#446
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Walter Pickel - DeepSea
 Tampa FLMale
Joined On: 12/24/2007
Last Login: 4/25/2022
Experience: Expert
Looking For: Dive buddy - just friends
Habits: Only drink
Relationship: Single
Children At Home: No
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Closed Circuit Rebreather (IANTD)
1/01/2009
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Hypoxic Trimix (NAUI)
1/01/2002
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Diving since 1986, Walter grew up diving golf course lakes for golf balls and the black rivers of the South Carolina low country in hopes of treasure or anything historic. In the US Navy, he became a diver and worked as a ship’s diver (submarines) and as an underwater husbandry diver (submarine tender). After moving to Florida and a break from diving; Walter’s interests soon fell back to diving and he started focusing on technical diving eventually finding his way into the beauty of Florida’s caves and caverns.
Having developed the taste for exploration through participation in several expeditions to Mexico, as well as exploration projects in Florida, Walter has become well known as an explorer that generally focuses on lesser known or unexplored systems. Bringing with him his desire for exploration and research, Walter is a member of the ADM Exploration Team and serves as a primary explorer and Logistics Coordinator.
Walter specializes in dry cave exploration, side mount cave exploration, climbing and data acquisition and collection.
He is presently active in three major areas of exploration of both dry and wet caves. In Florida, Walter serves as an explorer and the Dive Safety Officer (DSO) for the Weeki Wachee Springs Exploration Project. In the Dominican Republic Walter discovered significant fossil primate remains and continues this project with funding from The National Geographic Society and The National Science Foundation. Lastly, in Mexico, Walter serves as an explorer and data manager for various ADM Exploration Team expeditions in both the States of Yucatan as well as Quintana Roo.
Walter is a NACD Cave Diver (NACD Bronze Wakulla and NSS-CDS Abe Davis awards), DPV Pilot and Cave Rescue and Recovery diver. Additionally, Walter holds TRIMIX certifications as well as being certified as a NAUI Technical Support Team Leader. A frequent speaker at Cave Diving workshops and seminars, he is also a board of director member of the ADM Exploration Foundation. Previously he served on the board of directors of The Karst Conservancy and Karst Underwater Research. He has also served cave diving organizations as the National Association for Cave Diving (NACD) Public Relations committee chairman and Election Administrator for the NSS-CDS.