Course overview

Stop relying on the guide and find your own way with the PADI Underwater Navigator specialty out of Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island. You master compass and natural navigation on the drift-prone, current-affected sites around Santa Cruz, where reading the terrain and managing current is a genuine skill. You earn the PADI Underwater Navigator certification on completion.

What you’ll learn

• Navigate accurately with a compass on reciprocal and square patterns
• Use natural references like reef contours, sand and depth
• Estimate distance by kick cycles and time
• Plan and follow a navigation pattern in current
• Relocate a specific underwater point and lead a navigation leg

Prerequisites

• Minimum age 10
• PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver or equivalent
• Diver medical clearance signed by a physician

What's included · What's not

Probability of sightings · month-by-month

What you're likely to see each month, based on historic operator logs.

Day-by-day itinerary

1. Day1
   Compass & natural navigation

   Navigation theory plus three dives at sites like North Seymour and Mosquera, building from compass patterns to natural navigation and relocation in mild current.

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Frequently asked questions