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her athleticism, stature and golden hair, Heinerth could
easily be mistaken for a Hollywood action hero, but (for
now) she prefers to be on the other side of the camera.
Heinerth’s accolades include induction into the
exclusive New York Explorer’s Club and the inaugural
class of the Women Divers Hall of Fame, being
named a “Living Legend” by Sport Diver and scores of
photography and filmmaking awards. Heinerth recently
received the Wyland ICON award, which she called “an
amazing honor that blew me away.”
Despite her extensive diving and travel schedule,
Heinerth has found the time to become a talented
artist. She is an accomplished painter and may even exhibit
her work in the future. She celebrates every moment she has
with her husband of six years, Robert, and makes time to stay
in shape. “When I’m home in Florida, I swim almost every
day. Robert and I love to ride and take frequent 30-mile bike
trips together. I don’t weight train in the gym because when
I’m diving I usually haul more than 250 pounds of gear, and
you can bet that will keep your muscles strong.”
Another passion of Heinerth’s is mentoring other divers. As
an instructor, she always advises her students to use a checklist.
“Checklists save lives,” she exclaims, “and if you will be using
a rebreather, complete a five-minute pre-breathe, visualize
exactly how the dive will go, and make sure your equipment is
in perfect condition before getting wet.” Heinerth has dived so
many exotic places, but she is still hungry for more adventure.
“Someday I’d like to explore the high Arctic and more remote
areas of Africa,” she says. “There are still so many vistas in
the underwater world we haven’t seen.” There is no doubt
Heinerth will be actively searching them out.
— Hillary Viders, Ph.D.
Jill Heinerth has led research and
exploratory expeditions into underwater
caves all around the world.
J I L L H E I N E R T H