Looking for experts on FL diving.
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PM me if you seek info. on shore or boat diving on the panhandle & Ala. Boats don't frequently go out in winter, but the do once in a while if enough divers.
Blue Grotto does not allow solo diving unless you have a solo certification.
There are some nice dive charters out of Boynton Beach/Jupiter area. Depending on the day they do reef drift dives or reef drift/wreck. There are some wrecks with large aggregations of Goliath Groupers. It's pretty cool to see. I saw about 30 Goliaths all lined up in 5 rows of 6 like an army on MV Castor.
There are some nice dive charters out of Boynton Beach/Jupiter area. Depending on the day they do reef drift dives or reef drift/wreck. There are some wrecks with large aggregations of Goliath Groupers. It's pretty cool to see. I saw about 30 Goliaths all lined up in 5 rows of 6 like an army on MV Castor.
Bryan83taco
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The Oriskany is definitely worth diving even if your max depth is 130’. I’d recommend getting EAN certified prior to diving the Mighty O. Get a nice 25-28% blend and you’ll enjoy yourself down there for bit longer then regular air. You may find a dive charter/shop down in Pensacola that will get your EAN certified before you dive. Worth it.
The Oriskany carrier is 911 ft / 276 m stem to stern...that’s six straight minutes to get from one end to the other at cruise speed with my BlackTip.
Definitely a scooter and clown gas dive to fully enjoy the immensity.
Definitely a scooter and clown gas dive to fully enjoy the immensity.
nolatom
Contributor
As mentioned above, the drift-diving scene off of Jupiter and West Palm Beach, is really good, not real expensive, and a good contrast to the usual out-and-back dives off an anchored dive boat. You're at the edge of the Gulf Stream, so the boat starts at the southern end of whatever particular reef, and both divers and boat drift north in the 1-2-knot current, typically there's a DM with you trailing a surface buoy for the boat to follow. So ascend whenever you like near the buoy line (don't hold on to it, the DM will not forget it if you do, it's a free-ascent), and the boat's there, or not too far away from the buoy. Just give them the signal, and they'll come get you, maybe some others first, so just lie back on your inflated BC and enjoy paradise.
I've dived Oriskany three times. First time a few months after she was sunk, still a "gray ship", flight deck at 130, and tower topped out at about 65-70 as I recall. So intermediate divers were mostly in that tower, nice swim-throughs. And some of us (meaning me) went down to 129' just long enough to touch the deck with your finger so you can say we did it, and feel like tough guys when we wrote it on our log books ;-) Yes, nitrox definitely a good idea.
Second time was a couple years later, she had shifted in some storms and listed deeper on the tower side, so deck was like 140 or so, and I wasn't going that deep So we doodled around the nav bridge and the Admiral's bridge in the 100-110' range. She was now a 'brown" ship, not much gray left anywhere.
Third time a couple years later still, and she had settled a bit deeper, so those tow bridge decks were about ten feet deeper. Definitely a "ship of the deep" by then, lots of marine growth, more like a high-tech reef.
Very good diving, but not really for the novices at the top of the tower any more. Nearby I recall there's another structure, a cut-off oil rig leg structure (the Chevron Platform), at about 90'. That might be your second dive of the day, since shallower.
Yes to shore dive at Phil Foster Park aka Blue Heron Bridge. But check your tide tables first, you can only dive it at the high tide, so you want a midday-ish high tide.
My Oriskany experience is kind of old. But the Jupiter and West Palm, more recent.
I've dived more often at Orange Beach and Pensacola, lots of things to look at. Mostly wrecks and bridge rubble (which sounds unglamorous but it's really pretty nice with all the nooks and crannies for marine life). Check with them when you book to see if it's going to be an "inshore dve" (about 3-4 miles out, wrecks sitting on about a 50-foot bottom, so good for newer divers), or an "offshore trip", about 10 miles out, wrecks sitting on about 90' sand. Oriskany is a few miles farther out, and is a "long day".
One note of caution right now--they're getting pummeled as we speak, by Hurricane Sally. Give them some time to get repaired and back in business. I hope they all come through okay, they're good folks. The ones I've dived with most are Down Under Dive shop in Orange Beach, and ScubaShack and MBT Divers in Pensacola. It's kind of cold in winter so not many trips, but from May through October, lots of trips.
I've dived Oriskany three times. First time a few months after she was sunk, still a "gray ship", flight deck at 130, and tower topped out at about 65-70 as I recall. So intermediate divers were mostly in that tower, nice swim-throughs. And some of us (meaning me) went down to 129' just long enough to touch the deck with your finger so you can say we did it, and feel like tough guys when we wrote it on our log books ;-) Yes, nitrox definitely a good idea.
Second time was a couple years later, she had shifted in some storms and listed deeper on the tower side, so deck was like 140 or so, and I wasn't going that deep So we doodled around the nav bridge and the Admiral's bridge in the 100-110' range. She was now a 'brown" ship, not much gray left anywhere.
Third time a couple years later still, and she had settled a bit deeper, so those tow bridge decks were about ten feet deeper. Definitely a "ship of the deep" by then, lots of marine growth, more like a high-tech reef.
Very good diving, but not really for the novices at the top of the tower any more. Nearby I recall there's another structure, a cut-off oil rig leg structure (the Chevron Platform), at about 90'. That might be your second dive of the day, since shallower.
Yes to shore dive at Phil Foster Park aka Blue Heron Bridge. But check your tide tables first, you can only dive it at the high tide, so you want a midday-ish high tide.
My Oriskany experience is kind of old. But the Jupiter and West Palm, more recent.
I've dived more often at Orange Beach and Pensacola, lots of things to look at. Mostly wrecks and bridge rubble (which sounds unglamorous but it's really pretty nice with all the nooks and crannies for marine life). Check with them when you book to see if it's going to be an "inshore dve" (about 3-4 miles out, wrecks sitting on about a 50-foot bottom, so good for newer divers), or an "offshore trip", about 10 miles out, wrecks sitting on about 90' sand. Oriskany is a few miles farther out, and is a "long day".
One note of caution right now--they're getting pummeled as we speak, by Hurricane Sally. Give them some time to get repaired and back in business. I hope they all come through okay, they're good folks. The ones I've dived with most are Down Under Dive shop in Orange Beach, and ScubaShack and MBT Divers in Pensacola. It's kind of cold in winter so not many trips, but from May through October, lots of trips.
nolatom
Contributor
And in February, lemon sharks are milling around Jupiter. I'm told these are pregnant females who need just the right water temperature (74 degrees) for gestation, after which they head over to the Bahamas to give birth. If you and the dive operator have favorable luck, you'll be in about 90 feet depth and you'll be advised to level off at 65-70 feet, and wait for a few of the expectant Moms to swim in a group beneath you, at about 80 feet. Way way cool. And if you're patient, they may circle back around and pass beneath you again. An experience not to be missed!!
Jupiter diving is just cool, in several ways. Not long ago, our group was near the ESSO BONAIRE wreck where we saw lots of Goliath Grouper as SJC above has mentioned, and while just hanging out near the wreck, I found myself gradually becoming the "totem pole" around which little fish, and big fish chasing them, began whirling around me, first a few, then more, then a whole lot of them, faster and faster, bump bump bump as some of them bounced against me in the big melee. It's known as a "bait ball" (explained my more-experienced buddy afterwards), little fish trying to use me as momentary shelter from the bigger fish who were wanting them for lunch, and was a first for me. It took me some time to dig all the tiny fish out of the folds and pockets of my BC on shore afterwards, but worth it. I'm told this is not a common occurrence, so I was a lucky guy through no virtue of my own ;-)
jadairiii
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To be more specific, shore diving in South Florida is from Delray Beach south to Hollywood beach/Hallandale Beach. Each has a little something different to offer, reefs, little "wrecks", Erojacks, multiple ledges, etc. Lots of beach access and good parking with showers in many of the spots. Weather permitting you could dive everyday and not dive the same site twice and see something different on every dive. Some sites are really close to the beach and other are a bit of a swim.
Only downside to that time of year, you could get blown out the whole week, but you could also get some awesome weather. Its the beginning of our "winter".
Only downside to that time of year, you could get blown out the whole week, but you could also get some awesome weather. Its the beginning of our "winter".
Not an expert, but we just got back from a Central Florida trip. We did Manatee Springs, Devil's Den, and Rainbow River. Nothing to see in the realm of pretty fish and reefs, but snorkeling with the manatees was on my bucket list. Devil's Den was too. The Rainbow river dive was fun, but these are all inland dives. We never even saw the Gulf but from the plane. If you want a taste of cave diving as something new, Devils Den is a great dive. All of our dives were in water that was in the low 70's so a GOOD 3mm full suit was necessary (for us).
Shark diving in Jupiter, Tooth diving in Venice (or North Carolina), Blue Heron Bridge, the Keys, and all the wrecks (including the Big O) are on my list.
Nitrox is easy, its just a 2 hour class about maximum depths, setting your computer, dive physiology, and testing your tanks. Its a great card to have and if your are trying to squeeze more than 2 dives in a day, Nitrox does not make me as tired as diving air.
Budget wise most diving in Florida will require you to rent tanks and weights in addition to the dive cost. When I was looking for shops, tanks were $10-$15 each and weights were $10 to $20. I have tried to put several trips to the keys together, but by the time you throw in flights, lodging, car rental, dive costs, and meals, we always find a better deal in the Caribbean. I'm highly biased though because we love everything about Cozumel.
Here is a link to what we did:
TRIP REPORT (LONG)- CRYSTAL RIVER, FL.- MANATEES, DEVILS DEN, RAINBOW RIVER
Safe travels, Please post a trip report when you get back.
Jay
Shark diving in Jupiter, Tooth diving in Venice (or North Carolina), Blue Heron Bridge, the Keys, and all the wrecks (including the Big O) are on my list.
Nitrox is easy, its just a 2 hour class about maximum depths, setting your computer, dive physiology, and testing your tanks. Its a great card to have and if your are trying to squeeze more than 2 dives in a day, Nitrox does not make me as tired as diving air.
Budget wise most diving in Florida will require you to rent tanks and weights in addition to the dive cost. When I was looking for shops, tanks were $10-$15 each and weights were $10 to $20. I have tried to put several trips to the keys together, but by the time you throw in flights, lodging, car rental, dive costs, and meals, we always find a better deal in the Caribbean. I'm highly biased though because we love everything about Cozumel.
Here is a link to what we did:
TRIP REPORT (LONG)- CRYSTAL RIVER, FL.- MANATEES, DEVILS DEN, RAINBOW RIVER
Safe travels, Please post a trip report when you get back.
Jay
DeepSeaExplorer
Contributor
The Dania Jacks (AKA Euro Jacks) is a nice dive just North of the Dania Beach pier. It’s one of my favorite shore dives. Always lots fish, a nurse shark or two, and occasionally a good size ray.
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