Underwater Navigation Course
“We have
always been taught that navigation is the result of
civilization, but modern archaeology has demonstrated
very clearly that this is not so.” Thor Heyerdahl
It
could be argued that navigation has held a special
fascination for our species since we first walked
upright. Certainly, the history of exploration and
discovery – the sisters to navigation – would have been
a different cloth were it not woven with early attempts
at accurate navigation. Long before the arrival of the
magnetic compass to Europe, the Vikings guided by
nothing more than bravado, a mighty sense of adventure
and a rudimentary navigational aid akin to a sundial,
sailed across the top of the Atlantic Ocean and made
landfall in present-day Newfoundland, Canada. Thor
Heyerdahl (a Viking of a different vintage) sailed his
balsa-wood raft “Kon-Tiki” from Peru to Polynesia in
1949 using only the stars to guide him. And modern-day
adventurers use the network of Global Positioning
Satellites and dashboard-mounted receivers
 to
find the nearest Chinese restaurant without moving from
the front seat of their Lexus. All instances of
navigation’s appeal and usefulness.
Experienced divers
are intensely fascinated by navigation. It allows them
to make their way back to a special spot discovered on
an earlier dive. They use the tricks and techniques of
navigation to find a safe exit point at the end of a
dive without the need for an uncomfortable surface swim.
And they draw comfort and reassurance from a reel and
continuous line anchored near their ascent line when
wandering around on a new and unfamiliar wreck.
Your SDI
Underwater Navigation Specialty course will help you
overcome the obstacles inherent in finding your way
underwater. We will show you how easy simple navigation
is and how it will help you both above and below the
surface. We will discuss natural aids such as sand
ripples or reef formations, which can accurately predict
your route. Tools such as mechanical compasses are a
surprising challenge to the novice but we will help you
unravel the challenge and teach the practical skills and
techniques you'll need to use them effectively.
These days,
electronic aids such as a digital compasses and
hand-held GPS units can make any of us an accurate
navigator. Our travels may never make the history books
as Erik the Red's or Thor Heyerdahl's did, but at least
we will be able to find our way around a dive site with
less stress and challenge!
When you are done
with the academics of this course, you will meet with
your SDI instructor at your local SDI Dive Center. You
will take part in a short review of your work here
online and then begin the exciting part of any dive
course... diving! You will get hands-on lessons in how
to prepare yourself and your gear for your first dives
into a whole new world of possibilities. What are you
waiting for?
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