Scubadiving help

[Allmost]

hello Scuba divers

so I live in Canada, toronto and no oceans around

but I would LOVE to learn and go scuba diving soon. so wanted to know if I should take classes or (not sure what the options are) here in toronto first and then make a trip down to caribeans ?

also, where is the closest reefs to Toronto ? I'm guessing off the florida coast ?

I goto caribean every year for work, and I cant belive I have never gone scubadiving, so getting into it now

thanks for any info/links, do u need a licence ?
is my skydiving certificate helpfull haha

 

[SeaJayInSC]

Some of the best diving in the world is in your back yard. Take your classes locally and ask them the same questions - I think you'll be surprised to find that you can drive to some really great dive sites - even ones with coral reefs.

 

[Allmost]

Some of the best diving in the world is in your back yard. Take your classes locally and ask them the same questions - I think you'll be surprised to find that you can drive to some really great dive sites - even ones with coral reefs.

in CANADA?!

let the research begin lol thank you

 

[JARJOZ]

Check this place out --- I did all my certifications with them in 1994
http://www.aquariusscuba.com/ourStaff/index.php

 

[SeaJayInSC]

in CANADA?!

let the research begin lol thank you

Yes, in Canada.

The Great Lakes is world-renowned for it's shipwrecks. Many divers come from places all over the world to dive Great Lakes wrecks.

There are corals pretty much anywhere there's salt water - so for them, you'd have to head to the nearest ocean. For an actual "reef" (as in "reef sanctuary", like the OP probably meant), the closest is probably Gray's Reef off of Georgia, about 1000 miles ot the south of Canada's borders. Other reefs probably exist further to the north on the East Coast of the US, but that's the closest I know of that's a sanctuary.

...But yes, some of the best diving in the world - unrelated to coral reefs - is in Canada.

For what it's worth, thsi website shows a worldwide distribution of coral reefs: http://www.coral-reef-info.com/where-are-coral-reefs-located.html Unfortunately, it is clearly not entirely correct, since Gray's Reef is not on there, and it does not show any other coral populations such as what might be off of NY/NJ - which is peppered with Gargonia, a member of the coral family.

The bottom line? Go diving. If you're in freshwater, you'll find lots of cool stuff in your back yard, even if you don't find a coral reef. If you're in saltwater, you'll find coral, whether it's a recognized reef or not.