Diving Etiquette
When it comes to scuba diving etiquette, all you really need to know you learned in kindergarten.
Are you familiar with Robert Fulghum’s famous poem* by the same name? I’ve added a few of my own pearls of wisdom (in red) to help guide you to be a considerate, well-mannered diver:
Share everything. Play fair. Safety first. Don’t hit people. Put things back where you found them. Clean up your own mess. Tidy up your gear. Be on time. Don’t take things that aren’t yours. Respect sea life. Say you’re sorry when you hurt somebody. Wash your hands before you eat. Keep the dive area silt free. Flush. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you. Know your equipment. Live a balanced life – learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some. Dive some. Take a nap every afternoon. When you go out in the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands and stick together. Dive with a buddy. Be aware of wonder. Don’t crowd your dive buddies. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that. Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup – they all die. So do we. And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned – the biggest word of all – LOOK.
My best dive experiences happen when folks follow basic etiquette: be considerate, patient, attentive and mindful of others. This goes a long way in tight quarters. For a review of the Dos and Don’ts of diving etiquette, sign up for the Padi Open Water course or a Scuba Diving Refresher. Happy Diving! ~ Rob
*All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten
Photo: PADI