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Tips for Scuba Diving - Although these tips are more relevant for shore dives in New England, many of the same principles apply wherever you dive.

1. Dive site selection – Be sure to check the weather, wind, and tides before going diving. Try to pick a beach which is not directly exposed to the wind/waves for a calmer, easier exit and entry. Because there are so many dive sites facing different directions on Cape Ann, at any given time there is usually always a dive site with good conditions.

• NOAA Interactive Marine Observations - http://www.nws.fsu.edu/buoy/ne.html

• NOAA Tide predictor for Boston - http://co-ops.nos.noaa.gov/tides/nyneBOST.html

• NOAA Tide Predictions for US - http://co-ops.nos.noaa.gov/tp4days.html

2. Visibility - For shore dives, visibility is generally worse after it rains. The runoff washes dirt into the water, decreasing visibility. Plankton blooms during the summer months also decrease visibility. Bottom composition has a large effect on visibility. Generally, rocky or hard bottoms offer better visibility than sites with sandy or silty bottoms.

3. Exit and entry – The most important thing to remember for exiting and entering the water is "it's always better to crawl than fall." Rocky dive spots are often slippery, especially at low tide when the parts of the rock that are always wet are exposed in the surf zone. Standing exits and entries put you at significant risk of falling and injuring yourself in the surf zone. Pay attention to the surf. While entering, put your fins on and try to swim out when the surf is going out. For exits, keep your fins on and try to time the waves to wash you up on a rock. When the wave recesses, just crawl up out of the surf zone. Always keep your mask and snorkel or regulator in your mouth during exit and entry - if a big wave does hit you, you'll still be able to see and breathe.

4. Tides – Tides can have a significant effect on the difficulty of entry and exit. Generally the more time a rock spends in the water, the more wet slippery stuff grows on it. Thus, the rocks at low tide are generally more slippery than at high tide and high tide entry exit is usually easier. There are, however, some beaches where the rocks exposed at high tide are much larger than those exposed at low tide, making low tide the easier entry and exit time. Tides can bring a significant change in sea level in New England, so be sure to place any gear you leave on shore above the high tide level, or it may wash away!

5. Dive flags – Many dive flags have a large loop which is the perfect size to put your arm through, freeing up your hands. This is dangerous. If a passing boat were to catch your dive flag, it could severely injure and/or remove your arm, and/or drag you through the water so fast that your regulator and mask are ripped off, leading to death by drowning. Hold the dive flag with your hand, and give it to your buddy if you need both hands free.

6. Surf & surge - Surf can be challenging and dangerous. Always try to pick a dive site with minimal surf. If no sites are suitable, wait for a better day - it's not worth risking injury in surf you are unprepared to deal with. Remember to do a surf entry by facing your buddy, grabbing each other's shoulders and shuffling sideways through the surf into deep water. When submerged in shallow water, surge can make bouyancy control more difficult, so be sure you are properly weighted!

7. Currents - Generally, currents New England are driven by the tides. Once you know what direction the tide is going, note which places along the shoreline will develop current from the tide flowing into or out of nearby wetlands, including rivers, channels, and tidal flats. Always plan your dive to swim into the current at the beginning of the dive.

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