Diving

Recreational diving involves diving as a recreational sport as opposed to professional diving. Scuba diving is a leisure activity that focuses on physical activity, fun and experiencing the underwater world. A basic distinction is made between scuba diving and apnea diving without technical aids, with the latter also being practiced as a competitive sport. Recreational diving is subject to special legal regulations in some countries and requires special training and a permit for the respective diving site.

Nitrox or Enriched Air Nitrox (EAN or EANx) is a breathing gas mixture of nitrogen and oxygen with a higher oxygen content than normal air (usually between 32% and 40% instead of 21%). It is used when diving to slow down the accumulation of nitrogen in the tissue and thus extend the no-decompression time or reduce the risk of decompression sickness. However, the higher partial pressure of oxygen compared to air and other breathing gases simultaneously reduces the maximum diving depth in order to avoid oxygen poisoning (Paul Bert effect).

Technical diving (Tec Diving) uses special breathing gas mixtures that enable the diving depth to be increased without negative effects on the organism and enable decompression times to be shortened. This is different from other areas of recreational diving in that Tec Divers choose more difficult diving conditions, e.g. B. greater depths or cave diving. TecDivers rely even more heavily on the equipment than normal recreational divers. Special pieces of equipment are also required, such as: B. Diving computers specially designed for mixed gases. What is typical is the increased redundancy of the vital pieces of equipment while at the same time limiting it to what is most necessary for the dive.

Source Text: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sporttauchen

Source Pic: Own work,  myself 1998

Diving was one of the reasons I decided to visit the Philippines in 1993. I started diving in Australia in 1990 during a trip of several months through the continent. After the PADI Open Water and Advanced Course in Cairns/Queensland (at Deep Sea Divers Den), I immediately added a diving safari. We took the plane to Cooktown and then slowly to Port Douglas in a converted fishing boat, doing 4-5 dives every day in the then barely touched Great Barrier Reef in the far north of Australia. The highlight was certainly the Ribbon Reefs, Cod Hole, with the huge groupers and free-swimming moray eels.

On the next pages you will find information about diving, especially about diving in the Philippines.

Quelle Bild: E. Garcia / Sabang Beach / PG / PH