Looking for info about diving the BHB

[Rythmmaker]

My buddy and I are starting to plan a long weekend dive trip to WPB and we'd like to dive the bridge. Since neither of us has done it before, I'm looking for advice. I think I read that you need to do it at slack tide, and I have a feeling that some who live in the area may have some suggestions for a first-timer.

I'm not opposed to paying for a guide. Where to start?

We are thinking about the last weekend in July or the first in August. is one weekend going to be better than the other based on tides and local boat traffic patterns? Should we try to dive it at night?

 

[Lorenzoid]

There are various websites, some from dive shops, explaining how to dive BHB. Just Google "blue heron bridge dive." Some of them have links to the tide tables for your convenience. You want to center your dive around slack high tide. ANY day is as good as any other, though weekends will be more crowded than weekdays, and holidays--forget about it. Parking is at a premium on weekends, so arrive at least an hour or even two hours early. Enter 30 or so minutes before high tide and exit 30 minutes or so after. My first time, I just went to Force-E dive shop near the bridge the afternoon before I planned to dive and asked for help. They handed me a map, showed me what to do, rented me a tank and a dive flag, etc. The second time I dived BHB I hired a guide through Force-E--I probably should have done that the first time. The dive shop at the park itself won't hook divers up with guides, I believe, but Force-E and Pura Vida can. The dive itself is easy--I mean REALLY easy--but the guides are good at spotting critters, and so a guide can help maximize your experience. Here's what Force-E has to say, including a link to the tide tables:

Blue Heron Bridge Diving and Tides | Force-E Scuba Centers

 

[Rythmmaker]

Thank you! Just what I was looking for. Dependable resources and good advice!

 

[Lorenzoid]

Thank you! Just what I was looking for. Dependable resources and good advice!

I'm hardly the expert. Someone with loads of BHB experience will chime in soon. I'm just another Atlantan who thinks BHB is worth a road trip. Sometimes I get in a dive out of Jupiter on the same trip, but sometimes I'll drive down just for BHB. I think it's THAT good.

 

[Rythmmaker]

I'm hardly the expert. Someone with loads of BHB experience will chime in soon. I'm just another Atlantan who thinks BHB is worth a road trip. Sometimes I get in a dive out of Jupiter on the same trip, but sometimes I'll drive down just for BHB. I think it's THAT good.

Hello, fellow ATLien! That's exactly what we are planning to do - road trip from ATL. Do the BHB and get in as many more dives as possible whether in WPB or Jupiter before having to head back. Prob drive Wed night / Thursday and dive BHB Friday AM. Maybe catch a charter there in WPB Friday afternoon and then dive Jupiter (?) on Saturday. Deadhead home on Sunday.

Emerald Charters in Jupiter has 3 tank dives for a whole day of diving for $100. What do you think? Good plan?

The high slack tide on Friday morning July 27th is 8:41AM. Seems like getting there at or just after 7am and in the water by just after 8 would be optimal. Still plenty of time to get in some afternoon dives.

I did the Governor's Riverwalk dive a couple of years ago and loved it. We went out with Little Deeper and had a good experience. I'm open to suggestions, but might use them again unless there's a better option close by.

 

[ScottFL78]

Sounds like you have a good plan. The bridge is a snooze fest to me but most people love it and it is great for photography. There are so many dive boats between Jupiter and West Palm and to me they are all the same. They are all good. I will be on the Little deeper this Saturday and Sunday and they are fine. I will only mention one that stands out and that is the Kyalami in Jupiter. The way they treat you and the quality of their boat and crew beats the rest IMO. They do one 2-tank trip per day at 10:00am so they make it count. You feel like you are on a first class flight yet they charge the same as every other boat. Honestly though they are all good and you should have a great time!

 

[sportxlh]

This is a good page that's accurate

Blue Heron Bridge

Note that the tide calculator on this page doesn't work right. Go with the NOAA site for the Port of Palm Beach (Google it)

Force E and Pura Vida are two close by shops, both have maps and rent gear. You can hire a guide at either but you'll need to make arrangements a day or two qbefore your dives.

I live in ATL now but used to live in the WPB area and this is an easy dive if you follow the advice on Wades Pages. I used to dive it on my way home from work when the tides were right and occasionally took a long lunch and dove it. Make sure you drag a dive flag and get to Phil Foster park early if you are diving on the weekend... parking spaces fill up fast. Don't park in a trailer spot or you'll get a ticket

Depending on your confidence and ability to duck behind a piling if the current is still stiff, you can get in 60-90 mins before slack tide and the same after. I've done many 2+ hour dives with my record being 3 hours on a 120 cf tank

 

[Lorenzoid]

. . .
Depending on your confidence and ability to duck behind a piling if the current is still stiff, you can get in 60-90 mins before slack tide and the same after. I've done many 2+ hour dives with my record being 3 hours on a 120 cf tank

That's definitely what I would call Advanced BHB. I know we have struggled against the flow simply trying to exit the water on our feet without falling on our faces 30 mins. after slack tide.

 

[sportxlh]

One of the best plans for a long dive is to hang out in the sand directly south of the beach and examine some of the misc debris piles and the mooring lines there. This is where I've seen some pretty cool stuff (sea horses, stargazers, wandering/walking batfish, queen triggers, snake eels, etc.). If you don't go too far from the beach, the current is usually pretty mild. Then after half an hour or so in that area right off the beach, head to the west side but do it fairly close to shore. If the current is still ripping, its easy to duck behind a piling and examine the macro life on the piling or at its base. I always found it easier to exit from the west side. If outgoing tide was clear enough to let me stay in a while after slack on the west span, I'd head east through the pilings until I found the final set and then just drift around and do a quick u turn around that last elongated piling support. The beach is fully protected right there.

 

[seeker242]

Emerald Charters in Jupiter has 3 tank dives for a whole day of diving for $100. What do you think? Good plan?

These are baited shark feeding dives, just so you know.
Emerald Dive Charters Trip Report