Who to dive with @/Near Clearwater FL?

[rob.mwpropane]

I was hoping not to have to ask, but I'm running a little short on time. Just got down here and was trying to squeeze one in before we headed east.

For the record I search SB, and I got some hits, but all are south of here (I'm actually in Valrico) and I think the red tide would mess that up.

I called "tanks a lot" and they're booked. I looked at "2 shea", but its $100/diver (wife and I) and tanks are $10 on top of that, so another $40 + taxes. I'm a junky just like the next guy, but $250+ for 1 trip for 2 people seems a tad expensive. And that's not even tip yet...

Any suggestions? Hoping to go tomorrow am, but pm might work also...

 

[kelemvor]

I'm in Largo, right next to Clearwater. Unfortunately, I'm out of the water right now with a sinus infection so I can't offer to buddy up.

Another boat operation here is "Dive Clearwater". HOME

In addition to calling boat operators, here are two shops you should call to see if they've got any planned dives with openings. They often organize dives and rent an entire boat. I think Mac's even has their own boats now but I'm not certain of that.

Mac's Sports: SCUBA Clearwater l SCUBA Tarpon l Snow Ski & Snowboard Shop
Bill Jackson's Shop for Adventure: Scuba Gear Tampa | Scuba Diving

Furthermore, $100/diver is roughly the going rate around Clearwater for boat dives. You might do a little better but not a lot - unless you can charter the whole boat and split the cost with the other divers. It's a fairly long boat ride out to any of the dive sites, so the boats use a lot of fuel which translates to spent time and money.. or that's how it's been explained to me.

From Valrico, you might also consider a freshwater dive if that sort of thing interests you.
http://www.devilsden.com/
Home
http://ginniespringsoutdoors.com/

All three of those sites are both fun and very easy.

Or if you go south a little bit, there is free $0 shore diving at Venice Beach. You'll park your car at "service club park" and wade on in.
Service Club Park (Venice) - 2018 All You Need to Know Before You Go (with Photos) - TripAdvisor or "The Boneyard" - Venice FL for info. This is a fairly low vis dive where people hunt for megalodon or shark tooth fossils, so it can be an acquired taste. However it's a dive site with showers, restrooms, and free parking.


Hope you find a dive!

 

[Sortsol]

Lots of good advice in the post above! If you're looking for cheap and fun with minimal hassle, then the Springs are the answer, although vis is a bit down at the moment because the water is so high from all the rain.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

All great ideas, thanks!! Is there a good amount of diving to do at the springs? I only see a few pictures of the hole. We're only OW cert, so no cave / cavern...

 

[Sortsol]

Blue Grotto and Devil's Den are about 5-10 mins apart so you can do both in the same day if you want. You only need OW certification. I was just teaching at Blue Grotto this past Saturday and it wasn't very busy because the vis and water height is a bit more difficult with large groups. I'm sure they'll be pretty empty during the week. You can get a full day of diving out of both sites. Won't be full of fish or wrecks, but will be much cheaper than a boat dive and they are certainly worth doing once in your life.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Because of money and plans to head south for some reef diving in a few days, which one would you go to if just one?

If just OW can you go down and see the bell at blue grotto?

 

[Sortsol]

Yes, the bell is easily reachable. Be warned, vis is poor till about 20 feet, then it will open up much more. If you don't have flashlights, invest in some before you go or rent them there. It will improve your enjoyment of the dive site. Normally you don't need flashlights, but the vis has blocked a lot of light below ~40ft, it's not pitch dark, but the lights will help you see more. Blue Grotto is nicer than Devil's Den, but the surface picture opportunities are nice at Devil's Den. It's really up to you.

 

[kelemvor]

If you choose blue grotto, it's important to be the first person into the water (or as close to that as you can get). This will help ensure you have better vis. Usually all the silt settles out of the water overnight and when they open the site in the morning you'll have 100' or more of vis. Then classes get going and new students kick up all kinds of silt into the water and the longer the day goes the worse the vis gets.

So... try and be in line waiting to get in when they open the gates for Blue Grotto.

I think it's an extremely fun dive, I did one of my OW certification dives there.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Hey guys, sorry for the late reply. We had dinner with our host last night, and I didn't want to be rude.

I showed her (wife/buddy) a few video's. She likes devils den better, and since I'm just happy to get in, idk. As soon as we saw the video of what the topside looked like, I knew that what she would pick, lol...

Blue grotto looks bigger and more exciting to me under water, but she doesn't like the idea of an overhang which I understand. I don't want to have her do anything she's not comfortable with.

I called both places. BG said first 20-30 was low viz. I asked "what's low viz". She said 10-15'. I told her our last dive was maybe 6' at most and all green at 54F. I'm beginning to think Floridians are pretty spoiled, lol (jk).

DD said viz is surprisingly good, but a lot higher water level than usual.

Both places look pretty spectacular, and having never dove a spring both would be great. Very excited, getting ready to leave now...

Wanted to say a big thanks to both @kelemvor and @Sortsol for helping get things sorted out.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Just wanted to say thank you both again.

Here's a small report. Water level was very high at Devil's Den compared to pictures I've seen online (15' higher actually). The viz was not as good as I'm sure some people want it, was slightly cloudy due to rain, but for us it was perfect. You can see for just about the full length of the cavern (easy 40-50 ft). I had a flashlight so we traded back and forth exploring. I loved it and it really built confidence in my wife. We didn't go deeper than 40' because at that point we would of had to squeeze through cracks / between rocks and from what I saw with my light there wasn't much to see and I don't have the equipment to be doing all that (or training). It's kind of like diving one big giant circle, but gave us a chance to work on things. It's not a place that I would need to go to all the time, but was well worth it to see at least once. Again, great place to try gear. The only downside is it's chilly. The 3mm that they rented us didn't cut it. 72F got me pretty cold after 40 min or so. We were able to do 2 40 min dives on 1 80cf al tank and still surface with 500 psi. The only thing I would change if I did it again would be a 5mm if they had one to rent. My wife was fine in a 3mm.

One little bit, I've never dove a 3mm before. I told they guy at the counter I needed no weight with my gear in just a rash guard and I was on the heavy side (dss ss bp, vdh 35lb wing) he said to get the wetsuit to sink needed 8lbs. Was way to heavy on the first dive, very uncomfortable. I got rid of 6lbs and hung 2 from my shoulder d ring for trim and things got much better. Moral to the story, I guess I should of just done a weight check from the beginning as opposed to trusting someone. Lesson learned.