Lady Of The Sea Diving Academy - Canberra's Premier PADI Dive Boat Operator, specialises in introducing you to the amazing underwater world. Seeing the fun and excitement you experience when you take your first breaths on scuba is why we do what we do. We have an amazing instructional team with decades of experience. and we pride ourselves in producing competent and confident scuba divers while issuing you with a license that is recognized worldwide, by the largest diver-training association in the world - PADI. 

• Kahren
• Megan
• Chris
• Mick

• Canberra's most experienced scuba instructor (PADI Course Director) with over 38 years as an active PADI scuba professional. 

  The deep – where time stands still. All that surrounds is the majestic silent crystal-like beauty, characteristic only of our magnificent underwater world. Kahren has had a lifetime of exploring the wonders of this magical undersea world and she has been truly privileged to spend her days diving and introducing others to the wondrous world of water through the luxury sport of diving. Kahren began snorkelling at age of four, and was lucky enough to scuba dive at the tender age of seven, the start of a lifelong love affair with the sea.

  Kahren was born into a diving family: her parents are the pioneers of scuba diving in the Fiji Islands, her place of birth. Living an idyllic island lifestyle that many dream about, Kahren spent her junior years frolicking in the Pacific Ocean and it was inevitable that she would advance her diving experience while still very young. She began night diving at the early age of eleven, assisting in her parents’ dive store from the age of 12, and helping out as a diver-guide around the age of 15. She experienced her first sighting of a fast-moving shark at the age of eight, the beginning of a lifelong fascination for the ‘Monarch of the Sea’ that she now passes on to her students through the Shark Diver Specialty course.

  Kahren became qualified as a diving professional at the age of twenty-one, only stopping above water long enough to obtain her private education and her degree, a B.A. in Communications (P.R.) in Australia.

  Kahren spent several years focussed on diving in Fiji, working as a Public Relations Officer and Chief Instructor for her parents’ dive operations, Beqa Divers and Scubahire Ltd. Kahren’s teaching experiences led to her conducting scuba classes in Malcolm Forbes’ own private pool on the mountain top at Laucala Island, and on board the P&O cruise liner ‘Fair Princess’, teaching scuba on the high seas.

  After years of teaching in Fiji, Kahren decided it was time to experience different styles and locations of diving so at the age of 25, Kahren set up her own diver-training facility in Canberra, only a few hours drive from the South-East coast of Australia and began to explore the world of temperate diving, an environment that until now had remained a mystery to her.

  In 1990, Lady of the Sea Diving Academy was born, the name “Lady of the Sea” derived from a newspaper article written about Kahren when she was only 23 years old. Through the academy, Kahren fulfilled a life-long dream by offering the general public a high quality, exclusive level of scuba tuition, her greatest love being to introduce people to her beloved underwater world, it’s magical creatures, its mysteries and its endless beauty.

  Kahren has written regularly for publication about the underwater world over the past 30 years, sharing with the dive industry and anyone else who will listen, her fun experiences with her students and club members. She also established a conservation team “Ambassadors of the Ocean” and worked with fervour to educate young ones all over the region about the fragility of the underwater world and its inhabitants, teaching school students about the importance of working to protect our intricate and delicate aquatic ecosystems.

  With over 40 years of diving experience, including working with the International Association of Handicapped Divers to share the magic of the underwater world with the physically challenged, Kahren has pursued her professional teaching career to the highest level, becoming a PADI Course Director in 2000, enabling her to teach to instructor level and beyond, another of her passions.

  Kahren spent six years diving the magical waters of the Indian Ocean around Christmas Island, and has now returned to the cool temperate waters of the south east coast of Australia to share her deep love for all things aquatic with anyone who is keen to explore the wild blue yonder. Perhaps what makes Kahren unique as a professional educator in the field of scuba diving is a combination of her endless dedication to high quality instruction, her powerful commitment to diver safety, her deep love for the underwater creatures, her devotion to the conservation ethic and her unequalled enthusiasm for all aspects of diving and diver-training. Kahren’s life-long obsession with the underwater world is highly contagious and many of her students over the years have pursued the luxury sport of scuba diving with a similar passion.

   

• John is a highly enthusiastic and dedicated PADI Master Instructor, Emergency First Response Instructor Trainer and scuba equipment service technician. John is heavily committed to the PADI system of diver-training and, like Kahren, he is a strong advocate for conservation, with a heavy inclination toward the protection and preservation of the delicate aquatic life beneath the waves. John works tirelessly with Kahren to emphasise through diver -training, the beauty and fragility of the underwater world and its inhabitants, encouraging all Lady Of The Sea divers to learn more about the fascinating, delightful and captivating life forms beneath the sea. John strongly believes in providing the highest quality scuba tuition possible for his divers, and he works closely with his diving students to ensure the highest level of skill development and the maximum level of enjoyment during their time underwater. It is difficult to complete some form of diver training with John without taking away at least some of his love and excitement for scuba diving, not to mention his infectious passion and appreciation for the beauty of the underwater world.

  A confirmed water baby, John has had a strong association with the water since his early childhood, his talents leading him to numerous swimming carnivals where he competed avidly. Every year of his secondary schooling saw him representing his school and zone by competing in the ACT School Swimming Carnival, for which he was awarded many medals and certificates. Upon leaving high school John took with him 10 school swimming records some of which remain undefeated to this day. In his younger years, while filling in his spare time during school holidays, he figured that there must be more to water than just swimming laps. His attention turned to water safety. He began lifesaver training with the Royal Life Saving Society of Australia (RLSSA), the start of a very satisfying recreational activity for John. He collected many certificates for his outstanding achievements, the highest being the Distinction certificate, reserved only for those who have shown an eminent ability in the area of life-saving. John’s fascination with the water and lifesaving presented him with the opportunity to represent the ACT many times, and the privilege to compete in the Australian Championships on two occasions, the first of which was an open event with no age grading. It was at this event that John became the youngest Australian to compete at such an event, a credit to him for his dedication and commitment to lifesaving. John simply couldn’t get enough of the water, and in his efforts to become one with the elements, he became an avid and committed wind surfer and wave jumper.

  John’s special connection with the water coupled with the fascination and excitement he felt for the mysterious and magical underwater world, meant that it was only a matter of time before he became involved in the sport of scuba diving. Once he became a diver, John worked his way through the PADI system to become a PADI instructor, gaining many valuable memories, much underwater experience and many recreational and professional certifications along the way. John currently holds the prestigious Master Instructor rating with the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI), he is a Master Scuba Diver Trainer and an IDC Staff Instructor, which enables him to assist Kahren with specialty and instructional level training.

• Scott is an avid dive instructor with experience diving in many locations around in Australia and the South Pacific. Scott has a passion for introducing non-divers to the amazing sport of scuba diving. He also has a strong passion for dive travel!
  
  
  

• Megan has had the good fortune of being a scuba diver for most of her life, having qualified as a PADI Open Water diver at the tender age of 16, and moving forward to qualify as a PADI Dive professional at 18. Megan also obtained the prestigious rating of Master Scuba Diver, all of her diver-training conducted by Lady of the Sea Diving Academy, including the Shark Diver specialty certification at Montague Island off Narooma with the colony of Grey Nurse sharks. Megan is one of the fortunate few who spent her safety stop on the deep dive of her Advanced Diver course with two adult dolphins and a baby - this was only her 7th dive to date at that time! Megan is also one of the few divers who was lucky enough to dive on the ‘Provincial Trader’ prior to its removal and delivery into the unattainable depths beyond the Continental Shelf. Megan’s extensive diving background is partnered with her passion to share her underwater experiences with new divers, and her heavy commitment to safety and the PADI system of diver education.

  When asked to describe her favourite dives, she advised: “I LOVE night diving, so anywhere where it’s safe to night dive is a winner for me. One of my favourite night dives - I didn’t even see a single fish, but there was so much bioluminescence in the water it felt like swimming through the opening credits of a Star Wars movie! That was cool! One of Megan’s favourite places to dive is Lake Jindabyne “…it’s so amazing to swim over houses and the water was surprisingly clear!”

  What makes Megan so special? Her deep love for the ocean and all it’s wonderful inhabitants, her heavy commitment to conservation, her undying desire to protect this beautiful world and all the work she has done in the conservation arena. Megan has been an invaluable member of our conservation team ‘Ambassadors of the Ocean’, and we will be forever grateful for all the time and effort that Megan has so generously sacrificed to assist us with this important work. Megan’s hard work in the field of conservation helped Lady of the Sea Diving Academy and Ambassadors of the Ocean to secure a world-wide award from the PADI Hallmark of Excellence for its accomplishments. Megan’s love for all things ocean is so strong that for quite a long time she had green hair, a great talking piece in the dive club! People who haven’t seen Megan in 20 years, still remember ‘the diving lass with the green hair’.

  Like Kahren, Megan worries that it won’t be long before there is nothing left to see and the underwater communities will get all out of balance. She is a biologist who studies the evolution of animal behavior. She loves to watch all the quirky things that animals do and is afraid that in years to come we could lose all that diversity.

  When asked why she loves to dive with Lady of the Sea Diving Academy, she answered that she “loves hanging out with like-minded people who are there to have fun and enjoy themselves”. So what floats Megan’s boat about diving? “I love the peacefulness of being weightless underwater, I also love the sense of adventure, never knowing what you might see but knowing that you will definitely have some kind of encounter that not many people get to experience”

  Locations on Megan’s bucket list? “The rift lakes of Iceland – I was right there but didn’t have time between flights. I have to get to Palau to dive the lake inside the island with all the non-stinging jelly fish. They migrate across the lake each day to maximize their time in the sun. I am keen to dive in the magnificent kelp forests of Tasmania – this would be the most amazing experience and they are disappearing so may soon not even exist.”

• Chris is an avid dive professional with experience diving in many locations around the world. Reef diving and photography is a real passion for Chris and he has dived some of the most amazing locations around the world. 
  
  
  

• Mick is an avid dive professional with experience diving in many locations around the world. Wreck diving is a real passion for Mick and he has dived on some of the most amazing wrecks around the world.