Beach Diving

[flabeachdiver]

I enjoy beach/shore diving for many personal reasons but I have sensed some negative feelings about it from divers through the years. If you do or don't like beach diving, I would love to hear what you have to say. Maybe there is something I failed to consider about it and I am open to learning from others. Opinions are personal and they usually are based upon something either experienced or perceived, so feel free to share what you think.

Thanks.:cool2:

 

[reghunnicutt]

I no longer shore dive because my discs can no longer take the weight walking too and from shore. I'll still side-mount from shore in calm conditions where I can carry tanks separately.


Reggie in Midland, NC

 

[GDI]

Nothing wrong with Shore diving sometimes its all that is available to you and the sites vary from place to place. I have done shore dives onto shipwrecks and caves. You pick your spots

 

[sportxlh]

There's nothing wrong with beach diving, especially when you have great beach diving in your back yard like you do. I don't beach dive much any longer because charter boats are so convenient. Jupiter Dive Center lets me store my tanks at their shop, they fill the tanks, its a short walk to pull my gear down the dock to their boat and I can shower off on their boat on the way back in from the dives. I don't get sand in my gear and the shop is only 15 minutes from my house. I also don't have to worry about storing my wallet and car keys. So I'm just lazy and choose boat diving most of the time. Occasionally, I'll dive BHB because it is also fairly close by but by the time I spend the money for gas to get to and from LBTS or Dania and for parking meters, it's about the same cost as diving with a local charter, especially if one pre-pays for a trip card like I do with JDC. With all that said, if I lived in LBTS or Dania Beach, I'd be beach diving every weekend.

 

[Lorenzoid]

In general, I like it a lot if it's convenient enough. Bonaire: FANTASTIC. S. Florida: can be a PITA if one has to unload gear, find a parking space, return to gear up, trudge across a wide expanse of hot sand while avoiding sunbathers, swim a long way out to the reef, and repeat in reverse.

 

[dkramer]

I enjoy shore diving on the west coast of Florida because it's free. I can go when I want & stay as long as I want. Although we do not have the beautiful natural reefs of the east coast, we also do not have the hassle with parking either & there are plenty of neat things to see & enjoy. I do have issues with my knees but I kayak dive & therefore I do not have to walk with all my gear on.

 

[TMHeimer]

Almost all the beach/shore diving I do in either country is free. Some of it is pretty good, some of it sucks. I usually do one charter in the South a year, maybe two. They cost too much.

 

[flabeachdiver]

So, as I hear it, most are in favor of beach diving except for the inconvenience? That certainly makes sense. I like the economy of it because I cannot afford to dive much off boats.

 

[Rich Keller]

I do a fair amount of beach diving, usually early in the morning and solo. There are lots of opportunities for beach diving where I live by driving right to the site or getting there by kayak if there is no direct beach access. It is usually shallow so I do not need much equipment or a buddy and I can get a lot more diving done on my own terms rather then only going when someone else is available. These are not challenging dives, more like going for a walk in the park before it fills up with other people.

 

[Basking Ridge Diver]

I will call it Shore Diving - because when I was a kid we would dive off beaches of Massachusetts (Coast Guard Beach) and it was a hike to the water in 90 degree weather fully suited up with very little to see - that hike would probably kill me now over that hot sand.

Now I dive where I know there is something other than sand. In NJ there is a small inlet that I normally dive that has sea horses in late summer, squid for night dives, lots of sea life that you may not see deep. So when I can I do both - boat dives and shore dives but shore diving is more on my schedule based on the tides - either day or night dives and is much more convenient for my style of diving. Drive up and park close to the water, meet folks if you are so inclined, put on your gear and in the water quickly - it is very convenient...