Remember the newbie who said "hi"?

[Elkman]

I came on here in August, mentioning that I was looking into training.  I was a little bit busy at the time, but I finally found a class that fit my schedule.  I'm currently in the middle of my classroom and confined water sessions at Scuba Center (classroom last Tuesday and this Tuesday, pool last Thursday and this Thursday).  Once I get that done, I'm off to beautiful, sunny Square Lake this weekend for my open water dives.  Assuming I don't freeze to death, I should be finished by Sunday.

Speaking of which: I called the place late last week to make my reservations for open water training, and my coworker in the next cube overheard me and said I was making a mistake by scheduling open water diving in Minnesota at the end of September.  He said he did his open water dives in Square Lake around that time of the year and that he had a miserable time -- it was cold, and everyone there was just freezing.  He thinks I should have made reservations for someplace warm during the wintertime.

I'll have a 7mm wetsuit for the class, and I don't get cold all that easily, but should I be concerned that I'll turn into an ice cube in Square Lake?  I suppose I could wear something under the wetsuit for additional warmth (like Under Armour -- certainly no cotton!) if it would help.  Will it be that cold this time of the year?

Regardless, I'm certainly looking forward to getting my certification!

[tullibee]

7mm if you don't get cold easy shouldn't be too bad - sounds like your like me, and that's what i've been using for much of my cool water stuff lately (superior and crosby pits).  what do you have for hood and gloves?  they can make all the difference!  Hopefully your group is not too big - that way you don't wait around for too many people to do the skills.  It's easier to stay warm if you're moving around instead of sitting still.

welcome to the pond!  have you been properly warned about how addicting this sport can become?

Enjoy!
Jon

[LKunze]

I wouldn't worry too much.  The water temps are still pretty warm yet and a 7mm wetsuit will keep you plenty warm provided you wear a hood and gloves.  I haven't been out in a couple weeks but I'd imagine the water temps are still at least in the low 60's.

[Raysh]

i just did my open water dives at square the 16th and 17th and it was great the water temp was 68 (was warmer in the water then out) had a 7mm  no hood or gloves , but take them if you can just in case . happy diving

[DiverQueen]

Check out the thermocline!!!  You can really feel the difference between 19 and 22 feet, about 8-10 degrees COOLER!  In this sport, "deep is cool!" 
Keep up the good work and enjoy your open water dives!! 

[Elkman]

Well, I did it (and without freezing, even).  I successfully completed the open water dives on Saturday and Sunday, and I'm now a certified Open Water Diver!  (I still need to get the card in the mail, of course, but the instructors signed off on all the paperwork.)

I'm also happy to report that the lake wasn't so cold that I turned blue.  The water temperature was about 59 degrees and about 8 feet of visibility (or less when we kicked up gunk).  Most of us wore hoods and gloves, and I didn't hear anyone complaining about being cold.  (I did notice that a hood made it a little harder to hear the instructor, though.)  I had a 7mm wetsuit, 3mm gloves, and I'm not sure how thick the hood was.

Anyway, I'm glad I have my certification now.  I'm sure I'll have a lot of fun with it.  I'm not surprised to hear about how addicting it can be to dive -- in fact, I was starting to scope out places to dive in Minnesota even before I came back from the Branson, Missouri trip.