Scuba diving in North Alabama? You bet! No need to go to the tropics. If you’ve always wondered what it’s like to breathe underwater, you don’t need to go further than Glencoe, Alabama. Long-time residents of the area may know it as the Blue Hole. Still, it’s now known as Dive Land Park, a safe, clear-water park offering excellent quarry diving just a short drive from metro areas in Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee.
I visited the park on a hot summer day to participate in the IDEA Discover Scuba Experience.
Discover Scuba is a quick and easy introduction to what it takes to explore the underwater world. I arrive at Dive Land Park and am met by John Valdes, who will lead me through my experience. After some brief introductions, he fits me for a buoyancy compensator (BC), some booties, fins, mask, and snorkel. The water is balmy at 85 degrees, and we won’t be going too deep, making a wetsuit unnecessary.
Gathering up my gear, I head to the quarry to meet John. On the dock, he will determine how much weight to put in my weight belt. Entering the water, I exhale and go under as he makes the necessary adjustments. The goal is to achieve zero gravity, where you can hang in the water, experiencing a state of weightlessness.
Next, we go over some basics, including standard scuba hand signals so we can communicate underwater. Suddenly there’s a huge splash about 50 feet away. I look quizzically at John, who replies with a smile and a shrug. “No worries,” he says, “probably just a catfish.” Hmmm….ok, and off we go.
We follow a yellow rope, well, John follows a yellow rope, and I follow him.
The water is warm, blue, and clear. Visibility typically ranges between 20 and 70 feet at the park. The rocky bottom begins to fall away slowly, and I must remind myself to slow my breathing and relax. Once I do, I fall head over heels in love with the weightless, peaceful feeling of breathing underwater.
Making our way past fish beds, we come upon a submerged boat surrounded by fish. Eventually, we find ourselves on an underwater platform, where I pose for some pictures.
Suddenly something hits me in the back!
Hard! I squealed as much as possible with a regulator in my mouth before realizing it was one of the fish. He gets me a couple more times; let’s say I used to have a skin tag on my right shoulder, and now I don’t.
We glide through the water a little longer, then head back to the dock. I’m shocked that we have been out for over 20 minutes. Time stands still underwater; it felt like we’d been out five minutes at the most.
I enjoyed my IDEA Scuba Discover Experience at Dive Land Park immensely. They also offer the IDEA Open Water SCUBA Certification course, which is recognized worldwide. Are you interested in trying SCUBA? Give Dive Land Park a call.
Contact Dive Land Park at 256-492-4455 or email divelandpark@yahoo.com
As always, thanks for reading. XOXO
