Houston's Premier Scuba and Dive Shop Oceanic Ventures Inc.

(713) 523-3483 (dive)
5808 Newcastle Drive
Houston, TX 77401

local diving

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Come On In…the Water Is Fine in October

September and October have been a blast up at the lakes! The outdoor West Bellaire pool was colder than the lake last weekend. This mean you shoudl take the time and join us for some fun local diving!

We spent the first weekend in October down at Mammoth Lake. The visability was great and the water was still warm — no drysuits yet! I had my newest group od Open Water Side Mount students join me for three tours of the lake while performing some fun skills for Joe Thompson and me. Thir perfomances were good and they looked like they were actually enjoying themselves on the third dive.

We also had a group of “just for fun” divers up there as well as two of our newest DPV divers .

Be sure to congratulations to all of the Open Water Side Mount divers!

This past weekend, Ryan completed his Open Water Class with Joel! and Rich rejoined the underwater world after a small 10+ year hiatus. Cora even took his wife snorkeling to find the elusive turtles hiding in the grass up at Blue Lagoon.

Be sure to congratulate Ryan and welcome Rich back to diving!

  • New Open Water Diver

There are still a few weekends left in October which means that there is still time for you to join us for some fun local diving. See our Events Calendar or call Dive Mom!

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Local Diving It is Not the Caribbean but It Can Still Be Fun

On the east coast they say boating and watersports season runs from Memorial Day to Labor day. After that you put your boats and equipment away and get ready for your winter activities. There may be some practical reason for this up north becasue traditionally in September the cold winds start to blow and the temperatures begin to drop. But, we live in the South! Here the temperatures merely moderate and in fact it is just pleasent outside. Sailors all know that this is one of the better times for sailing becasue the winds blow steadier and it is not as hot on the water.

Divers too find that the weather makes being at the lake more enjoyable. The temperatures mean the barbq grills can come out again and sitting and talking during the surface intervals are more relaxing. The water temperatures remain warm so diving in lighter suits is still possible. Of course with cooler nights, the water temperature will drop but until November, you can add some layers to your wetsuit and keep diving. (I am a little bit of a wimp these days and when the temperature drops below 76-78 degrees I switch to a drysuit).

This past Sunday, Joe Henry, Zac Gay and Naomi decided it was time to get wet and go diving. I haven’t been in a rebreather for a while so it was a good opportunity to test the new cells and jump back into silent diving. Zac brought his rebreather as well and we both made Joe jealous (he is going to put his together and get some new cells now.) Diving in a Texas lake is definitely not the Caribbean, but it is wet and there are fish. We had about 8-10 feet of visibility which was not too bad considering we had some rain recently.

The thing about diving locally is you have the opportunity to work on your buoyancy and trim instead of fighting with it on your vacation. You can also try out different equipment configurations or even different equipment! Budding photographers can practice with their cameras and try new of different techniques. It is a good opportunity to practice gunning lines or running navigation courses. Remember, what you work on locally makes your next trip more enjoyable and your diving better.

So, I would encourage you to head out and go diving! Join us for a local dive or just pick a lake that is close and go for a day or choose one a little further away and make a weekend out if it. Your diving will improve and your attitude will also improve.

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It Felt So Good to Get Wet!

A few weeks ago, we had about twenty divers join us down at Mammoth Lake for a fun day of diving and exploring. And the main feeling from everyone was…”It felt so good to get wet!”

With the onset of the COVID-19 local diving opportunity generator, many of our divers have been looking for someplace to just go diving since all of their summer vacations plans changed. We have been trying to help people keep diving and having fun.

Mammoth Lake Photos…

  • Social Distancing Equipment Zone
  • Pavilion From Water
  • Native Protector
  • Colton & Daniel Getting Ready
  • Kevin Ready to Go
  • End of Day Fried Pickles

We are continuing with our regular visits to the Beautiful Blue Lagoon, the second weekend of every month, but we have been trying to schedule some other diving activities.

Upcoming Diving Events

In August you will find us up at Lake Travis (August 21-23) at Windy Point. If you have not been to Lake Travis, there are trees, boats, cars and fish to look for underwater as well as depths down to 140 ffw. There is a fill station on site so you only have to bring one or two cylinders. Some of the families have decided to rent houses on the lake so that everyone can come up and enjoy a change of scenery. If you would like to learn more about the weekend, send Dive Mom a note.

On September 13 we are having a Family Fun Day up at Beautiful Blue Lagoon. This is a great day for divers and non-divers alike. Dive Mom will e on hand to lead snorkeling tours and activities for the younger kids while divers will have some challenging compass courses to try and navigate.

In September, we return to Mammoth Lake (September 19) for another fun weekend of exploring boats and planes as well as a hunt for King Kong and the Woolly Mammoth!

Dive Mom is also looking into putting together a trip to Bonne Terre Min in Missouri and the Valhalla Missile Silo. If you are interested, send her an email to put you on the list for information when it becomes available.

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July’s Local Diving Event – Mammoth Lake

Where would you like to be right now? I am guessing that it is not at home watching YouTube videos or the video from your dive trip last year. The COVID-19 world we are living in right now is making diving a little more challenging. But you can still get wet and enjoy visiting your fellow divers albeit from 6 feet away or in a mask.

On July 18th we are headed down to Mammoth Lake in Clute (Lake Jackson area). This local lake boasts the only divable C130 in shallow depths as well as fighter jets, boats, saltalite disks, a wooly mammoth, king kong and other sites that are just waiting for you to explore.

We will have a BarBQ grill there so you can cook your favorite picnic treat or maybe bring that traditional southern picnic food — cold fried chicken! If you don’t feel like cooking your favorite southern treats, Asiels is on the lake too and they offer curbside pickup and even delivery! You can find their menu here.

If you are interested in joining us here’s what you need to do...

  • Send us an email to let us know before Friday afternoon.
  • Complete the Oceanic Ventures Event Waiver and email it back to Dive Mom
  • Complete the Mammoth Lake Waiver
  • Pick-up a cylinder and any rentals you may need
  • Pack up your car (don’t forget a tarp and your mask)
  • Meet us at the Lake at 9:00 to start diving!

Do you have any questions? Cann Eric or Ann and we’ll try and make something up (ok, we will try and get the answer for you!)

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July's Local Diving Event – Mammoth Lake

Where would you like to be right now? I am guessing that it is not at home watching YouTube videos or the video from your dive trip last year. The COVID-19 world we are living in right now is making diving a little more challenging. But you can still get wet and enjoy visiting your fellow divers albeit from 6 feet away or in a mask.

On July 18th we are headed down to Mammoth Lake in Clute (Lake Jackson area). This local lake boasts the only divable C130 in shallow depths as well as fighter jets, boats, saltalite disks, a wooly mammoth, king kong and other sites that are just waiting for you to explore.

We will have a BarBQ grill there so you can cook your favorite picnic treat or maybe bring that traditional southern picnic food — cold fried chicken! If you don’t feel like cooking your favorite southern treats, Asiels is on the lake too and they offer curbside pickup and even delivery! You can find their menu here.

If you are interested in joining us here’s what you need to do...

  • Send us an email to let us know before Friday afternoon.
  • Complete the Oceanic Ventures Event Waiver and email it back to Dive Mom
  • Complete the Mammoth Lake Waiver
  • Pick-up a cylinder and any rentals you may need
  • Pack up your car (don’t forget a tarp and your mask)
  • Meet us at the Lake at 9:00 to start diving!

Do you have any questions? Cann Eric or Ann and we’ll try and make something up (ok, we will try and get the answer for you!)

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Scuba Diving, Wine and Steaks at the Lake

wine, steaks and scuba diving at the lake

Remember, diving in Texas is a barbecue interrupted by diving.

I like to say diving in Texas is a barbecue interrupted by diving.  This works well for me because I love to cook and eat in addition to diving.    Several years ago our rebreather and technical clients wanted to head out to the lake for a practice session.  They are a fun group pf divers and love diving and wine as much as I do so we came up with our own diving event — “Wine and Steaks at the Lake.”  Wine and steaks were part of the theme that first year but are not a requirement.  In fact, we have several vegetarians who join us every year so even the consumption of steaks is not a required nor us the wine.
Over the years, the scuba divers participating have changed and we have both our technical divers and recreational scuba divers joining us for the outing.  The real purpose is to go diving and practice skills including buoyancy control and navigation.  There is no set plan other than you have to finish diving before any wine.
If you want some help in deciding how to focus your dive send me an email message and I will send you some skills to try in the lagoon. If you need a buddy, no problem; we will find you a buddy up at the lake (just remember to that diving will be winding down around 12:00).
Join us for a fun day of diving and dining as we have our Wine and Steaks at the Lake event. Everyone in welcome whether you are a technical diver or a recreational diver.  We will be diving at 9:00 AM and then the grills will fire up at around 12:00 just in time to grill your favorite meat or vegetable Bring your own main course and something to share or have Eric bring you a steak with his own special rub (call Ann for details). The Blue Lagoon closes at 6:00 so you will be home in plenty of time to clean your equipment.

Please come and go diving!

  • Where: Beautiful Blue Lagoon
  • When: Sunday 28, June 2015
  • Time: 9:00 AM
  • What to bring: Your total diving system (diving equipment, cylinders, weight), meat, chicken or vegetable to grill, a side to share, your own beverages (water, wine, iced tea, etc)
  • Special: If you would like me to bring you a special steak, send me a note or let Dive Mom know.  (The cost is $20.00)