Patrick Widmann

Patrick is originally from a small town in Austria called Fusch some 10min away from Zell am See which is a quiet town next to a lake. There, at an early age, he discovered a passion for diving during a demo dive with the local rescue team. Joining his father, he became part of that team and took advantage of the free equipment and easy access to the lake.

On a family vacation in 1998 he finally got certified as a Padi Open Water Diver. Most of his early diving was in the cold and dark lakes of western Austria at high altitude except for some family trips to Croatia. In the summer of 2002, after graduating from a natural science school, he went to Croatia to get experience as a dive guide. 

In the fall of 2002, he moved to Egypt to turn his passion into his full time occupation. There he met his first real mentor, Luigi Iannone who pushed and trained him day in day out. While living on the Red Sea, he taught recreational diving in big factory style diving centres. He spent almost all his free time diving and pursuing his career goals, constantly learning new skills and doing ever more challenging dives. Taught by Janice Sherriffs, he completed his IDC Staff Instructor training in 2003 and started teaching Padi courses up to IDC (Instructor Development Course).

Almost simultaniously, Oscar Galletto an IANTD ITT helped him getting into technical diving. First mainly as recreation but soon after also teaching it to people who share the interest. After a year of focusing all his time on this pursuit and training weekly, he started to perform solo deep mixed gas dives in open water, deep wreck penetration dives and to participate in a collection of exploration projects. Doing solo dives not by choice but simply due to the lack of a dive partner.

Getting slightly burned out of the recreational diving industry and more and more interested in technical diving he decided to do a cave diving course after reading Bill Stones Book about deep cave explorations and Closed Circuit Rebreathers (CCR). In 2005 he came the first time to the Yucatan and was immediately hooked on every aspect of this sport. In 2006 after starting to dive a CCR in Egypt he bought his first Unit, an ISC Megalodon, and came back to Mexico to train on it for cave and Trimix diving.

In March 2007 he finally decided to move to Playa del Carmen permanently to be able to cave dive on a daily basis and hasn’t regret that decision ever since.

In 2009 he became part owner of ProTec with the goal to create a training facility with the highest standards while supporting exploration and conservation.

Patrick is actively travelling the world to participate in projects and teach in foreign locations. Therefore he spends most summers in Europe teaching CCR diving on the Sidewinder throughout Spain, France, and Austria among others, or in Asia training instructors and divers in Korea, Japan, and the Philippines. Patrick is also a very active member in the QDT (Quiet Diver Team) and the DRSS (Dominican Republic Speleological Society) and has dived, explored and taught in caves in Mexico, Florida, Belize, France, Dominican Republic, Madagascar, Austria, Sardinia, Bahamas, Haiti, Hungary, Zanzibar, Australia and Mallorca.

Patrick is the co-creator of the XDeep Stealth 2.0, one of the most sold Sidemount rigs on the market and is also involved in the R+D of many other products of xDeep and KISS Rebreathers.

Furthermore he is the country licensee of PSAI for Hispaniola and Mexico and is member of the Board of Advisors and helps create and refine course materials for PSAI.

DSAT Instructor for:(not renewed)

Tec Deep Diver 

Specialized User for:

• AP Classic Inspiration
• ISC Apeks Megalodon
• Classic KISS
• Poseidon Cis Lunar MK VI
• JJ-CCR
• Revo CCR
• Pelagian DCCR
• KISS Sidewinder
• Prism 2
• SF 2
• AP Inspiration and evolution Vision

Diver Levels:

• GUE Fundamentals
• GUE Cave One 
• GUE Tec One
• TDI Advanced Trimix
• IANTD CCR Trimix

Participant in the following exploration, expeditions and projects:

2005 
Reef Formation Study on Gorgonian Reef (-100M/-330FT to -85M/-280FT) Hurghada, Egypt

Black Canyon Mapping Project (-120M/-400FT) Hurghada, Egypt

2006
Mapping the Interiors of the Wreck Hebat Allah (-45MSW), Hurghada Egypt

2007
Cave Exploration in Akumal and South of Playa del Carmen, Mexico

National Geographic video documentary production safety diver, Playa del Carmen, Mexcio

2008
“The Pit” Deep Cave Diving Project (105MSW/350FT) Playa del Carmen, Mexico

AIDA sponsored international free diving competition deep safety diver, Bacalar, Mexico

2009
“The Pit” Deep Cave Diving Project, one hour bottom time at an average depth of 90MSW/300FT with use of decompression habitat, Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Cenote 307 Exploration Project, Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Polish distance record 17km, Diving Safety Officer, Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Diving Safety Officer for Tube Inspection Project, Toluca, Mexico

2010
Exploration Project Cenote Balan Ak, Chemuyil, Mexico

Exploration Project Cenote Palomita, Chemuyil, Mexico

Exploration Project Sistema Lycka, Tulum, Mexico

Exploration Project Sistema Lorenzo, Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Exploration Project Sistema Under the Bridge, Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Designed Cave Diving Specific Sidemount Equipment named Stealth

2011
Exploration Project Sistema Lycka, Tulum, Mexico

Exploration Project Sistema Ek Be, Akumal, Chemuyil, Mexico

Deep Cave Exploration (230ft/70m) and archeological research project, Cara Blanca, Belize

Exploration Project Cenote Sand Crack, Tulum, Mexico

Exploration Project Cenote Rojo, Tulum, Mexico

Exploration Project, Systema Maya, Tulum, Mexico

Together with Polish Equipment Manufacturer XDeep designed and developed the STEALTH 2.0

2012
Exploration Project, Cenote Ak Tulum, Tulum, Mexico

Exploration Project, Cenote Caterpillar, Muyil, Mexico

Exploration Project Cueva Mulata, Bayahibe, Dominican Republic

2013
Exploration Project Cenote Caterpillar, Muyil, Mexico

Exploration Project Cenote Drunken Snake, Muyil, Mexico

Exploration Project Sistema Chi Keen, Muyil, Mexico

Exploration Project Sistema Choko Pek, Tulum, Mexico

Exploration Project Sistema Nohoch Pek, Muyil, Mexio

Exploration Project Sistema Doggi, Muyil, Mexio

Exploration Project Sistema Escalera, Cabarete, Dominican Republic

Exploration Project El Torro, Bayahibe, Dominican Republic (extended cave to over 10.000ft in a 9h sump project)

Exploration Project Cenote la Bajada, Sistema Caterpillar, Muyil, Mexico

Exploration Project Cenote Style, Sistema Doggi, Muyil Mexico

2014
Exploration Project Sarodrano, Tulear, Madagascar

Exploration Project Binabe, Tulear, Madagascar

Exploration Project Aven, Anakao, Madagascar

Exploration Project Vintany, Itampolo, Madagascar

Exploration Project Malaza Manga, Anakao, Madagascar

Exploration Project Cenote El Mango, Tulum, Mexico

Exploration Project Cenote The Nest, Muyil, Mexico

Team Expedition to Mahafaly Karst, Nat Geo Film and Science Project, Anakao, Madagascar

2015 
Exploration Project Cueva Negra, Bayahibe, Dominican Republic

Exploration Project Cueva Taina, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Exploration Project El Toro, Bayahibe, Dominican Republic (climbed 2nd dry cave in 11h sump project)

Exploration Project Hoyo Binet, Bayahibe, Dominican Republic

Exploration Project Cenote Galaxian, Muyil, Mexico

Exploration Project Sistema Tres Rios, Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Exploration Project Nacimiento del Rio Sonador, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic (deepest cave of the DR 330ft/100m)

Exploration Project Nacimiento del Rio Balata, Los Haitises, Dominican Republic (max 170ft/52m)

2016 
Exploration Project El Zebu, Secret Location, Africa

Exploration Project Parazyte Lake, Secret Location, Africa

Exploration Project Malaza Manga, Anakao, Madagascar (expanded cave to 13.000ft, max depth 158ft/48m, on CCR)

Installment of first under water paleontology museum in Aven cave, Anakao, Madagascar

2017
Exploration Project Anjanamba, Tulear, Madagascar filmed Spirits of the cave One (https://youtu.be/eDYdchsrLEo)

Various small Projects in Muyil, Q.Roo, Mexico

2018
Exploration Project Haiti, found deepest cave of Hispaniola currently 110m/360ft deep with more depth potential and strong flow

Exploration Project Anjanamba, Tulear, Madagascar filmed Spirits of the cave Two (https://youtu.be/A_4OO5kNhGg), made Anjanamba the longest submerged cave of Africa

Various small Projects in Muyil, Q.Roo, Mexico

2019 
Exploration Project Anjanamba, Tulear, Madagascar filmed Spirits of the cave Three (https://youtu.be/_O5gLZzPZbU), cave is now over 10km/33k ft long with a single entrance!

Various small Projects in Muyil, Q.Roo, Mexico 

Articles published by or with Patrick:

Hebat Allah – The Gift of Allah in the German and English version of the H2O Magazine 

Into the Pit – UWS Magazine

Various Articles – Quiet Diver

An Ancient Watery Underworld – New York Times

Der Hoehlentaucher – Kronen Zeitung

Sidemount 1×1 – Wetnotes Magazine

CNN – Mahafaly Project 

NBC – Mahafaly Project

Learning to Sidemount – UWS Magazine 

Washington Post – Mahafaly Project

National Geographic – Mahafaly Project 

Red Bull – Exploring the deepest cave of the Dominican Republic 

Scuba Diving Magazine – To Parts Unknown

Click Here for a Q & A with Patrick