Cage Diving

For those who can’t pull themselves away from the TV during ‘Shark Week’, cage diving is the perfect adventure for them. Cage Diving gives shark enthusiasts the opportunity to view their favorite predators in their natural environment.

The main way to experience shark diving is in a cage attached to the side of a boat. Divers are dressed in wetsuits and masks, and air is supplied either through hoses connected to the boat or with snorkels. To encourage the arrival of the sharks, boating crews throw chum out into the water to lure them near the cages.

There are also a few cage diving operators that have submersible cages that lower you down to around 25’ deep so the sharks can be seen from all angles.

Some of the species of sharks that can be viewed during cage diving are the Black Tip, White Tip Reef, Gray Nurse, Tiger, and the most feared Great White Sharks.

The most popular locations for cage diving:

· Shark Alley, South Africa

· Farralon Islands, near San Francisco, United States

· Isla Guadalupe, off the Baja Peninsula, Mexico

· Tiger Island, Bahamas

· The Neptune Islands, off the Eyre Peninsula in Australia

· The Great Barrier Reef, off the Northeastern coast of Australia

Scuba Diving Safety

The most important scuba diving safety tip is to remain within the no-decompression limits and to ascend slowly on every dive.

Do not swim directly to the surface from depth. Rather, on each and every dive you make, pause your ascent for a minute or two at 20 feet, and again at 10 feet to make preventative decompression stops. Making a habit of this proceedure while scuba diving will keep you from painful decompression sickness.

Scuba Diving And The Weather

Know local weather conditions before you go on a scuba diving vacation.

Make sure the water and weather conditions are safe before you dive. Water conducts electricity so stop swimming, scuba diving, boating or any other water activities as soon as you see or hear a storm. Getting struck by lightning isn’t pleasant and heavy rains can make certain areas dangerous.

Also, protect your skin by wearing a waterproof sunscreen with a sun protection factor containing a high rating of at least SPF 15. The sun is much stronger in most tropical locations where scuba diving and adventure travel is popular, and water intensifies the sun's rays with reflection, so the more the better in terms of sun screen and sun protection.

Scuba Diving And Air Supply

Some simple tips to regulating your air supply while scuba diving on your adventure travel vacation, no matter which exciting destination you choose to explore:

* Monitoring air supply is an important factor to safe scuba diving so you should practice controlling and reducing your air consumption.
* Swim slowly and efficiently and don't wave your arms around or make rapid body movements.
* Rather than hyperventilating, deliberately take long, slow breaths and exhale slowly. Experienced scuba divers never hold their breath. * If you are still having trouble keeping up with the air-consumption of your dive buddies or the dive guide, make a point of swimming ten feet shallower than the others in your group. Depth directly affects your air consumption.
* Relax, control your breathing, and you will become a better diver.

Scuba Diving And Boat Traffic

One very important scuba diving safety tip involves scuba diving with boat traffic.

* Before surfacing from a dive, look and carefully listen for boat engines, which can approach very rapidly, seemingly out of nowhere.
* When swimming on the surface, always be prepared to make an emergency dive should a boat approach.
* Above all, never attempt to swim back to your dive boat from underwater. Slowly ascend a few yards away from the boat, and approach it on the surface only when you are sure that a crew member has seen you and that the boat is stationary.

Of course, many adventure travel destinations are remote and so you won't have to deal with boat traffic, but you should always think about safety when you duck under and surface. Diving and adventure travel absolutely go hand in hand, so whether you travel to Costa Rica, Fiji or Hawaii, make the most of your diving adventure!

Jules Undersea Lodge

Beneath a quiet lagoon in Key Largo, Florida lies a one of a kind underwater lodge. The Jules Undersea Lodge lies 21 feet below the water, and is accessible only with scuba gear.

The lodge was once used as a research lab that explored the continental shelf outside of Puerto Rico, now it’s located inside the Key Largo Undersea Park’s Emerald Lagoon. Guests use scuba gear to reach the lodge, and enter it through a large hole in the bottom that is always open. To keep water from entering into the lodge, compressed air is constantly pumped in. The habitat has it’s own support system, and also a system that is run from a 24 hour crew on land.

Once inside, the underwater motel offers guests views of the underwater park through 42” round windows, a stocked kitchen, movies, books, hot showers, and even air conditioning.

Guests can relax in the underwater habitat, or get out and explore the marine park. The underwater park features a marine archaeology exhibit, underwater research and education habitat, and a mangrove lagoon full of marine life. The park offers a variety of dive certification classes, including an Underwater Habitat/Aquanaut dive specialty certification.

Non-divers can experience the lagoon and the lodge after a three-hour introductory course.

Scuba Diving Rules

Many popular scuba diving sites have strict rules to preserve the natural beauty found in their diving locations.

Examples of such rules include:
* Not touching animals
* Not removing samples of fauna, flora and marine plants
* No spear fishing
* No capturing live animals and coral for souvenirs

Make sure you know what the rules are in your scuba diving area, and follow them scrupulously. The goal of eco tourism is to enjoy nature without disturbing it and to support resorts and companies that promote ecology and environmental preservation. So do your part!