Brand new diver in SWFL...help!

[Scuba_Jenny]

In addition to all the places others mentioned, ScubaBoard has the Fall MegaDive coming up the end of October. It's a weekend of camping and diving. There is a thread going on for it. Open to all divers and their families.
Welcome to the wonderful world of diving!

 

[Caveeagle]

Hey Caitlin. We are in the same boat! I'm also new to diving and live in Sarasota. I'm always looking for dive buddies. Maybe knock out a few springs to fill my log book. Like Ginnie springs, Devil's Den..

Check out Blue Grotto in Williston. I would recommend trying to get there on a weekday, just because lower traffic makes viz better and will be a much better dive.

One of my personal favorites is Paradise Spring. It's not as much as a high traffic spot like Ginnie, or Blue, but its an amazing dive. Paradise is a Cavern dive but they do let OW divers in. So a healthy amount of buoyancy control and caution are in order. **Maybe even a guide**

Depths for both Paradise and Blue Grotto get down to 90-100'. It's not hard to keep it shallow, until you have a little more experience.

If your interested in any of these sites, I am sure you will get plenty of pointers from others here.

 

[JesperS]

Shore diving for shark's teeth in Venice is a good dive on a decent day. You want to stay out of the water for a while though, there is currently red tide and lots of dead fish.

Check the beach conditions sticky in the Venice forum. Once the water clears up and the red tide rolls out, it should be easy to put out a call for a meetup in Venice.

 

[Dan]

Shore diving for shark's teeth in Venice is a good dive on a decent day. You want to stay out of the water for a while though, there is currently red tide and lots of dead fish.

Check the beach conditions sticky in the Venice forum. Once the water clears up and the red tide rolls out, it should be easy to put out a call for a meetup in Venice.

I had similar situation in South Padre Island, Texas, in September 2015. Dead fish were all over the beach. I was also coughing a lot. Apparently the red tide micro organism got airborne from the fish carcasses by the wind, get into your lung & irritating like bad allergies. Definitely stay the heck away from the beach.

 

[tekkydiver]

Have you tried Reggie?

Relocating to Fort Lauderdale and Jupiter FL and purchasing a 65 foot Catamaran for recreational diving.
The boat will be for personal use only and not for hire.
Thought I'd stop in and say hi and see if there were any other divers down that way

 

[Jherny]

im in fort lauderdale but if you ever need a dive buddy let me know, i don't mind driving as well.

I'm fairly new in the diving world too and don't now many people yet.

 

[joe10540]

There is a reef 100 yards off shore from Anna Maria island in Bradenton great dive lots of life and only 17-25 feet deep no boat required. I also live in that part of the state and can usually be persuaded to dive if you ever need a buddy.

 

[Caveeagle]

There is a reef 100 yards off shore from Anna Maria island in Bradenton great dive lots of life and only 17-25 feet deep no boat required. I also live in that part of the state and can usually be persuaded to dive if you ever need a buddy.

That is good to know. I end up working in Bradenton from time to time at the Trop plant. I would love to check that out.

 

[sheeper]

I'll invite you to come visit the Vero Beach Scuba Club on Facebook. we have members diving all over the state and we're always happy to help out new divers and welcome them to our sport. You are welcome to join us on any of our trips!

We have a number of shops and operators that support the club with deals and discounts. Many of these will be happy to work with new divers. Our supporters are selected for their honesty, integrity and capabilities.
And feel free to PM me with any questions. I personally am always willing to help out new divers!

 

[Avonthediver]

While I'm not new to diving I am about one and a half years new to Florida and looking for new buddy's and if your interested I'll be in Venice this weekend if you would like to hunt for a few teeth, I'm not to bad at it and I dive almost every weekend weather permitting of course.
My buddy list is about four so far, so if interested just pm.