Any operators going out on New Years Day (Friday) in South Florida?

[Johnoly]

Emerald Charters in Jupiter is going out for a 3 tanker on January 1st.

 

[scubadada]

This thread is a great example of how ScubaBoard helps divers meet their goals. The best of ScubaBoard.

Good diving,

Craig

 

[DebbyDiver]

I just looked and my favorite Broward dive op, Sea Experience II, is diving the Mercedes on January 1.

 

[handben]

Thanks to all for the great info! I will post a trip report as a way to pay back to the community.

 

[handben]

As promised, A quick review. We (my 13 year old diver ~80 dives and I) went out with Jupiter Dive Center on Thursday (12/31/09) for their afternoon dive. For unclear reasons, we were about a half hour late pushing off from the dock. We headed out in overcast conditions with a chop and some moderate rollers. We were both a little tired to start with and got a little queazy on the rolling deck; but that quickly went away once under water. We dove air (as the certifying agencies won't let you get nitrox till age 15) and this limited our bottom time to about 25 minutes on the first dive (85 foot). We had a good first dive saw about 3 sharks (one was an 8ft bull shark) and 2 large loggerheads. The second dive was also quite good. There was a short swim-through which was a nice change, but being toward the end of the group the folks in front of us had pretty well silted it out. I'm not sure what fish they spooked out of it, we were looking for Goliath groupers as my daughter hasn't ever seen one. She still hasn't. We were happy with the service and look forward to diving with them again.

The next day (New Years day) we went out with Splash-down divers in Boynton Beach. They were a friendly and helpful bunch. They were happy to swap out a couple of LP hoses and gave me a port cap (? right term) for free. I was pleasantly surprised when they asked if we wanted to dive air or nitrox. I said I'd love to dive nitrox, if only my daughter were nitrox certified. The lady running the shop said she'd rent us nitrox tanks, knowing that we wouldn't be able to get anywhere near the MOD. So we were off with 2 tanks each of 37% nitrox. This was great for us as we didn't have to worry about NDLs for our 2 dives. The first dive went 55 minutes with a max depth of around 65 feet. We had a short SI of about 30 minutes then another 51 minute dive. With these long dives and a temp of 73 degrees, we got a little cold on both dives. Of these 2 dives (they both sort of blend together in my mind) we saw several moray eels a small loggerhead (12 inches or so). I also saw a mature spotted drum under a ledge.

We were happy with both operations - nice folks on both boats. (I think it helps having a teenage daughter dive with me ). There were some major differences in the 2 areas. Jupiter offers a more rugged relief with a ledge of about 10 feet in height, there are many areas that you can look under with lights for different criters. Boynton was pretty much flat all along the course of nearly 2 hours of diving. Much of the coral in Boynton was covered with Fuzz Ball Algae (reddish brown hair like filaments). I'm not sure if this indicates unhealthy coral or if it just snagged on the coral due to the currents.

We planned to dive January 2nd with Jupiter Dive Center again, but the strong cold front (44 degrees, strong winds from NW) kept us home. They graciously took our name off the list even though their boat went out with the "die-hard divers". On our day off we stopped by a Nautical themed store in Stuart and I was heart broken to see all manner of dead coral for sale. It was for the most part intact and I would think that it would have to have been "harvested" alive. I found it hard to believe that it is legal to sell coral like this; but it would certainly explain the distinct absence of sizable coral formations in either areas that we dove. Nonetheless we are eager to dive here again. We're happy to have other activities to do when visiting the grandparents.

 

[joystershell]

Hi Ben,

I wish I had known that you went out on Splashdown on Friday. I was the girl (on time) that sat across from you and your daughter for that trip. Glad you enjoyed yourself. Wish I had known that was you on the boat though.

Joyce

 

[DebbyDiver]

I have a ScubaBoard sticker on my tanks and on my dive gear box that is always stashed below my seat. IJS.

 

[scubadada]

The next day (New Years day) we went out with Splash-down divers in Boynton Beach. They were a friendly and helpful bunch. They were happy to swap out a couple of LP hoses and gave me a port cap (? right term) for free. I was pleasantly surprised when they asked if we wanted to dive air or nitrox. I said I'd love to dive nitrox, if only my daughter were nitrox certified. The lady running the shop said she'd rent us nitrox tanks, knowing that we wouldn't be able to get anywhere near the MOD. So we were off with 2 tanks each of 37% nitrox.

Wow, I'd think it would be better to rent out nitrox tanks to nitrox certified divers, just sayin.

Good diving, Craig

 

[DebbyDiver]

scubadada, my thoughts exactly.

 

[handben]

I was pleasantly surprised by the nitrox rentals. They obviously knew where they'd be taking us and that it would be impossible to violate the maximum operating depth. The rest was just a matter of adjusting our computers to the new mix. I think nitrox is a safer mix when diving within the MOD, but I was still a little surprised given how litigious our society has become. I wish I could go ahead and get her nitrox certified; but I know the certifying agencies have to cover their own rears from the trial lawyers. I don't know of any agency that offers nitrox younger than age 15.

Thanks again for all those who came up with great suggestions for operators on New Years day.