SAILING AND SCUBA DIVING

There are few things as relaxing or rewarding as gliding along the ocean floor in full scuba gear

Four tanks stand secured and ready for another day’s use

There are few things people enjoy doing outdoors more than sailing and scuba diving. And for many, the ability to combine the two while out on a sailing adventure, so that you can just stop at a beautiful island or reef and go diving, only makes them that much more enjoyable. Most sailors might not think a sailboat makes for a good diving platform. And even more divers might not consider a sailboat the best way to get to a dive site. But it can be done, and with the right combination of equipment and skill, you might even be surprised at how easy it is.

My wife, Gail, and I began sailing in 1985 as charterers in the British Virgin Islands. We had been to Puerto Rico the year before, where we had a chance to see how beautiful the Caribbean waters are. So before our first charter, we got our dive certifications, rented scuba tanks and took our first open-water dive by ourselves on the wreck of the Rhone off Salt Island, one of the top-rated dives in the world.

As we did so, we also found ourselves