"All I want for my birthday is 80 cubic feet of 30/30" - My long weekend in Florida

[TSandM]

A lifetime in Ginnie would make a serious hole in my pocketbook . . .

It is funny, though. The caves that are typically used for training in Mexico tend to have similar characteristics -- they are not very decorated (so not very fragile) and have fairly large passage. At least a couple of them have turned into caves I rarely dive, because I prefer more decoration and more technical challenge most of the time. So I had very little expectation of Peacock, and I was surprised and delighted. I knew quite a bit more about what I was going to see in Ginnie, I just didn't expect to enjoy any of it

Overall, I packed a lot of surprises into just three dives!

BTW, flyandive, if you ever plan a trip up Seattle way, let me know, and we'll try to show you some of why the PNW is such a special place to dive. But then, of course, you have Monterey . . .

 

[flyandive]

A lifetime in Ginnie would make a serious hole in my pocketbook . . .

It is funny, though. The caves that are typically used for training in Mexico tend to have similar characteristics -- they are not very decorated (so not very fragile) and have fairly large passage. At least a couple of them have turned into caves I rarely dive, because I prefer more decoration and more technical challenge most of the time. So I had very little expectation of Peacock, and I was surprised and delighted. I knew quite a bit more about what I was going to see in Ginnie, I just didn't expect to enjoy any of it

Overall, I packed a lot of surprises into just three dives!

BTW, flyandive, if you ever plan a trip up Seattle way, let me know, and we'll try to show you some of why the PNW is such a special place to dive. But then, of course, you have Monterey . . .

Oh I could definitely find some challenging spots in Peacock! That being said I know what you mean. For better or for worse, one of the reasons Peacock is a relatively "easy" dive is that it is so well traveled there is very little dust, or very fine silt to get stirred up in many of the passage ways. You would have to get off the main line for the really tight silty spots. There are some beautifully interesting formations but the color doesn't compare to Ginnie, Cow, Little River, etc. Each cave definitely has it's own unique charm, a concept not well understood without having seen the inside of a cave. I've resorted to answering the question, "What do y'all see down thar?" with, "wet rock."

We do have Monterey and Carmel which are incredible places to dive as is the sound. So far I have had the pleasure of diving Alki, Edmunds, and Redondo. These were all with someone relatively new to diving so I would love to hit some of the more challenging sites. A friend of mine and I have been talking about diving the PB4Y in Lake Washington but that probably won't happen until at least next year.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

... last time I went down Sistine it was pretty darn dusty ... I don't think many people go down that passage ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[TSandM]

Oh, you need to come up when the tides are good, and do some of our better recreational sites! (Although I can never knock Alki, since I've seen some of the weirdest and most wonderful stuff there.) The lake dives are great if you like challenges, although inspecting an airplane 18 inches at a time hasn't really inspired ME

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Been lucky enough to be on the PB4Y when you can see quite a bit more of it than that ... but it's more the exception than the rule. Most of my dives in Lake Washington redefined the concept of low-visibility.

But Lynne's right ... pick a time with tidal exchanges are small and some of our better sites are diveable ... and bring (or borrow) a scooter ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[rlynch]

Sounds like a great time Lynn. Always is with positive Kate Sorry I missed you in Seattle on the 9th. Nice meeting you Bob as well. Its The people that make Diving great.

 

[TSandM]

It was a wonderful time. Both logistics and a physical problem I was trying to deal with made me focus more on the human side of the trip than hard-core pedal-to-the-metal diving . . . and that was fine. I dove and loved it; more importantly, I connected with people who enriched the trip. And I exorcised demons, which was also a good thing.

 

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

We were staying at Jim Wyatt's rental house, and the directions were actually quite clear, once you had been there. But when you have two ladies of a certain age in a dark car, neither of whom can read anything without reading glasses, trying to peer at the display from a GPS unit that thinks North Central Florida (NCF) is as remote as the Maldives, you have a recipe for wrong turns, of which we made more than a few. But eventually, we were washboarding down a white limestone road to a dark house in the middle of what appeared to be nowhere in the middle of the night, but turned out to be a nice, rural housing development in the subsequent daylight. We let ourselves in, and were immediately completely floored by the size and the niceness of the lodging. The location is perfectly convenient neither to Peacock nor to Ginnie, but is workable for both, and the house is really very attractive and comfortable. There's a fireplace (which we of course did not need in May) with a stone wall above it. One bedroom has two queen beds, which came in handy one night (story to follow) and the other a king, and most importantly, the place had a washer and dryer. I have concluded, after way too many bad experiences, that no dive trip involving dry suits should ever be taken to somewhere that doesn't have a dryer. You think lights are the most unreliable dive gear in caves?

Thanks Lynn for the nice review. The place can be seen at the URL below.

Welcome to the Hotel California!!

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Looks like I'll be heading down that way over the Labor Day week-end ... probably staying at your place, Jim ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[JamesK]

How did I just see this? Great report, it really was a fun read. I can't wait to get home and back in the caves. You make me so jealous.