Buckle up, friends. This is a long story with a short message. Do not give your money to West End Diving / 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. read more

Doug the owner is rude, manipulative, and a want to be salesman. The below post spell it all out. I will 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. read more

WOW. West End Diving is the most respected dive shop in St Louis. I have personally been involved with this store as a Dive Master for Boone Terre Mine many years ago. Boone Terre Mine is also connect with West End Diving. A full dive shop and expert insight on diving around the globe. If you are a beginner or expert in the field - this is your dive shop. read more

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I recently completed my SCUBA Open Water Certification through West End Diving. I chose them for my classes because they advertise that you can become certified over just two weekends and you get to do your open water classes at the world famous Bonne Terre Mine. My instructors were excellent, but be warned: they do not in any way baby you. You are expected to be punctual and responsible throughout your classes. You are expected to listen carefully. Everything is very organized. Both my instructors have over 5,000 logged dives, and I felt safe by their side. I really did go from having never even laid eyes on scuba equipment to being able to perform emergency shared air drills and maintaining neutral buoyancy just over the course of 4 days of diving. The Bonne Terre Mine itself is fascinating, even if you are just going for a boat tour. During my dive, you pass over large black trenches into the abyss. It really captures the imagination! We got to see an old mine cart that was used back in the early 1900s. The only thing I disliked about getting SCUBA certified through West End was that the learning felt very rushed. You swim in the pool on a Friday night, and then you have to be back in the pool early the next morning. Then before you know it, you are going 30 ft deep inside a cave! It was a rather stressful two weeks, but in the end it was all worth it. The only reason I would advise getting certified elsewhere is so that you can have more practice sessions in a pool before your open water. read more

I received my open water certification through West End Dive and have dove at the billion gallon Bonne Terre Mine-COLD!!! My instructors Buzz, DIck and Big Mike were the most patient and vigilant crew any new diver could dream of. I had numerous newbiee issues and often took a long time, had difficulty with the tasks and equipment...these men shrugged it off, helped me get it together with a friendly patient hand of a parent, I absolutely trust all three with my life. I have stayed at Maya Palms Dive Resot the firs thing that sets it apart is the extreme seclusion...heaven if only a slice...The diving is fantastic and prestine for a healthy reef life you cannot go wrong at Maya Palms Resort. Their core staff excellent -Ken you simply rock! Kathren owner/operator chef is the sweetest gem of a woman you could ever hope to meet, her food is amazing and tailered to your like three times a day wihtout fail.. Not feeling well, don't let her know she will dote on you until you are 100%-like a mom! The boat captains and dive masters acute and vigilant watch over the dive members in for me was vastly reassuring. The number one staff at Maya Resort-BRIAN I love this guys I could not hug him enough. OK, head up its remote this resort..they are the only place with power and potable water for hundreds of miles. THis means some compromise when staying at an ECO resort, know this..don't bring everyone down with fussing if you cannot plug in your hair dryer--jeesh! Schedule for return to Maya Palms for their New Year Trip!! I loved it that much! Also, best training for anyone at the Bonne Terre Mine if you are safe and tough-it is cold! They have specialized classes offered at the Mine, fun events/fund raisers, several awesome underwater trails! And much much more, come out and be a part of the West End DIve family! read more

This is the worst dive shop I've come in contact with in my 13 years of diving. The owner Doug is a complete jerk and their customer service is terrible and impossible to work with!!! The only reason I gave them 1 star is because I can give the 0 or else I would have. Their training staff is rude and negligent, they don't care about the safety of the customer at all. My wife tried to get certified by them and during her open water dive she was having trouble equalizing her ears and instead of the instructor working with her and giving her time to equalize he proceeded to drag her further under water. This resulted in her rupturing every blood vessel in her ear. We had to go to a specialist who is a ENT (ear,nose,throat) doc and he said she was lucky to not have burst her ear drum, which would have resulted in her becoming deaf in that ear. We were lucky, but not lucky enough to not still have to pay for the medical bills. We approached the dive shop to reimburse us for the cost of the class (nevermind the medical bills) because my wife was unable to complete the course from the trauma to her ear, again not because of her own doing but from what the instructor did to her. The owner Doug proceeded to call us liars and wouldn't refund the money. When I tried to call him and have a conversation about the situation he would answer and be extremely unhelpful and rude then hang up like a child, like I said the customer service is impossible and unlike anything I've ever seen before. Needless to the owner Doug is an ass!!!! I'm here to tell you to avoid this place at all cost, they don't care about the customer or the safety of their customers AT ALL!!! read more