Crystal River Operator?
- Thread starter LSUGIRL
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I have used American Pro Dive Center mainly for trips to Rainbow River but I have used them for a couple of trips to snorkel with the manatees and have not experienced the same issues as Jim Lamp has pointed out. This may be an issue with individual captains and not the entire dive center operation.
I'm not defending them but I am pointing out that when you grow to a business of their size there are going to be times where your employees may not use the best judgment. While APDC may get a bad rep for the employees actions in these videos or tours that captain/instructor may very well have been fired for it.
Rainbow River (springs) is a great place to get some shallow drift diving in. Nothing over 22ft deep and most of it 10-15ft. The region that both Crystal and Rainbow river are in is a very beautiful area and I hope you enjoy your trip regardless of who you use.
I'm not defending them but I am pointing out that when you grow to a business of their size there are going to be times where your employees may not use the best judgment. While APDC may get a bad rep for the employees actions in these videos or tours that captain/instructor may very well have been fired for it.
Rainbow River (springs) is a great place to get some shallow drift diving in. Nothing over 22ft deep and most of it 10-15ft. The region that both Crystal and Rainbow river are in is a very beautiful area and I hope you enjoy your trip regardless of who you use.
We just returned from our trip to Florida and I wanted to report on our snorkeling experiences. I booked a trip with Crystal Lodge Dive Center on a friday to avoid the crowd. Unfortunately our flight was canceled and we arrived a day later. So we had to go on saterday. Result : 30 people on our boat and a second boat with another 15 people. But for the rest, no information, just "jump in the water and you'll find them over there".
This was very disappointing.
We decided to go again the next weekend, but this time we went to Homosassa and took a trip with Air Tank Divers. It was great. We were the only 2 people in the water and there were about 15 manatees in the area. We played with them for more than an hour. Captain Don gave us a good introduction, was very helpfull and really wanted you to have a good time instead of only cashing the check.
So next time, go to Homosassa.
This was very disappointing.
We decided to go again the next weekend, but this time we went to Homosassa and took a trip with Air Tank Divers. It was great. We were the only 2 people in the water and there were about 15 manatees in the area. We played with them for more than an hour. Captain Don gave us a good introduction, was very helpfull and really wanted you to have a good time instead of only cashing the check.
So next time, go to Homosassa.
SVM,
I'm glad you were able to interact and enjoy your trip. I personally love interacting with the wild life and try to head up to the springs around Christmas time every year.
No matter where you go you'll find some operators run cattle boats, cram you in, drop you off and thats about all the service you get.
There is no doubt that the tiny group you had on your second trip contributed to the upbeat atmosphere. It was great to hear your experience (both bad and good) about your trip and maybe it will help others!
I'm glad you were able to interact and enjoy your trip. I personally love interacting with the wild life and try to head up to the springs around Christmas time every year.
No matter where you go you'll find some operators run cattle boats, cram you in, drop you off and thats about all the service you get.
There is no doubt that the tiny group you had on your second trip contributed to the upbeat atmosphere. It was great to hear your experience (both bad and good) about your trip and maybe it will help others!
trigfunctions
Contributor
SVM - I'm surprised to hear about your experience with Crystal Lodge. We've used them 3 times and never had that problem. If you go again, remember that Crystal Lodge will rent you your own boat CHEAP! You can rent small jon boats or float boats, and now that you know how to find the manatees you can go out with your own group and avoid the crowds entirely!
rcohn
Guest
Agree with Bird's. Only do the first trip of the day and avoid Saturdays.
Ralph
Ralph
I have to ask, what good is a shop/charter if they are only good experiences "on the first trip" and if you should "avoid them on Saturday"?
Lets face it, most diving is done on the weekends. A shop should provide the same service regardless of the day of week or time of day. I agree that there are times that a boat may have more passengers but that doesn't justify a "jump in, they are over there" attitude of the captain/operator.
We're all human and we all have our bad days, maybe it was just an off day for this operator or maybe this is just how he treats larger groups?
Lets face it, most diving is done on the weekends. A shop should provide the same service regardless of the day of week or time of day. I agree that there are times that a boat may have more passengers but that doesn't justify a "jump in, they are over there" attitude of the captain/operator.
We're all human and we all have our bad days, maybe it was just an off day for this operator or maybe this is just how he treats larger groups?
Birds Underwater no question about it!
rcohn
Guest
You have to try to read more carefully. I DID NOT say Bird's is only good first dive of the day and not on Saturdays. The swimming at Crystal River regardless of operator is only really good 1st dive of the day, BEFORE THE CROWDS SHOW UP when the viz drops and most manatees leave, and Saturday's crowds can be hopeless.
Ralph
Ralph,
If I took your comments out of context, I do apologize. Most all trips I take to Crystal River are the first boat. With a two hours drive each way it allows me to have the rest of my day to relax rather than making a dive a whole day event.
The viz is hit and miss regardless of time of day but it does get worse as more people arrive.
Unless things have changed, no person interacting with the manatees should be scuba diving as the park rangers and DWF want to be able to have a clear view of you on the surface. I'm pretty sure this is law and not just policy.
Making sure your on the first boat out of any shop will improve your experience
If I took your comments out of context, I do apologize. Most all trips I take to Crystal River are the first boat. With a two hours drive each way it allows me to have the rest of my day to relax rather than making a dive a whole day event.
The viz is hit and miss regardless of time of day but it does get worse as more people arrive.
Unless things have changed, no person interacting with the manatees should be scuba diving as the park rangers and DWF want to be able to have a clear view of you on the surface. I'm pretty sure this is law and not just policy.
Making sure your on the first boat out of any shop will improve your experience
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