Experienced Diver New to New England

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Messages
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Location
Stratford, CT
Hey All,
Great reading in most of the threads. I'm new to New England and am looking for some good diving near Connecticut. I'm originally from the Pacific Northwest where I used to commercial harvest sea urchins, scallops and sea cucumbers. I only dive for fun and food these days.
I'd like to get into lobstering, spearfishing, scallops etc... (not sure what else you guys dive for around here) for personal consumption of course.

Is diving in Long Island sound even worth suiting up for? I hear it can be pretty murky/ polluted or whatever.

I hear Rhode Island and Massachusets has some good diving. I don't want to have to buy a fishing and/or lobster license in 3 states so Which one is best to get? How much does it cost and where can I get it?

Thanks in advance for your tips.

-johnebravo
 
Lobsters in CT are almost all diseased
MA probably has the best lobster, but you can't lobster without a license and being a resident.
RI has a non-resident permit, but it's like $200 or something


The Long Island Sound has tons of diving as do RI and Mass. What kind of dives are you looking for? Wrecks?
 
John, welcome to the area.

I'll let the more experienced New England divers answer your questions, but in short, there's great diving throughout New England, including the Sound.

And as for hunting, I admit that if I'm in the mood for lobsters, steamers, scallops or other seafood, I just "hunt" for what I want at the local supermarket or seafood store and buy it. :11ztongue

Michael
 
johnebravo:
Hey All,
Great reading in most of the threads. I'm new to New England and am looking for some good diving near Connecticut. I'm originally from the Pacific Northwest where I used to commercial harvest sea urchins, scallops and sea cucumbers. I only dive for fun and food these days.
I'd like to get into lobstering, spearfishing, scallops etc... (not sure what else you guys dive for around here) for personal consumption of course.

Is diving in Long Island sound even worth suiting up for? I hear it can be pretty murky/ polluted or whatever.

I hear Rhode Island and Massachusets has some good diving. I don't want to have to buy a fishing and/or lobster license in 3 states so Which one is best to get? How much does it cost and where can I get it?

Thanks in advance for your tips.

-johnebravo
Welcome to New England,
I think you will be happy diving here even after having been spoiled by diving in the NW. I have never been out west, but it looks similar from all I have seen. I grew up summering in Ct on the Sound, but never had a chance to dive there. I have dove in RI and do almost all my diving on Cape Ann. I know I will get yelled at for this, but Cape Ann really does have the best, most colorful diving around these parts. This time of year doesn't yield much in the line of lobster as most have moved out to deeper water...but every now and then you can find one. As has been pointed out though, you need to be a resident (the ONLY benefit of living on Mass). If you would like to get acquainted with North Shore diving send me an email and we can try and get some water time in. As I am presently in search of alternative personal growth opportunities (unemployed) I have the time!
 
Welcome to CT! Everyone's previous posts are pretty accurate (well, except for the diseased CT lobsters; I hope not, since I've eaten quite a few). Here's my $0.02: CT: LIS is not good diving, You'll find more good freshwater diving than salt. However, you can lobster day or night. Stonington (east end of I-95) is reportedly pretty good, though I've never checked it out myself. RI: Salt water diving is pretty good, and usually warmer than MA. This is where I go for a sw fix. MA: Best New England SW diving, in my opinion. Good community of divers up there as well.

You might even be close enough to day/weekend trip to New Jersey for diving or Dutch Springs in PA. There are more knowledgable people about those sites elsewhere on this board than I. Good luck!
 
Thank you for all your well written and thoughtfull replys. Can't wait to get wet again. Haven't dove since the summer. Looking forward to exploring the aqueus scenery of New England. As for types of diving. I'd definately like to explore some wrecks and see what the reef life is like around here. It will be nice to see completely different marine species than what I'm used to. I'll probably start with some local shore dives just to get the feel of things.

The reason I like to collect my own seafood is because you usually get it much fresher and therefore much tastier that any you can find in a store. But that is where I'm from and may not nessicarily be the case around here.
Thanks again.
-johnebravo
 
Well, to help you out on your fishing exploits, here's the link to the CT Department of Environmental Protection/Fisheries website: Marine Fisheries

Included are the fishing regs, permit requirements, fish consumption advisories, etc.
 
Of over 200 dives in CT, RI, MA only about 15 have been from a boat. To save money Ive almost always done shore diving and some interesting dives that not all divers like doing because it does require some fitness and a good snorkle. Lets hook up sometime and I can show you some good dives. I live in CT

Chris
 
You might want to look at joining a dive club. CT has a couple that are quite good. Here is a google link to some clubs. A couple are in your area.

LIS is not the best diving because vis is very poor in the summer but you should be able to dive NJ easy enough.

Dave


http://www.scubayellowpages.com/divers/diveclubs/connecticut.htm
 

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