American WaterSports

American WaterSports Featured Host Resort

A UNIQUE MULTI-SPORT ADVENTURE! Email for DATES

COME PLAY WITH A PURPOSE! Email for DATES

EMAIL us at AWSA@americanwatersports.org to learn more and reserve your spot! Join us for a unique multi-sport experience! World-class diving, incredible kayaking and paddleboarding, and tropical hikes.

COME PLAY WITH A PURPOSE! Email for DATES

EMAIL us at AWSA@americanwatersports.org

to learn more and reserve your spot! A week playing and training in the tropics, world class diving and paddling, and coming home with a certification.

Ecologial Perspectives on Paddling and Diving

People are becoming more conscious of how their choices impact the planet and are actively seeking eco-friendly alternatives. This shift in behavior is driven by various factors, including greater access to information, the influence of social media, and the realization that individual actions can make a difference.

The aquatic realm is best explored via eco-friendly paddlecraft, with low impact, quiet, and nature-friendly travel through natural environments. This enables up-close and personal observation of wildlife and delicate ecosystems without significantly disturbing them. It is an environmentally responsible method of exploration, compared to more noisy, invasive motorized watercraft.

Paddling and diving can both satisfy the characteristics of eco-friendly when performed responsibly. A key to this is proper, comprehensive training – knowledge and skills – in both sports, AND continuing participation to ensure continued competence.

CHECK OUT MORE INFO ON PADDLING, DIVING AND OUR ECOSYSTEMS BY CLICKING ON THE "MORE"..."ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES" BUTTONS ABOVE.

AWSA ... A world of paddlesport diving possibilities

PaddleSports (PS) Diver Training

Promoting safety and excellence in the ultimate aquatic cross-sport of PaddleSports Diving through quality training and leadership.

OW Paddling - Kayak & SUP
OW PS Diving - Skin & SCUBA
PS Surface supplied air diving
PS Diving Guide/Instructor

Cross-Sport Explorations

PaddleSports (PS) Diver Training

You have a dive kayak or paddleboard, you have scuba gear. Imagine the possibilities! Keep exploring the web site to get ideas for other applications of your versatile equipment and talents.

PaddleSports Dive Travel

PaddleSports (PS) Diver Training

Exciting adventures coming soon!

Accommodating Airlines- shipping for paddle craft
Accommodating Resorts for kayak & paddlesports diving
Accommodating Liveaboards for paddlesports diving
Accommodating ExpeditiON

PaddleSports Diving Education Materials

Providing AWSA materiais as well as recommendations to other high-quality, accurate information to enhance paddlesport divers' competencies.

AWSA Publications
Training materials for OW paddling and OW PaddleSports Diving
Scuba Shows & PaddleSports Shows
- Show-sponsored seminar
Recommendations & links to valid, reliable paddling and diving resources, outside of AWSA

PaddleSports Diving Destinations

Want to know more?? Scroll down to see our FAQs

Identifying and facilitating high quality, safe, and exciting paddlesports diving experiences around the world!

Host Resorts – AWSA participating properties
Trained Staff – PaddleSports Diving certified instructors/guides
Dive kayaks and dive paddleboards – approved dive craft on site
Dive sites – approved paddling dive sites and programs

Want to know more?? Scroll down to see our FAQs

Check the FAQ section, at the bottom of the page, for Frequently Asked Questions and other suggestions for making the most of the paddlesports cross-sport possibilities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please reach us at awsa@americanwatersports.org if you cannot find an answer to your question.

How do you get the kayak underwater?

OK, so that may sound silly, but we really WERE asked that question in our first Kayak Diving seminar at DEMA, in 1992. Your kayak is your surface angel ... transporting you safely to your specially selected dive site and waiting patiently for your return to the surface. You can moor, anchor, or tow her, but she will always be there for you.

Who originated Kayak Diving, and when?

In 1989, Clark Ross, American WaterSports Assoc. (AWSA) forged a collaboration with Ocean Kayak, manufacturer of the first sit-on-top kayak. Clark designed the first purpose-built dive kayak, with a tankwell, produced by Ocean Kayak. Clark, in partnership with Dr. Jean Henry, developed the first Kayak Diving Specialty certification curriculum, which was shared with all major SCUBA certification agencies.

What is a "cross-sport"?

A cross-sport is:

a cross between two different sports creating a new sport which is neither one nor the other, but having components of both; thus, requiring equal knowledge and competency in both their individual and intersecting skills

American WaterSports Association, 1990

What makes Paddlesports Diving the ultimate cross-sport?

Above and Below ... the Best of Both Worlds!

PaddleSports Diving offers the ultimate aquatic experience by enabling the diver to enjoy the above-water journey to and from the dive site just as much as the below-water journey through the dive site!

Additionally, both SCUBA diving and kayaking/paddleboarding are sports that embody a complex set of skills in order to efficiently and safely engage in the sport. Without comprehensive training, imparting high level skills, both sports have the potential to result in great harm, or even death, if not performed according to guidelines and standards. The combining of the two sports presents additional challenges, as a result of the intersectionality of the two sports’ skill sets.

What are the important features of a dive kayak or dive paddleboard?

Appropriate kayak or paddleboard for diving:

Self-bailing paddlecraft
Sufficient weight limit/maximum capacity to accommodate diver and gear
On-deck spaces for skin/scuba gear
Ability to secure gear & accessories – attachments, straps, hatches, etc.
Stable, with ability to trim and balance, with gear
Low freeboard – easy-off/on in the water
Tether & reel, or anchor
Appropriate dive flag & USCG approved PFD
USCG navigational lights for night paddling
Dive platform with utility storage

Who is a "paddlesport diver"?

At a minimum, a kayak or paddleboard diver is a person who is:

• Cross-sport competent – trained in the essentials of both paddling and diving

• Advanced scuba diver

• Competent open-water paddler

In addition, the paddlesport diver assumes the roles and responsibilities of:

DIVE MASTER
- Files BOTH a Float Plan & Dive Plan
BOAT CAPTAIN
- Knowledge of USCG navigational rules of the road
- Has appropriate USCG emergency signaling devices, day and night
RIGGER/SAFETY OFFICER/FIRST RESPONDER

A paddlesport diver is NOT:

…a decompression diver

…a tethered diver with overhead obstruction (e.g. cave diving, wreck diving, etc.)

In short, a paddlesport diver is NOT simply a diver with a kayak or paddleboard!

PaddleSports & Diving

PaddleSports & Diving

AWSA SEAFARER HOST RESORT PROGRAM