Practical Scuba Diving Advice for Every Skill Level

Dive Otter is a guided reference for recreational divers, covering training, skills, safety, planning, gear, tools, travel, and local diving. Explore a subject directly, or use the Dive Otter Stages to focus on what matters at your point in diving.

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Thinking about learning to dive? Start here.

Where are you in your diving?

The Dive Otter Stages describe how recreational diving changes as control, awareness, and responsibility develop. They are based on what a diver is managing and thinking about, rather than certification cards or number of logged dives.

01What MattersClarity before actionBuild the mental model first: training, expectations, basic equipment, core safety concepts, and the decisions that shape what happens later. 02Control of SelfStability and controlDevelop reliable buoyancy, trim, movement, communication, and routines until managing yourself requires less attention. 03Control of the DiveIntent and executionPlan and conduct the dive deliberately, including gas, conditions, team position, changing circumstances, and contingencies. 04Control of DecisionsJudgment and managementAnticipate problems, understand tradeoffs, and make decisions that affect the outcome for both yourself and other divers.
Understand the Dive Otter Stages

Explore by topic

Getting StartedDeciding whether to dive, choosing training, finding an instructor, and understanding what certification actually involves. SkillsBuoyancy, trim, entries and exits, underwater control, buddy skills, and team diving. SafetyCore safety practices, risk, human factors, situational awareness, emergency preparation, and medical considerations. PlanningNitrox, gas planning, minimum reserves, and repeatable pre-dive processes. TravelDive-trip preparation, insurance, destinations, and practical travel logistics. CultureBuddy dynamics, ethics, terminology, diving with family, cameras, and the human side of the sport.

DiveOtter Tools

Practical calculators and field references for the parts of diving that benefit from an actual number, checklist, or repeatable process.

MOD & EAD CalculatorCalculate Nitrox operating depth and equivalent air depth. RMV CalculatorEstimate breathing rate from a known dive. Minimum Gas ReserveBuild a realistic reserve for two divers to ascend together. Buoyancy & WeightEstimate a defensible starting weight for a specific configuration. Scuba Hand SignalsReview essential underwater signals for clear buddy communication. Travel First Aid KitDownload a practical checklist for a compact travel-focused first aid kit. Diver Starter PackBuild repeatable routines for new and recently certified divers. Trip Ready PackPlan packing, travel logistics, and contingencies before a dive trip.
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Three divers aboard a Lake Michigan dive boat with the Chicago skyline behind them

Scuba Diving in Chicago and the Midwest

Local diving around Chicago ranges from training and recreational quarry dives to Lake Michigan shipwrecks, with additional Midwest sites within easy driving distance. Dive Otter maintains practical guides to the places, shops, instructors, and local conditions that make diving here possible.

The First Breath

Learning to scuba dive is presented as a simple path: take a class, master a few skills, and the underwater world opens up. In reality, confidence develops slowly, mistakes are common, and many new divers drift away after certification.

The First Breath is an experience-based book for prospective and beginning divers. It explores what learning to dive actually feels like and the path from certification to genuine confidence and capability.

Purchase The First Breath
Cover of The First Breath by Tyler Allison

Dive Otter Journal

Occasional reflections on mindset, risk, diving experience, and the observations behind the reference material.

Read the Journal