The Evolution of a Divemaster

I've always wanted to learn how to scuba dive but always had something else to do, no time to do it, or some other excuse that kept me away from the water. Then my friend Ben (There is your plug Ben…you happy?) told me that he had bought scuba lessons for two and the other person had backed out. He offered to give me the lesson if I went through class with him. Not being one to turn down the free classes, I signed up with him. Before the classes even started, I mentioned to a few of my other friends that Ben and I had signed up with another friend of ours (Kris) and they were interested as well so they signed up too. The first day of class came around and myself and 4 of my friends walked into class not really knowing what to expect. We found out that our instructor was Tattoo Bob. Bob definitely allowed us to have fun in class but made us learn as well. After all, that's why we were all there. We went through the four days of classroom work and the four days of pool sessions having more and more fun as every class went by. Next step…open water!

The day finally came when we got to put the skills we learned to the test in the cold waters of the Puget Sound. It was a cold, beautiful Saturday morning in October…probably raining truth be told. We put our gear on like pros. Anticipation was building. I had wanted to do this for a long time and it was finally gonna happen. We got into the water and did our weight checks and made a small surface swim out to a buoy that had been set before we got to the beach. As we headed down into the depths of the Sound I realized I couldn’t see crap and I didn’t like it. Because of the rain in the last few weeks, it had caused the visibility to go horribly bad. I had never felt claustrophobic before but I did now and I did not like it. I began to panic a bit, breathing really heavy, not thinking straight and so on. The number one rule in diving is never hold your breath and that definitely wasn't a problem for me. After being down there for a few minutes I put what I learned in class to work for me: stop, think, act. I got my breathing under control and successfully finished the first set of skills. Due to the really bad vis, Bob decided it wasn't a good idea to take an underwater "tour". Once back on land, Bob explained to us that it was rarely that bad and to please not judge diving on this one day. I took what Bob said to heart and said, "Forget it. I’m out. This isn't fun." It took several hours for Ben and Kris to convince me just to finish the next day. Ben used the “I paid for it” excuse and Kris used the “You spent a bunch of money…you owe it to yourself to at least finish” approach, which is what it took to convince me.



The next day came around and reluctantly I suited up and made my way to the buoy. As we descended down, it was like a totally different view. I could see further than six inches. I didn’t feel so closed in and I could kinda see why people choose to do this. We finished up our skills for the day and we got to go on the "tour" of the area. “Beautiful and amazing” were the only things I could think of. This is why I wanted to dive.



After the dive, we all went to the Buzz Inn Steakhouse in Mukilteo (RIP) to get our books and certifications signed off. We made it! While sitting there waiting for our books to be handed back, Bob mentioned that he was giving an Advanced Open Water class the following weekend and that it would be a good idea to take it. Even with so little experience, Bob said we would be fine. After just having had an amazing time, it was a no brainer. We all decided to take the class. The great thing about the Advanced class is that there is no classroom work. You fill out your book, give it to your instructor and go diving, which is what we wanted to do. We met Friday night for our night dive. During this dive, I encountered my first octopus. Although it was only about a foot in overall length, I had never seen one while walking on the beach so I was in total amazement. Saturday we did our deep dive, which always had interested me. Bob and his Divemaster, Phil, took us slowly down to 100 feet. Triple digits below sea level; this was a good dive. Our second dive was fun as well. It was our buoyancy control dive. Bob and Phil took us down to around 70 feet making sure we went down slow enough that we were able to adjust our buoyancy so we would stay off the ocean floor. Sunday came around and it was starting to snow. This worried one of my friends and she didn’t feel safe. If you don’t feel safe, you don’t dive. It’s pretty simple. Bob said this was fine and those who wanted to dive could. Those who don’t don’t have to and they could make up the other two dives. Our first dive was a navigational dive. We had to do square patterns and out and back patterns using only the compass…one of the most important tools you have while under water. The next was kinda a free dive but we called it our fish identification dive. Bob didn't go with us. Since we were certified open water divers he didn't have to. Ben and I decided to go out looking for fish but mainly just trying to get comfortable diving with each other and definitely working on our buoyancy. Two more successful dives and one more certification…next up Rescue Diver.



Ben and I both decided we needed to get a few more dives under our belt before we took the Rescue Diver class. After all, we are only 9 open water dives into this. We weren’t quite ready to rescue people were we? It took about two years before Ben and I took the class. During this time, Kris continued on ahead, getting his Divemaster certification back and continued on to become an instructor. I took the next few years to fall in love with diving. All other hobbies were pushed to the back burner. I didn’t see friends who didn’t dive as often as I used to. I made friends just in visiting the dive shops. I was heading to the beach just to meet people there and dive with them. With every dive I enjoyed it more and more. The more I enjoyed it, the more I wanted other people to experience this new found love that I had found. One day Kris called me up and said that he can tell I was loving diving and noticed how often I dove and was making new friends. He asked what I would think about becoming a Divemaster for him. Knowing that I have wanted to continue my education I told him yes. Ben and I got our Rescue books and went through them together. Kris put together a great presentation for us for the class room setting. The Rescue class was by far my favorite. You really get to learn some fun, yet life-saving skills, some self-help, and skills for panicked or distressed divers as well as learning how to locate a missing diver and how to bring an unconscious diver up. Administering emergency oxygen and CPR were also in this course. When you get done with this class you really feel like should something happen you could handle it, but more importantly, you learn how to recognize problems before they happen. You will never be able to stop all problems; you never know when a regulator will free flow, but it becomes second nature if it does. After taking a written test and passing, I added one more certification to my accomplishments.



Once I had my Rescue card, I started sitting through class with Kris helping where I was able to, which usually meant handing out paper work, collecting tests, setting up his computer, etc. We had a word for it, but I’m trying to keep this professional. As a Divemaster candidate I had a lot of fun. I met people in class that I am really good friends with now even outside of diving. Some even invited me to Cabo with them three weeks after knowing them...but that's a whole other story. With Kris never having had a Divemaster candidate and me doing a lot of fun dives it took awhile to get through class. There was a lot of work through many class type settings, with yet another great presentation by Kris and Lisa*, who helps Kris with well…everything actually. Going through many books, learning more physics and the body’s reaction to diving kinda took some fun out of it. When you take a hobby you love then turn it into a science lesson...what can I say? The mapping project I had to complete for my DM certification was more difficult than I thought it would be. There were many dives with a lot of stuff going on at once; compass headings to take and measuring distance between important objects then having to draw it out. But even while this is going on, you are still learning. Being able to observe and help in the pool definitely lets you practice your basic skills over and over until you get them to demonstration quality.



What I have learned through this several year journey is that you’re going to get out of diving what you put into it. I have had so much fun helping people get their certifications and helping them find a love for a sport that I love so much. I have met some amazing people and gone on some amazing trips. I've even learned a few things about myself that I never knew. I do not know what the future holds for me, but I do know that diving will be in it. To steal a phrase from my mentor, “A good diver is always learning”, so it looks like more classes for me.



Stay wet, stay safe…

John Pendergraft

(*edited by Lisa)

My First Six Months

Diving. I can honestly say I never thought of doing it before. I’ve always liked watching shows about sea life. I even considered marine biology as a career at one time when I was young, but I never even considered diving. But then I met a guy who became a dive instructor and there was a trip to Cozumel Mexico planned, so I better learn how to dive or be left on the boat.


So, after several days of Kris taking me through the steps and techniques of diving, and drinking a lot of pool water, mask clearing, that’s a whole other story, I became a certified diver. Two months later a group of us flew into Cozumel to do some warm water diving. I was so excited, if nothing else, then to dive without a dry suit. The first day we got there, we had to do a weight test out in front of the hotel. It was a little nerve racking to get into the water as the waves crashed into the rock alcove and snorkelers were hanging out not giving much of a consideration that we were carrying the extra weight of tanks, not to mention fins and masks.

After finally getting the nerve and the right timing, I slipped into the water. It was so warm. Quite a difference from Washington’s cold, green water. I put my face in and looked into a blue, clear world, filled with the most colorful fish. WOW!! This was great! I may never go home. We swam in the shallows , only about twenty feet deep with the yellow tangs and the spotted drum fish. I wanted to keep swimming out farther and farther just to see what else I could find. A little bit of a habit I have, much to Kris’ aggravation.

The next, day bright and early, we were on the boat heading out to see what was waiting for us on the reefs. Surprisingly, I wasn’t nervous, just excited to see more of what I had seen the day before. We descended down to the reef and it seemed that you could see forever. The fish were amazing. Huge parrot fish and groupers, silver barracudas and giant lobsters just to name a few of the amazing creature that we saw. And the best part, you just glided through the reef letting the current take you. Which did make it a little hard when you needed to swim back to see something that another person found and you had missed.

All of us had talked about wanting to see some turtles. But alas, none were seen after a few dives. We thought it wasn’t going to happen and then there one was above us heading up for a breath of air. I had almost thought we had lost him when I came around a corner of the reef and nearly ran into him. I had to do some quick maneuvering as the current pushed me towards him. I made my way around and back to him as I watched him chew off chunks of coral, as a large grey angel fish stayed by his side to eat up the leftovers. After that we saw several turtles. On one dive we came upon a sleeping nurse shark. I had expected that I would be nervous to come upon one of these, but I came up quite close to it. Close enough that I considered petting it. Surprisingly, I was able to keep my hands to myself. I figured I should err on the side of caution incase the shark decided it was snack time. It didn’t take to long though for the shark decide it was time to move on.

Doing a night dive came up. Everyone wanted to do it, so I guess I was on board. Truthfully, this I was nervous about. With all of these big fish, I was afraid I would come across something in the dark and totally freak out. Down we went, into the dark this time. I stayed close to Kris. It was so strange to have such limited visibility, especially after being able to see “forever” during the day dives. Alas, nothing scary happened and we were able to see some creatures that we were less likely to see during the day. There was an octopus, eels and a Spanish lobster to name a few. All in all, I would do a night dive again.

The trip as a whole was wonderful, and we all look forward to going back again this April. Though getting me out to dive is still a little difficult, especially in the cold water, I can say that learning how to dive has been the best thing I have ever done. I stepped out of my comfort zone and discovered another world that most people will never see. I feel so lucky that I am a small part of this world and I thank Kris for introducing me to it and being forever patient with me as I still grow and learn.

Brigette Townsend

A Northwest Diver's First Warm Water Trip

It’s quite an adventure preparing for your first dive trip. It’s a lot of planning even for an experienced diver, but being so new to diving, every step involved some intense thinking! Making sure you have all of your dive equipment and still leave room for personal stuff in your luggage involves a little bit of finesse. Our friend Terry kept telling us that we didn’t need to bring a lot of extra clothes because we’d be spending much of our time in bathing suits and wet suits on the boat. But you still have to bring the “necessities”. Kris made sure that we were prepared ahead of time by having me bring my suitcase over to his house two weeks before we were to leave and packing up all of my gear then weighed it to make sure we didn’t go over the magic 50 pound mark. He had never been on a long distance dive trip either and was a bit anxious about the whole luggage thing. We all expended a lot of brain power making sure we checked and double checked our lists! I think I must have gone over my list of dive gear and what I needed to bring about 100 times. I knew if I forgot something after I got on the boat, I wouldn’t be going in the water. There was no way I was going to be left behind!

We knew that diving in Cozumel would involve boat diving and drift diving techniques. We were prepared…well, kind of. Katie, Brigette and I were pretty new to scuba diving and had read our books, watched the videos and taken our Knowledge Review tests on the subjects. It’s different than actually doing it though. I was worried that I’d let someone down by not knowing what the heck I was doing. I didn’t want to let the group down or hold anyone back. I also didn’t want to do anything stupid that Kris might think was reflective of his teaching. He’s been pretty patient with me and my bumbling through this process and I didn’t want to let him down. I didn’t want to let myself down either.

There were 10 divers in our group. With the exception of me and my pals Brigette and Katie, everyone else had WAY more experience as divers. My roommate, Karen, was boasting how she was going to complete her 500th…yes 5…0…0…dive while in Cozumel. I was just barely into double digits and she was talking 500. No pressure there.

We completed 15 dives while in Cozumel. 80 degree water…100 degree days. A person could really get used to this! No wonder some people experience something like this and decide to limit their future diving to only warm water. The clarity of the water there is unbelievable. The first time you descend, you almost go on sensory overload. There is so much to see. The deepest I dove was 113 feet. Even being that far down, you can still see the surface. Amazing! We went out on our boat, the Renegado, for 5 days in a row. Most days we did two morning dives then we’d come back to the hotel for lunch and go back out on the boat for an afternoon dive. Drift diving is great! The boat drops you off, you swim around for awhile, and when you surface, the boat is there to pick you up! Sweet!

The dive company we worked with, Dive Paradise, was a smoothly run business. Our Divemasters, Jaime and Santos, were very attentive to us “newbies” and were patient as we fumbled around underwater. They were also really great about pointing out sea life to us. Santos had a “squeaky” signal thing on his BC that he’d use when he spotted something. He had showed us hand signals for specific animals so we’d know what to look for.

I should tell you that when we were getting ready for our trip, I kind of became obsessed with wanting to see a sea turtle. I REALLY wanted to see one up close and personal…and I did! I even got a silver turtle charm while shopping in Cozumel. The turtle charm worked because we ended up seeing quite a few of them after I bought it! Throughout our diving we also saw nurse sharks, king crab, large groupers, beautifully colored tropical fish, eels, huge lobsters, and even a seahorse. It was a far cry from the small fish and anemone we were used to at home.

With the way Hotel Cozumel and Dive Paradise are set up, it made our diving experience worry-free. There was a dock right at the hotel that we would be picked up from each morning. There were also dive lockers right at the dock so we didn’t have to haul gear back and forth from our room every day. There was also a restaurant right next to the dock that we ate lunch at every day.

One day we only dove once in the morning because we took a long boat ride all the way out to the southern point of the island (Punta Sur) to dive “Devil’s Throat”. This dive is supposed to be a kind of “rite of passage” for divers in Cozumel. We were told it was a long “swim through” that you had to have a certain amount of air in your tank before they would even let you enter it. All I could picture in my mind was some narrow, dark tunnel that didn’t have an easy exit. Panic began to creep into my mind. I was more than a little nervous. Everyone else on the boat was so excited. I told Terry that I wasn’t sure that I could do it. Terry has claustrophobia issues and I knew that I’d get the straight facts from him. He told me that he’d done it and it wasn’t bad, but said that I didn’t have to do it if I wasn’t comfortable. He also told me that it was a pretty open area and not as confined as what I’d pictured. I ended up staying with the group and going through what is called “The Cathedral” and portions of “Devil’s Throat”. We learned later that the Divemasters didn’t take us through all of the “Throat” part of the dive because some of us didn’t have dive lights and it was pretty dark. We completed most of it though. Enough to say we’ve done it anyway!

Towards the middle of the week, some people asked about doing a night dive. What? At night? Pitch dark? Not being able to see other divers? I don’t know about that! I had done a dive at twilight at home, but never in complete darkness! Peer pressure being what it is and not wanting to be left behind, I followed along. I didn’t want it to be something that I wished I had done but chickened out. I can do this…I think! We all had dive lights and the Divemasters went over details of night diving skills while we were getting geared up. By this time, I had complete confidence in our Divemasters so I tried not to dwell on my fear of the unknown. I felt a little better when Karen told me she was nervous too. She didn’t have much experience with night diving despite her 500 dives. Phew! A little relief anyway. We agreed to stay close to each other. Again my fears were unfounded. It wasn’t as dark as I thought it would be. The water is so clear there and with everyone’s lights on it was easy to see each other and keep together. Karen and I forgot all about staying super close (of course we didn’t get too far away…beings as we were buddied up you know). We got so into looking for creatures that we forgot that it was night time. Night diving brings out a different kind of sea life. We saw quite a few spotted moray eels, king crab, a couple of octopus and lobster. I’m really glad I did it.

I overcame many fears while we were there. My fear of doing something stupid on the boat was always at the back of my mind…plus having a problem getting out of the water, swimming in caves (remember my claustrophobia?), accidentally touching the coral reef (big no-no!) and diving in the dark. I even kept my buoyancy pretty well under control! I only started to accidentally ascend once! Santos and John rescued me and I was back with the group. I have to remember not to panic and think through what I’ve learned. I still need to master maneuvering around without using my arms so much, but I’m sure that will come in time. Kris keeps asking me what I’m using my arms for and I tell him “rudders”. Oh well! I won’t make zero-to-perfect overnight!

For now, it’s back to “green water” and cold weather diving in my dry suit!

Lisa Grimm - Northwest Diver

My first dive at Possession Point

It was a Saturday, late morning, I and several others decided to dive the old ferry at Possession Point on the South tip of Whidbey Island. We loaded up our boats and made the short trip from Mukilteo.

I was a bit concerned; the current was swift, and the tide was moving. There was no where to tie up the boats; so we made the dive a live boat dive. My dive partner was my ex-wife, Kari. I had not dived this site in the past and was concerned because of the current. I was more concerned because this was Kari’s first boat dive, in deep water and strong current.

The plan was made to enter the water and swim to the buoy as fast we could and then grab the buoy’s anchor line; we would then follow the anchor line down to the bottom. My fears were quickly put to rest. We grabbed the line, dropped about ten feet and the current just disappeared! After that, the dive was simply a pleasure.
We dropped to the bottom...80 feet. We explored the exterior wreck for a short time, it was in poor condition. Not being wreck certified, we did not enter the interior of the wreck. On the wreck we saw a monster; a Lingcod fish, it had to have been 5’ long.., it was HUGE!

While at the wreck, just to the east I noticed the sea floor disappeared. We swam to the edge. The sea floor dropped out of sight. I had heard there was a drop off there and decided to explore it a little. We swam over the edge, descending to about 110 feet.

We noticed many cave-like holes going from just a couple of feet deep, to so deep you could not see the back of the cave with a light. The caves were anywhere from 15 inches in diameter to about 3 feet. As I shined my dive light into these holes, I could see that they were lined with what seemed to be thousands of shrimp. I tried to catch a couple in my hand but they were just too quick for me.

When we entered the water, the sun was shining; it was about 9:00 in the morning. On the bottom, at the wreck, I was amazed at the clarity of the water; we could easily see 50 feet. After dropping over the edge, it was cool the way the sun light penetrated the water. It was like one of those paintings, or a picture, with the sun rays piercing the clouds. I swam away from the wall, my body floating over the abyss. It was a good thing I had a good understanding of buoyancy control, I later learned the bottom was some 900 feet down! I had swum about 20 feet away from the wall and turned to look back. I wanted to get a better view of the wall with the sun light hitting the wall.

When I turned, I saw one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen while diving. The wall glittered like jewels in the night sky. The wall was littered with years of fishing tackle and lures. When the sun light struck lures, the wall simply sparkled. It was truly a beautiful sight.

GPS Coordinates: To Buoy (N. 47 53.80 W. 122 23.14); To Wreck (N. 47 53.82 W. 122 23.56).

History of the Kehloken Ferry

History of the Kehloken Ferry:On 30 November, 1937 an all-wood ferry sailed into Puget Sound. Built in 1927, her builders probably had no idea that the ferry would be serving the public well into the 21st century. (Although admittedly the Kehloken is not currently serving in her originally intended capacity.)

Emerging from the yard in her new colors--white superstructure, black hull, buff trim and crimson smokestacks, and with flying the Black Ball flag, the ex-Golden State went to work on 7 January, 1938 on the Suquamish-Indianola-Seattle run with her new name: Kehloken. She worked this route for a few years until replaced by the Illahee, at which time the ferry was moved to the Seattle-Winslow route.

While at work on the route the ferry carried out one of the saddest duties of her long career--she was the ferry that was loaded with the Japanese residents of Bainbridge Island that were sent to interment camps.

For the next ten years the Kehloken worked between Seattle and Winslow. Only when traffic became too much for her capacity did she finally leave the run in 1950 to the Southworth-Vashon-Fauntleroy route.

With newer vessels coming into the fleet, the Kehloken went on supplemental duty starting in 1959, working the summer season and evening commuter runs on the Vashon route until 1969. She then went on the Kingston route working weekends and summers until 1972. Her last sailing was on Labor Day of 1972, from Edmonds to Kingston.

For a few years she lingered at Eagle Harbor. The State was unwilling to put money into the nearly 50 year old, all wood vessel with a carrying capacity of around 35.

She was sold for $25,000.00 in 1975. Her new owner towed the ferry over to Lake Washington to be converted into a club house and restaurant.

After four years of lingering on Lake Washington she was set ablaze in 1979 and burned to the waterline.

The hulk was cleaned up and taken over by the Department of Natural Resources. What remained of the Kehloken was towed out to Possession Point on Whidbey Island and intentionally sunk for use as an artificial reef.

Today, the M/V Kehloken is a popular spot for scuba divers.

GPS Coordinates: To Buoy (N. 47 53.80 W. 122 23.14); To Wreck (N. 47 53.82 W. 122 23.56).

Learn To Scuba Dive - Mask Clearing

YouTube - Learn To Scuba Dive - Mask Clearing

Scuba Skill: Fin Pivot

YouTube - Scuba Skill: Fin Pivot

Learn to Scuba Dive - Regulator Recovery and Clearing

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Making a scuba tank

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How a scuba regulator works

Deconstructed: Scuba Gear : Video : Science Channel