitment to dive education worldwide.

To enter the ITC, you must be 18 years old or older, be a NAUI leader or equivalent (an ITC preparatory course will be mandatory prior the ITC for non NAUI leaders), have a minimum of 60 logged dives, have First Aid and CPR credentials not older than 24 months and be fully equipped (we have an on-site shop stocking all your diving equipment needs).

If you are an Instructor with another association and wish to further your diving education, we have a crossover course which is designed to evaluate competency of already certified instructors and welcome them as NAUI Instructors and members.

Dive Centres around the world are always on the look-out for well-trained, competent and friendly Scuba Diving Instructors and what better way to explore the world – both on land and in the water! Contact us today to find out how you can become a Scuba Professional and use this fantastic skill to travel the world.

This week's Diving Report: 31.5.2010 - 6.6.2010

Rooi Els, Smitswinkel Bay, Long Beach and A-Frame

We’ve had great diving conditions over the past week with the most fantastic dives in Rooi Els, Smitswinkel Bay, Long Beach and at A-Frame.

On Tuesday, we dived Rooi Els. This is a summer dive site but after the South Easterly winds of the previous week, which normally only blow in summer, we were able to do a couple of dives at Balcony! Visibility was between 5 and 8 metres which is quite unexpected for this time of year!

On Wednesday, we did a deep dive on SAS Transvaal and were treated to brilliant visibility of around 15 metres.

The SAS Transvaal is one of five wrecks located in Smitswinkel Bay. They are only accessible by boat, leaving from Miller’s Point Slipway approximately 5 km away.

Formerly a navy frigate, she was one of three loch-class frigates transferred to the SA Navy by the Royal Navy whilst under construction. She was sunk using explosive charges on 3 August 1978 and lies on the sandy bottom at a maximum depth of 34 metres, with her main deck at about 29 metres. Although the wreck has retained its shape quite well, rust has started to take its toll.

On this dive we came across about 6 pyjama sharks sheltering inside the wreck, loads of fish including Hottentot, White Stumpnose, Barred Fingerfin and Red Roman. pink strawberry anemones, mauve sea cucumbers sun-burst soft corals and feather hydroids cover the wreck. We have sometimes also seen scorpion fish on this wreck.

At our safety stop we were joined by a couple of playful and inquisitive seals.

We also dived Longbeach during the week and visibility was around 8 metres. There was so much to see at this training site and we came across an area teeming with puffadder shyshark.

This weekend we had the most amazing dive at A-Frame with visibility of over 15 metres. There were so many fish, pipefish, nudibranchs and with the visibility being so good, the colours were magnificent. On the Northern side of the boulders, we discovered a number of Orange-Clubbed Nudibranchs which we don’t often see, so an exciting dive was had by all!

Check out our video "Indigo Scuba does a winter dive at A-Frame".

Weekend Diving Report: 8 & 9 May

Despite the big swells and very strong North Westerly winds predicted for last week and much of the weekend, we paid a visit to Simon’s Town last Thursday to check out what was happening. The visibility good and the swells were not as big as predicted so we were hopeful for the weekend's dives.

We’d planned to do “first sea dives” with some of our students this past Saturday and qualifying dives with another group on Sunday (today).

Unfortunately some of our students were unable to dive due to blocked ears from colds and flu and last minute clashes in schedules so not everyone who was supposed to be there could make it (no names mentioned!).

Saturday: Long Beach was calm and clear with visibility between 6 and 8 metres. The water temperature was 12˚C. We had two great dives, practised our skills, explored a small wreck, came across a beautiful puffadder shy shark, many Evileye Blaasops, klipvis, longsnout pipefish and octopi in their stony/shelly holes.



After that, we dived at A-Frame. There was quite a bit of swell, which caused poorer visibility (4-5m) and surge whilst diving. The getting in and out was a great experience for new divers and believe us guys, it DOES get easier the more you do it! As can be expected of this beautiful dive site, we had a great time although with the poorer visibility, we did not see as many of the fish we usually do.

We did find banded longsnout pipefish, blue Hottentot, gasflame Nudibranchs, Cape Sole hiding from the surge – and then, of course, the beautiful marine and plant life such as Cape sea urchins, brittlestars, sea anemones and feather stars.

Unfortunately, Sunday morning arrived with a huge storm, lashing rain and very strong North Westerlies and we decided to cancel the dives for the day. Conditions like this are fine for well-seasoned divers, but we really do not believe in putting our Scuba Diver students under unnecessary stress and making them dive in conditions that they are not ready for. To repeat what one of our students said “I want to enjoy – not endure – it’s about the journey!”

Winter Diving is Great!

We’re really excited – winter seems to have arrived and that means we can look forward to diving in Simon’s Town again.

Simon’s Town has a great variety of dive types – from the wrecks of Smitswinkel Bay; beautiful reefs such as Partridge Point, Outer Castle and Batsata Maze; the kelp forests of A-Frame and Castle Rock to diving with Sevengill Cow Sharks at Pyramid Rock.

When I (Kate) learned to dive, it was winter and my first wetsuit was a Zero Rhino Hide number. I just needed a speargun and I would have looked like one of those Bond girls from the 1960s!

Although I don’t use it anymore, I remember my wetsuit with great fondness – I was always warm on a dive. In hindsight, I'm not sure this was because of its fantastic insulating capabilities, but probably more because of the excitement of finally exploring the ocean’s treasures!

Once under water, water temperature or getting cold did not occur to me! I was far too busy concentrating on getting my buoyancy right, watching where my buddy was and thinking random thoughts to myself such as “is that same fish still following me around?”; “what on earth is THAT funny brown and yellow feathery thing” and “this is far more exciting than I ever imagined!”

Don’t let the fact that it is winter put you off learning to dive. Winter diving is some of the best in the Cape and not as cold as you imagine!

What’s more - our Pool Sessions are held in a heated indoor pool and the wetsuits we lend our students for their Scuba Diver courses are all in excellent condition and really nice and warm!

PS My old faithful Rhino Hide wetsuit has been hanging in the cupboard all these years. I tried to put it on the other day, but it is true what they say – your wetsuit does shrink if you stop wearing it!