Diving the Destin and PC Jetties

OK - I plan to do this in about 4 weeks so I need some tips from you pros especially about the currents - I will have a 13yr old going as well... Thanks in advance

Hebron Hill, when will you be there? We will be in Destin around the 22nd of June and are planning on diving the jetties.

+1 on the walk and being there before high tide! Both of these are a must to be prepared for.

C.T.

I dove the St. Andrews jetties twice last summer. The first time the wife and I paid for a guided jetty dive from one of the DM's from the Dive Locker. I think it was a $10-20 per person suggested tip. I think his name was Matt? We met him at the state park, along with a few other divers. He led the dive and tended the flag.

One reservation around this is "why am I paying for a free public dive?" Well...the wife and I tried it again a few days later and I missed the tide. Big mistake. We slipped over the rocks she couldn't buck the current started heading south and bugged out over the rocks back to the kiddie pool. My suggestion is to make sure you get the tide right. I screwed this up it was my fault. I can only assume that someone who knows what he's doing and makes this dive regularly could only help to avoid this.

The St. Andrews jetty is a nice dive. The walk isn't bad, there's a paviliion, with picnic tables, showers, bathrooms, etc...general state park ammenities.

I'm planning on taking the family back to PCB in early June 6-13th. We'll be camping at the state park and I hope to get a few dives in during that time. Maybe I'll see you there.

Ok here's a good exercise. Maybe someone can educate me a bit:

I understand that you want to dive jetties like this on an incoming tide, but according to the chart below when should I time my dive? Do I read this chart as the tide peaks at 8 am in the morning then falls all day and starts coming again at 7 pm?

What would be the most ideal time to make this dive? Should I start the dive 1.5 hours before posted high tide? In your experience how long do you have to complete your dive(s) before it starts racing back out?


Tides for St. Andrew Bay Channel entrance starting with June 6, 2009.

Day High Tide Height Sunrise Moon Time % Moon
/Low Time Feet Sunset Visible

Sa 6 High 8:12 AM 1.7 5:41 AM Set 4:30 AM 96
6 Low 7:25 PM -0.3 7:42 PM Rise 7:08 PM

Su 7 High 8:55 AM 1.7 5:41 AM Set 5:17 AM 99
7 Low 8:17 PM -0.3 7:43 PM Rise 8:02 PM

M 8 High 9:39 AM 1.7 5:41 AM Set 6:08 AM 99
8 Low 9:04 PM -0.3 7:43 PM Rise 8:51 PM

Tu 9 High 10:18 AM 1.7 5:41 AM Set 7:02 AM 98
9 Low 9:41 PM -0.3 7:44 PM Rise 9:35 PM

W 10 High 10:52 AM 1.7 5:41 AM Set 7:58 AM 95
10 Low 10:08 PM -0.3 7:44 PM Rise 10:14 PM

Th 11 High 11:21 AM 1.6 5:41 AM Set 8:54 AM 91
11 Low 10:25 PM -0.2 7:44 PM Rise 10:48 PM

F 12 High 11:44 AM 1.5 5:41 AM Set 9:49 AM 85
12 Low 10:35 PM -0.1 7:45 PM Rise 11:19 PM

Sa 13 High 12:01 PM 1.3 5:41 AM Set 10:43 AM 78
13 Low 10:34 PM 0.1 7:45 PM Rise 11:48 PM

I think a guide would be a very good idea for a few dives at the jetties,it is not hard to miss the tides and get a very strong current going out to sea,been there done that and you are not going to be able to swim against it,there is a beach you can get out at at the end of the jetty but it could be stressful for some with limited exp. Look at the boeys in the channel for what the tide is doing,if they are standing straight up, it is good to go,if they are leaning,you have tide moving through. I have only dove St. Andrews so not sure about Destin.

That and the tide predictions are just that... predictions... Weather, recent rainfall, etc can play a part in making those predictions... less precise.

SuPrBuGmAn:

That and the tide predictions are just that... predictions... Weather, recent rainfall, etc can play a part in making those predictions... less precise.

Click to expand...

What Bugman said.

1.5 before high tide should give an infrequent diver enough time to do two tanks, but trust your senses, and don't be afraid to call a dive if conditions don't look right.

PCB is (IMHO at least) the best shore dive you can get between there and The Mississippi River (at least until Pipkens opens in June )