California scuba diving is popular among tourists from all over the world, as well as among the local Californian residents. The pleasant California climate and the abundance of great dive spots in the Pacific Ocean provide an excellent environment for California scuba diving. The water temperatures vary depending in season and exact location, and upwelling deep water can have a significant impact even on the surface temperature. Generally speaking, you will find the warmest California scuba diving locations in Southern California, e.g. around Santa Catalina and the San Clemente islands. Here, the surface temperature can exceed 75° F (24° C) during late summer. California scuba diving at great depths will typically involve a water temperature in the 48° - 72° F (9° - 22° C) range. California scuba diving do take place even during the winter, but you should keep in mind that the surface temperatures can go down to around 50° F (10° C) during the coldest months. It is recommended to wear a full 1/4" (7mm) wetsuit during California scuba diving, including boots, hood and gloves. This is especially important if you plan to do several dives in the same day since the heat loss can be significant even though the water might feel reasonably warm.
California scuba diving school
It is not hard to find a California scuba diving school, since scuba diving is very popular in this region. You can find a California scuba diving school in pretty much any major city, since almost all the large urban areas in California (with the capital city Sacramento as one notable exception) are located along the Pacific coastline. This means that you can find a good California scuba diving school regardless of whether you are in a metropolis such as San Francisco and Los Angeles, or in a comparatively smaller city such as San Diego, San Bernardino, San Jose or Oakland.
California scuba diving lesson
One advantage with California scuba diving schools is that they are often located near the Pacific Ocean. The number of pool dives can therefore be limited and you can have your first California scuba diving lesson directly in the ocean. The PADI Open Water Certification will for instance require 5 confined water dives and 4 open water dives, but when you choose a California scuba diving school near the beach you can usually decide to have your initial California scuba diving lesson in (shallow) saltwater instead of in a traditional freshwater pool. This is of course and advantage if you plan to do mostly saltwater dives in the future, since you will learn from the start how to control your buoyancy in saltwater. A California scuba diving lesson in the ocean will also be more similar to “the real thing” since there will be distractions, underwater animals to watch, an uneven sea floor, etcetera.
California scuba diving certification
Before you pick a California scuba diving school, it is important to find out which type of scuba diving certification you can receive. Two of the most well-known scuba diving organisations are PADI and NAUI, but some dive schools prefer to offer other forms of California scuba certification. If you encounter a scuba diving school that offers you a less well-known California scuba diving certification, it is important that you check up the organisation to find out whether or not it is considered a reputable California scuba certification. The advantage of choosing a PADI or NAUI certification is that these organisations have set standards and are famous world-wide. Their requirements are therefore known by dive shops, companies that rent out scuba diving equipment etcetera. There are however other organisations that issue California scuba certification that are of just as high-quality (or even higher) than PADI and NAUI – they are just not as famous.
