| Re: Hello... and Tell me about your Journey
Welcome to Rebreather World and Great post idea!
I Grew up near a marsh and a pond, started developing enclosed/sealed, self sustaining aquatic systems as a young child. Started breeding tropical fish, got into reef tank set ups, killed lots of coral. Decided visiting it in the wild was cheaper, more rewarding and more sustainable. Started diving open circuit in 94. Did about 50-100 dives a year in the WA and BC, mostly by shore, in search of pristine cold water reefs…with a few tropical trips sprinkled in. Veered away from tec diving, lugging doubles and having long deco just didn’t seem worth it. Got a dive kayak for added range…don’t like the limits/or choices boat operators offered (even more so now with a rebreather).
Started kayak diving current swept passes and taking photos,…eventually got tired of lugging tanks and getting to remote places only to have to turn right around and go back for fills...wanted to go on extended dive trips that weren’t just about diving and lugging gear, I wanted more time to just be in the wilderness above water too- to diversify the focus of each trip. Started thinking about rebreathers years ago, but got horribly spooked by the rate of fatalities and everyone’s attitude toward them. They remained a mystery I eyed from a distance.
Noticed last November that rebreathers seemed to have reached a critical mass, they were everywhere I turned for a while. I started getting up the gumption to start asking these renegade divers what it was all about. Started trying out every rebreather I could get my hands on, went to demos…I started looking up all the tec divers I’d lost contact with…turns out they’ve all turned to rebreathers…no more doubles or bubbles! It took five months of obsessive reading, talking and posting to come to a choice, it was not an easy choice, there are several good models but all have their week spots but finally last april i made the purchase...my newbie evangelical fanatacism eventually mellowed, my friends started calling me back and life is almost back to normal now, accept the occasional arguments with the wife over priorities.
My dream became multi day trips into the wilderness without having to have access to fills. Has the dream been realized…parts of it yes…it’s a work in progress. I would have expected to reach a higher level of confidence after 50 hours…I have concluded that the important thing is to never forget that you are a few easy steps away from death at all times while on the loop.
it is taking longer than I expected to regain the level of diving i was used to on OC but has been a hell of a lot of fun so far. While there seems to be no end to the new combination of challenges that come up, it’s also paradoxically one of the most magnificent experiences I’ve ever had. I recently did my longest dive ever, a 102 minute dive included sightings of: a total of 15 juvenile octopi (out in the open!), 5 wolf eels, fish everywhere… I wasn’t even noticed, everyone went along with their business, sparring for dens, hunting for food…and I was warm the whole dive!
At this point, I just love being able to decide where, when, under what conditions and for how long I want to dive, having rebreathers has opened up a whole new vista in our diving...even within recreational limits.
__________________ Gill Envy
...Because I wasn't born with gills! 
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