From Ottawa to BC; tell me wher to go!!!

[divemed06]

I'm organizing a road trip from Ottawa to BC (not quite sure where, depens on the info you provide) this summer (i'll be there in July) and I have a few questions about the diving. What are the "must dives"? What temps can I expect? Will I be prepared for the dive conditions (I dive mostly the St-Lawrence river in Ontario if that helps)? Charter/Dive shop suggestions? Any must have equipment (ie. lights, dry suit)? I've looked at various BC websites and still can't really get a good feel for where I want to go...

Thanks

 

[MarkH]

I'm organizing a road trip from Ottawa to BC (not quite sure where, depens on the info you provide) this summer (i'll be there in July) and I have a few questions about the diving. What are the "must dives"? What temps can I expect? Will I be prepared for the dive conditions (I dive mostly the St-Lawrence river in Ontario if that helps)? Charter/Dive shop suggestions? Any must have equipment (ie. lights, dry suit)? I've looked at various BC websites and still can't really get a good feel for where I want to go...

Thanks

It really depends on how much time and money you have. Are you coming just to dive or will you be based in a particular city? You won't be able to sample all the areas in B.C. in one visit. The most highly regarded areas are: Nanaimo, Campbell River, Port Hardy (ever heard of Browning Wall?), Barkley Sound, Sechelt... oh, why am I bothering.- There are so many. There are a couple hours driving distance between each of these areas so it might be best to pick one as a base. Most of the best dives with the most life and colour are boat dives in high current areas so be prepared to swim against (or drift with) a bit of current from time to time. Most dives that charters take you to are either wrecks or walls. Water temp is around 5-9 degrees or so depending on area and depth. A light is recomended for looking in crevices and seeing colours at depth. A whole book wouldn't be enough to cover everything.

 

[glbirch]

I'm organizing a road trip from Ottawa to BC (not quite sure where, depens on the info you provide) this summer (i'll be there in July) and I have a few questions about the diving. What are the "must dives"? What temps can I expect? Will I be prepared for the dive conditions (I dive mostly the St-Lawrence river in Ontario if that helps)? Charter/Dive shop suggestions? Any must have equipment (ie. lights, dry suit)? I've looked at various BC websites and still can't really get a good feel for where I want to go...

Thanks

BC is world class diving. Just wish I lived closer to the coast so I could get out there more often. Might help you narrow it down if you think about what type of diving you want to do. Do you want to go out to Race Rocks and see the Sea Lions? Dive some wrecks, like the HMCS Chaudier? (First of several artificial reefs.) Are you looking at shore dives, day trips, or going out on a liveaboard? Are you camping or do you need a 5 star hotel? Etc, etc.

Here's a link to a Scuba Diving Magazine article on 'the top 10 dives of BC'.
http://www.scubadiving.com/article/0,7424,1-28-224-285-5-4X7X11X14-5,00.html
There are also a number of other posts here on where to dive in BC

You might want to pick up a book or two about the area. I've got an old one titled '141 Dives' by Betty Pratt-Johnson. It's a little dated now, but I hear she's written a couple of newer ones.

Keep in mind also that you are diving in the summer when the plankton is blooming, so vis can be relatively poor. One nice thing about diving in BC is that the will take C$$ at par.

Don't forget to stop by and see the airshow up here in July.
http://www.coldlake.com/airshow/

 

[decompression]

I'm organizing a road trip from Ottawa to BC (not quite sure where, depens on the info you provide) this summer (i'll be there in July) and I have a few questions about the diving. What are the "must dives"? What temps can I expect? Will I be prepared for the dive conditions (I dive mostly the St-Lawrence river in Ontario if that helps)? Charter/Dive shop suggestions? Any must have equipment (ie. lights, dry suit)? I've looked at various BC websites and still can't really get a good feel for where I want to go...
Thanks

I agree with the other posts.........it depends where you intend on travelling. I think most would agree Van Island and the smaller islands are the hot ticket. Betty Pratt's book 141 Dive's is excellent (order from Chapters.ca) as it's the only one to focus on the Island area. Nanaimo is great as it offers some great shore dives (Madrona point, Seducer's cove etc.) the best wrecks in Canada (sorry Tobermory,ON) and access to the Sixgills off Flora Islet. But...God's Pocket..however...