newbie question

wheres a good spot for me to go get my feet wet in diving? no i dont expect to do no circus like acts in the water just yet , more like wade around in a tide pool without a weight belt , somewhere protected thats new diver freindly?

thanks guys , i got my new wetsuit n gear , got a good deal at steeles in OAK

Practice in a lake or pool. The ocean is rough right now.

   right on!

Stillwater South is usually a pretty decent place to get familiar with it.  There are also some places up north that you could probably try but I'm not all that familiar with them.

I first started practicing in a lake but to be honest it freaked me out a bit more than diving in the ocean.  Lake McSwain is pretty dark and murkey so visibility really sucks...not to mention the number of fisherman who break their lines and leave balls of mono at the bottom of the lake.

No matter where you go I would suggest going with a buddy, one who may already have some experience.

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I forgot to mention that if you do go to Stillwater you should be mindful of the limited parking and make sure you don't piss people off.    Leave the kayak trailer at home if you have one.
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Hey Andy,
I would have to agree with Stillwater South. It is protected and there are rockfish there! When I first started, I practiced by shooting perch, they are everywhere, and no limits on them! Let the games begin. Fishmaster1 has caught some nice sized fish there, let's do this.

yea right on guys , Joe! i still need to hook up with ya man to peep out that gps , ill holler at you after the holidays so we can go light some fish up!

A month ago, i practiced for the first time in the pool.  I got spooked a couple times by my own shadow (pool was lighted during the evening).  It was really good to practice breathing and being calm.  I then went out OTW for the first time with FishMaster at SWS.  I took with me, but did not go in the water with, my speargun.  I only practiced diving without the gun.  Was looking over my shoulder every minute (had been reading too much of the GWS thread before my first dive).

If you need a diving partner, send me a post.  It might be a good idea to have someone else join along instead of just 2 newbs though.

You may want to give Pacific Grove ( Otter Cove, Lover's Point etc) a try. Easy parking, easy access, no fees.
Leave your speargun home, for the first time out, get familiar with your gear ( wetsuit, snorkel, mask and fins) concentrate on floating, breathing, kicking and diving.  Give it a try without a weightbelt first.
Have fun!

 Breakwater cove in Monterey,next to the coast guard pier is a great place to start.Sandy beach entry and mostly protected from surf&swell,a lot of scuba newbies go there.Theres a nice grass park right next to the beach and a big pay parking lot above that.
Get aquainted with your gear before you add a weightbelt,then slowly add weight as you get more comfortable until you get about 10% of your weight. Ideal weight for me is 10% plus 5lbs. when I freedive. ALWAYS go with a buddy,preferably an expierienced freediver. Macabee beach a little further along Cannery row is also very popular,same sort of deal. Don't bring the gun until you are comfortable with your equiptment and can easily exit the water. Make sure your facemask fits snugly and doesn't leak,after adjusting your fins,tape the straps to avoid getting caught up in the kelp.I used to use a self inflating BC vest,helped when I got tired. Most of all, be physically fit and watch how everyone enters and exits the water.
  Side note: I shot a 22lb.lingcod in the rocks of  the breakwater in about 15ft of water once! Good luck,be safe.

Breakwater cove in Monterey,next to the coast guard pier is a great place to start.Sandy beach entry and mostly protected from surf&swell,a lot of scuba newbies go there.Theres a nice grass park right next to the beach and a big pay parking lot above that.
Get aquainted with your gear before you add a weightbelt,then slowly add weight as you get more comfortable until you get about 10% of your weight. Ideal weight for me is 10% plus 5lbs. when I freedive. ALWAYS go with a buddy,preferably an expierienced freediver. Macabee beach a little further along Cannery row is also very popular,same sort of deal. Don't bring the gun until you are comfortable with your equiptment and can easily exit the water. Make sure your facemask fits snugly and doesn't leak,after adjusting your fins,tape the straps to avoid getting caught up in the kelp.I used to use a self inflating BC vest,helped when I got tired. Most of all, be physically fit and watch how everyone enters and exits the water.
  Side note: I shot a 22lb.lingcod in the rocks of  the breakwater in about 15ft of water once! Good luck,be safe.

i think this area is now off limits as of 2008. does anyone know the regs for this area? i thought it was closed to spearing but rod and reel is ok and closed to spear harvest all the way to lover's 3rd beach.

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/ccmpas_list.asp#ricketts
John is right. No spearing btwn the coastguard jetty and Lovers Pt (ok, to the beach just before Lovers). Only hook+line for finfish. So you can't take any mussels or scallops or lobster either. It's the Ed Ricketts SMCA as of Sept 07. But even before that, it was illegal to enter the water w/a gun in Monterey city limits....lame ordinance, I know.
Although, if you were spearing on scuba you could possibly go out past the SMCA to deeper water and be legal.
And this would still be a cool spot to go for a dive minus the gun. The jetty has a very diverse marine life. I once read that it has more variety of species documented by divers than anywhere else in CA. Not sure if it's 100% true, but I read it on the internet so it must be legit....

Just to be clear,I shot that ling a long time ago and back then we could shoot and fish almost eveywhere.Didn't mean to imply it is legal to shoot there now. Ther are a lot of fish in the jetty rocks and kelp beds.Great viewing for a newbie and save the guns for bigger and better places.That was the first place I ever scuba dove,and that was 1970.Great place to go to get aquianted with your gear and get some expierience before dealing with ocean conditions like in No.Cal. can deal out 

Gerstle Cove, SaltPoint State Park.
The cove is a marine reserve and is usually flat .......
Many diving classes go here and you will see lots of abs and fish.
Bathroom and changing room, close parking and very short walk down to the beach.

I always taken first-timers and newbies to ft.ross. the northenmost cove is super-protected and uber-friendly. i'd be glad to take you out when ab-season opens. send me a p.m. at the end of march,if you are interested.

I'd go practice at Shadow Cliffs reservior at Pleasanton - you are allowed to swim on the lake + water viz is pretty good year round (even when it rains). Lot's of BIG carp there but I'm almost sure you can't spear 'em

*they have a swim area roped off but I have seen people swim the entire lake.