Diving Tales at Joe’s Gone Diving

05 Mar Diving Tales at Joe’s Gone Diving

Once upon a time all our PADI Instructors and Divemasters at Joe’s Gone Diving discovered a passion for diving and so their beautiful journey becoming a PADI professional began … 

In the next couple of weeks each of our PADI Instructors and Divemasters will introduce themselves with their very own diving tale and what motivated them to become a professional diver. You will hear more about their interests today, what keeps them going and why they are still so passionate about diving. Maybe one of those tales might inspire you to take the next step or maybe even become a PADI Dive Instructor yourself.

Our tale today comes from our Master Scuba Diver Trainer Kyle: 

Hello, my name is Kyle. I am a Master Scuba Diver here at Joe’s Gone Diving.  I spend my days doing a wide variety of diving activities; from guiding certified divers on fun dives and diving safaris to teaching many of the diving courses offered in the PADI Program. One day I may be leading a group of experienced divers while the next day I can be teaching someone how to take their first breath underwater.

I grew up in a small town in Eastern Canada.  I was very lucky to have an outdoor pool at our house and learned to swim at a very young age. Although the Ocean was hundreds of kilometers away, I was very much addicted to water and being in it, whether it was a lake, river or pool.

Before taking the plunge to become a PADI Instructor, I worked as an Automation and Controls Specialist for the better part of 10 years. I spent a lot time at a desk or in my truck with a laptop in front of my eyes, the best scenery usually being the screensavers on my computer.

Around 6 years ago I was on backpacking adventure in Thailand. I had zero plans to try SCUBA Diving, however, such is life, through some new friends I met along the way, I ended up on the small island of Koh Tao. Everyone seemed to be involved with diving in one way or another. After some convincing I had signed up for my PADI Open Water course. I was hooked pretty much instantly; That first breath underwater – there is not much like it in the world. I was instantly addicted to it and continued along into my PADI Advanced Open Water and Rescue Courses. I couldn’t get enough.

Upon my return home, I could not get diving out of my mind. I usually always got the vacation blues for a week or two after being home, I think that is pretty normal, but this was different; these diving thoughts didn’t leave and it was all I could think about.

I decided I needed to pursue this diving thing further. I set out back to SE Asia to tour around Indonesia, Malaysia, Borneo, Singapore and Thailand again. I was trying to decide where I wanted to do my Professional dive training. I ended up settling down in Bali. Bali specifically appealed to me due the vast diversity of marine life and dive sites around the island. Each area of the island is so unique, I thought it would give me a very diverse range of experience.

I did all of my Professional Dive training here at Joe’s Gone Diving, my Divemaster, Instructor and Master Scuba Diver training. As luck would have it, as I was nearing the end of my training, Joe’s was in need of an instructor and I was lucky enough to join the team!

My favorite dive sites in Bali are the 2 sites we dive in the Candi Dasa area, Gili Mimpang and Gili Tepekong. These particular sites are very unique. They are absolutely stunning underwater and almost always present amazing, unforgettable experiences. There are almost always schooling fish simulating that of an aquarium experience, with the high chance of spotting Sharks, Turtles, Molas and a variety of larger pelagic marine life. I have definitely had some of my most memorable dives at these sites.

Personally, I think the worst day of diving is still 100 times better than the best day in an office. I have a lot of fun spending my days in the ocean and at this point, I wouldn’t trade it for anything.