LM
Hero Member
I rolled over 30 years not too long ago and I'm totally done with the path my life's been on. I'm not a 9-5 guy.
There's been this odd constant in my life, ever since I was a little kid. Treasure. When I was 7, I was given a subscription to a treasure hunting magazine, got my first metal detector as a little kid- my entire life, it's occupied my thoughts.
As a boy in 1986, my mother took me to a coin show that featured a number of Atocha artifacts. There was a film on Mel Fisher and his crew, life, etc... I was totally enchanted. I do distinctly recall at that time, the cobs were selling for a considerable bit more (at that show, anyway) than they are today. I picked up a decent Grade 2 Atocha coin a while back and wear it almost every day.
Anyway, rambling now. It's time for a life change.
Where does one begin, as far as getting into this as a profession? Yes, I completely understand the associated risks (both in terms of personal safety and hard living) and I'm prepared for that. The worst case scenario is that I try it for a while and if I can't take it, I punt, but I don't think I could lay comfortably on my death bed, knowing that I never tried.
Should I pursue a related degree?
Obviously, diving certification is a gimme... How do I go about this?
I positively *love* research and am quite good at it... Can anyone suggest what skillsets I should develop in this regard, as far as researching wrecks, etc?
I want to do this, I will do this, but I'd like some advice from the guys who know what they're talking about. I'm perfectly willing to start at the bottom 'shoveling shit' to get my foot in the door, but to be honest, I don't even know what the 'door' I'm looking for is.
Sorry this was long, thanks for listening, any constructive help appreciated.
There's been this odd constant in my life, ever since I was a little kid. Treasure. When I was 7, I was given a subscription to a treasure hunting magazine, got my first metal detector as a little kid- my entire life, it's occupied my thoughts.
As a boy in 1986, my mother took me to a coin show that featured a number of Atocha artifacts. There was a film on Mel Fisher and his crew, life, etc... I was totally enchanted. I do distinctly recall at that time, the cobs were selling for a considerable bit more (at that show, anyway) than they are today. I picked up a decent Grade 2 Atocha coin a while back and wear it almost every day.
Anyway, rambling now. It's time for a life change.
Where does one begin, as far as getting into this as a profession? Yes, I completely understand the associated risks (both in terms of personal safety and hard living) and I'm prepared for that. The worst case scenario is that I try it for a while and if I can't take it, I punt, but I don't think I could lay comfortably on my death bed, knowing that I never tried.
Should I pursue a related degree?
Obviously, diving certification is a gimme... How do I go about this?
I positively *love* research and am quite good at it... Can anyone suggest what skillsets I should develop in this regard, as far as researching wrecks, etc?
I want to do this, I will do this, but I'd like some advice from the guys who know what they're talking about. I'm perfectly willing to start at the bottom 'shoveling shit' to get my foot in the door, but to be honest, I don't even know what the 'door' I'm looking for is.
Sorry this was long, thanks for listening, any constructive help appreciated.