FAST HYDRO (hydrostatic testing) TURN-AROUND. I dropped off a cylinder at 10:25 am. I picked it up…read moreat 5:42 pm the NEXT DAY, with new hydro numbers stamped into the cylinder and a new VIP sticker. They offer a discount to military veterans.

My fiancé and I wanted to get scuba certified because we are going to Hawaii for our honeymoon…read morelater on this year. We cannot recommend Midwest scuba enough. Everyone was very friendly, patient, and professional. My fiancé was having a lot of trouble clearing his mask and needed some extra assistance. They did not hesitate to provide one on one time with him and were always very encouraging. He was about to give up on himself, but the instructors wouldn't give up on him and he was able to master it by the end of the day! The whole group was really excited for him and cheered him on. Thank you Midwest scuba for everything (especially Tak)!

Buckle up, friends. This is a long story with a short message. Do not give your money to West End…read moreDiving / Bonne Terre Mine. Manipulative sales practices and safety concerns should keep you far away. I was a staff diver with them for a short period of time and the complete lack of attention paid to safety was shocking. I left after just 4 weekends of working citing lack of training and safety concerns. I never received any pay for the time worked and now find myself out thousands of dollars for the experience. I got open water certified through West End Diving in Jan of 2020. My instructors were impressed with my skills & the owner Doug told me about their staff diver program where they supposedly train you to be a divemaster, pay you for your labor, and let you dive for free. This is where things all began to fall apart. Doug is a salesman who likes to apply a lot of pressure. Telling you things like: "You should never buy your gear online." "It's life support equipment and you must have your shop in your corner to make sure things are safe." And of course, "NEVER buy your gear from a private seller or eBay." Doug feels so strongly about this that though he charges you $1500 to join the staff diver program, that price surges to $2500 if you buy a single piece of gear somewhere else. Case in point, my dive computer. West End Diving sells Mares gear. Most Mares computers are not great imo. They are not back lit, dark, hard to read. I wanted something with more features than the $200 computers he had but not as high end as the $1200 Mares Genius high end model. I was told that I had to choose between those options or else pay the $1000 extra for the program. Cool, right? I did eventually pick up all my gear through West End Diving. I did tons of research but with every piece of gear I researched, Doug told me it wasn't good enough for a pro diver. There were requirements for the staff he told me. He pushed me to the highest end gear for everything ringing up about $6000 in total sales. It was more than I was comfortable with as I told him again and again but he swore by the gear, the service, said it was going to last me forever, etc. I had reservations but I trusted him and bought all in. Then COVID hit. Lots of the things I paid for were suddenly cancelled. (Oxygen administration and CPR classes for example). Despite the fact that we couldn't (and still can't) do those classes I was told I had to keep the materials and equipment purchased specifically for them. "No refunds." The mine was closed at the beginning of COVID but was soon up and running again. "Come down and begin your training" I was told. And things, at this point, got worse. The first weekend I showed up, no one seemed to know I was coming despite me following Doug's instructions for getting on the schedule. Regardless, the divers were eager to have help. I was trying to be cautious. Maintain distance. Wear my mask. Some of the other divers were less cautious. Not wearing masks around me or others. Trying to shake hands. Ignoring leaving space between people. When I expressed discomfort at this I was given excuses. One I heard was "Don't worry. He can't spread it. He's already had it." Another one I heard was "He's protected by God." Despite these warning signs, I persisted in going. I wanted to help and I wanted to train and I figured it would just be on me to navigate this situation where the staff wasn't taking COIVD very seriously. When I mentioned it to Doug he told me "in rural areas, such as Bonne Terre, wearing a mask is not typical, nor 6 feet distancing be regarded as necessary." Great. Nice to know the virus is somehow weaker in Bonne Terre. How silly of me to be worried about it. Now, let's talk about my training... There wasn't any. On each visit I was repeatedly asked to do things that I hadn't been trained on - including TO BE THE SAFETY DIVER ON THE DIVE. On every weekend I was there I was asked at least once to be the person responsible for the safety of the guests. This is despite the fact that I did not know the trails, I had no training, I cannot maintain neutral buoyancy myself, and that I am not even Advanced Open Water Certified yet. IT IS SHOCKING THAT THEY WOULD WANT ME IN THAT POSITION. I reached out to Doug after 4 frustrating weekends and told him about this and several other safety concerns. I told him, it was clear I was not a good fit for the staff and that I would like to find a way to remove myself and part ways amicably. I asked for a few concessions: 1) Refund the fee I paid to join the staff as I received no pay and no training. 2) Buy back my barely used gear at a discount (he sells used gear in the shop). 3) Refund me for the classes that were cancelled. His response: "I suggest you sell your equipment on Craigslist or eBay" When I asked if he felt he had no responsibility for any of my concerns and would he not offer any assistance, he ghosted me. This is me warning you.

Doug the owner is rude, manipulative, and a want to be salesman. The below post spell it all out. I…read morewill say it's a shame because his dive staff was amazing, but I would never recommend this place just because of the experience I have had and others have had. Go to any other place but here. The mIne isn't that special either, no wild life, just rocks and rusty equipment.

Ordered a football jersey for my son and it looks like it came out of the dirty clothes hamper,…read morewill never order from Academy again.

Academy in general but especially in Rogers Ark is is the worst retailer I have ever dealt with…read more They have products that I like but the most lousy retailer that I have ever dealt with. The management is awful and could care less if you do business with them. The inside of their store looks like a thrift store. No one ever acknowlege you. No thank you for shopping with them. And most of the employees look completely demoralized. After 15 years of overlooking all of this,no more. Walmart is more customer friendly! Good riddance!!

A great family run dive shop. Their instructors are very knowledgeable and take their time in…read moresmall groups to teach more efficiently. They really treat you like a person, as opposed to just another number. I highly recommend.

Great group of people it is a new shop built on an old one. Most of the staff worked for years at…read morethis location. They have a lot of years teaching diving and love to teach

Looking for a Fun thing to do? Especially in this heat?…read more Head to Bonne Terre Mines... it is a Cool 62 degrees all year around!! The Tour Guides are very knowledgeable and make the tour fun! It is Amazing how the miners back in the day worked underground. Now this is a walking tour with many steps. So if you can not do that then this is not for you.

This was our first time. It was fun and not too bad of a trek. We went on a short boat ride as part…read moreof the tour which was really cool (only subterranean boat ride I've ever been on). Most of the floors are slippery so I would careful if you have trouble with this. They also have scuba diving.

It was very boring. I would not suggest taking older kids 10-15. It was not FUN. It was very very…read moreBORING. The stairs to get in the mine are wet and slippery, if you leave kids unattended they could walk off and get hurt and or lost.

From the owner: We offer everything you need for the ultimate diving experience. Dive Bonne Terre Mine this…read moreweekend! Open water training is the most important aspect of becoming a certified diver. Bonne Terre offers such excellent diving conditions, that 15,000 certified divers a year flock to West End Diving's "Billion Gallon Lake Resort" to participate in the adventure of diving the mine. Winter or Summer, West End Diving can guarantee our students 100 plus feet of visibility and a constant 58-degree water temperature.