Looking to do some diving in the Boston area

[samcvic]

Seeing the title of your forum, I thought this might be a good place to post. I am looking to do some diving in the Boston area, and was wondering if you all had some recommendations for sites and operations?

Appreciate the comments.

 

[large_diver]

Welcome aboard. Give us some ideas on the types of diving you are interested in and we can help you out. There is everything from shallow shore diving to deep technical wreck diving around here.

A couple of examples --

I saw your thread about Boston Harbor diving -- try this:
http://www.bostonharbordivingcompany.com/Charters.htm

See the bottom of the page for dive site descriptions

For great north shore diving -- try this:
http://www.capeanndivers.com/

 

[samcvic]

Thanks!
Looking mostly for good visibility, no/low currents, and wrecks/wildlife. We're both OW certified, my husband has 100+ dives, I have fewer. We love Boston, and were thinking we might check out the diving, in addition to the Sox game next time we visit

These links are very helpful - have you dived much in the area? What's your favorite site?

 

[Soggy]

Welcome to the board....


Most of us go up to Cape Ann to shore dive for the day-to-day "need to get wet" and "need to take home dinner" diving. NELD meets up there quite frequently. Most of my buddies have come from this board, in fact.

If you are looking to hop off a boat, or get a "guided" dive up on Cape Ann, contact Cape Ann Divers (www.capeanndivers.com). They go out all the time. A good local club is Metro West Dive Club(www.mwdc.org). They meet every saturday morning, year round.

There are also a ton of shipwrecks in the area.

Tell us a bit about your diving and non-diving background. What type of sites are you looking to see?

 

[Soggy]

samcvic once bubbled...
We love Boston, and were thinking we might check out the diving, in addition to the Sox game next time we visit

When's the next time you're visiting? If you've got a drysuit you can go and hop in our 38 degree water. Vis is best in the winter.

My favorite sites are Old Garden Beach and Cathedral Rocks...both seem to always have great vis and tons of wildlife.

From shore, you will mostly see skates, striped bass, flounder, crabs, lobsters, starfish, and the occasional Sea Raven.

 

[samcvic]

Thinking to visit in over Memorial Day (May 25th)... but would also consider spending a week in June or August. A wreck dive would be lovely - are dry suits always needed? Don't have any experience with dry suits, but could be sure to get some before we head over.

 

[Soggy]

samcvic once bubbled...
A wreck dive would be lovely - are dry suits always needed? Don't have any experience with dry suits, but could be sure to get some before we head over.

No, they aren't needed, but a lot of people use them around here. The water is pretty cold year round. However, a hooded 7mm will do you fine.

 

[large_diver]

So where is Highlands Ranch?

Most of my diving has been locally here in Boston. I was certified back in 2000.

My favorite dives are:

- Folly Cove (Gloucester) -- shore dive with a shear wall on one side of the cove. Lots of plants and animal life.

- Chester Poling -- wreck off of Gloucester. Deep (90+), dark, cold and interesting.

Water temps in greater Boston and points north reach their peak in September -- ocean surface temps never get much above 60-63F. Bottom temps are usually somewhere in the 50s during the summer, although early in the season or at deeper depths, high 40s is not uncommon.

South of Cape Cod you can see surface temps in the low 70s at the end of the summer.

I dive wet from April through November, although things are pretty chilly in April (42F water temps for my first dive last year on April 5). All area shops rent gear, including wetsuits.

Visibility -- a typical day around here is 10-20 feet of vis.

The most painless experience would be to book a charter through Cape Ann Divers. They run a dive shop in Gloucester (35 miles north of Boston) as well as 2 excellent charter boats. Cape Ann (which includes the towns of Gloucester & Rockport) is very picturesque above the water as well....great place to have dinner after a day of diving.

 

[samcvic]

Highlands Ranch is in Colorado - a suburb of Denver. Not too much diving to be done around here, unless you're interested in the Blue Hole in New Mexico, or some lakes in Utah... My husband and I try to go somewhere and dive once a year if we can.
Thanks for sharing your favorites - we'll have to check them out this Spring.

 

[PK]

Cape Ann is a favorite place to dive. There are many locations around. Cape Ann Divers is a shop you might want to stop in to get air or rent any equipment you may need (but be sure to bring your C-Card or you'll be out of luck). They are pretty friendly and can recommend a good site based on weather conditions.

If the tide is high, Folley Cove and Cathedrals Rocks are great sites. But they're really dangerous or tough sites when it's not high tide.

Another area to consider is in Jamestown, RI. We like to go to Ft. Wetherill to see a little different type of sea life. I'm not sure how cold it will be in May, but the water temperature is about 10 degrees warmer than in Cape Ann.