The continuing sagas of the Blue Heron Bridge

[Scuba_Dad]

Jenny... were you at the bridge on Saturday? I missed you... I dove the east side.. saw the manatee, and I had at least 4 spotted eagle rays swim right by us... I did get a picture of one of them....

Excellent dive...

 

[Scuba_Jenny]

We were on the west, starting at the shopping carts till a silt fest showed up. Looked over towards the mirror boat, and the vis was way down thanks to the 4 divers. Geesh.
Would love to do the east side again... it's been a long time!

 

[Scuba_Jenny]

Uh... "Dang"?
You from Texass, girl?

no, but maybe I should be, eh?

 

[jet126]

Jenny... were you at the bridge on Saturday? I missed you... I dove the east side.. saw the manatee, and I had at least 4 spotted eagle rays swim right by us... I did get a picture of one of them....

Excellent dive...

When you say "east side" do you mean under the little bridge? Or east side of the swimming area? I thought the east span was still closed.

Thanks!

 

[Scuba_Dad]

When you say "east side" do you mean under the little bridge? Or east side of the swimming area? I thought the east span was still closed.

Thanks!

Yes! Over by the little bridge... Aka the relief bridge... We stayed south of the bridge by the docks. That's the only place I know of where I can find 20+ feet of water. The west side gets down to 17' if you dig your gauge in the sand.

 

[tibenmiami]

The eagle rays are every where

 

[Bamabowtie]

I'm planning on diving da Bridge in May of next year and I'm looking for a little info.

1. When people are fishing from the pier on the West side, do you guys just usually dive under the bridge or can you dive under the fishing pier?

2. When diving the West side, if you were to lose count of which bridge footing you were on, is there visual underwater reference of the boating channel? (maybe a metal grate or something?)

3. I had planned to be coming through WPB on 5/12/11. Looking at the tidal calendar it says high tide for that day is 4:00 AM and 4:41 PM. Would a 4:41 high tide on May 12th make for a decent dive? I think that would make for a pretty short dive due to lack of daylight.

 

[jet126]

1. You can dive under the fishing pier - there is a lot of cool stuff under there! Just be aware of your surroundings and stay clear of any lines. Make sure you carry a knife in case you get snagged. It won't make the anglers happy if you cut their lines so the best thing to do is just pay attention once you start heading in that direction.

2. The bridge footings run E-W. The pilings marking the boat channel are much smaller, closer together and run N-S. The last bridge footing is right next to the channel markers. It looks like a "wall" - you can't miss it.

3. If high tide is 4:41 you want to be in the water by 3:45 or 4:00. And you'll be out around
5:45. It's difficult to get more than two hours as viz usually drops and the current picks up approx one hour after high tide. Sunset in mid-May is around 8:00pm. You should have plenty of daylight!

Make sure you stop at the Force E on Blue Heron Blvd on the west side of the bridge. They have maps and can help you with any last minute advice.

 

[deeper thoughts]

Is diving open by the East side bridge now?

 

[Reef_Haven]

My understanding is you have to stay at least 50' South of the East bridge. Which means diving near the private docks or in the channel.