So last night I signed my contract with the University of Florida and will officially be moving to Gainesville this August! I'm very excited, and starting to scout around a bit and see what's out there. I consider myself still a new-ish diver (~40 dives, mostly warm tropical diving + some quarries) and after years in Virginia and Ohio am ecstatic to be somewhere where a few hours' drive in any direction yields plenty of diving opportunities. As someone new in the area, what are the "must-do" local dive shops/dive clubs/sites I should be sure to check out in and around Gainesville?
New to Gainesville - Local LDS/Dive Groups?
- Thread starter Rilelen
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iamrushman
Contributor
congratulation on your new assignment.....don't know much about the Gainesville area but at least your striking distance from southeast florida..enjoy your new job.
You're right to be 'ecstatic' Florida offers a lot to avid divers. In Gainsville you'll be in the middle of some of the best cave diving in the world. As a 'new-ish diver' you can look at the ballroom at Ginnie Springs and see if following the training path to cave diving interests you. The wrecks of South Florida and the Keys are a bit of a drive but well worth the effort. In the Gainesville area head over to High Springs and visit Cave Country Dive Shop and Extreme Exposure, they are both first rate dive shops. In South Florida my go to operators are Pompano Dive Center and South Florida Dive Headquarters, in Key Largo I like Horizon Divers and Silent World but in South FL and the Keys there many great operators to choose from. Enjoy your new job and the diving.
The Chairman
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DON'T MISS MEGADIVES!!! 
[url=https://www.scubaboard.com/community/threads/scubaboard-fools-spring-megadive-2019.573830]Fool's Spring MegaDive![/URL]
We have them twice a year at Ginnie Springs, which will now be in your back yard. There are lots of opportunities up here, including spear fishing in the Gulf as well as spring diving including cavern and cave. Welcome to my neck of the woods!
[url=https://www.scubaboard.com/community/threads/scubaboard-fools-spring-megadive-2019.573830]Fool's Spring MegaDive![/URL]We have them twice a year at Ginnie Springs, which will now be in your back yard. There are lots of opportunities up here, including spear fishing in the Gulf as well as spring diving including cavern and cave. Welcome to my neck of the woods!
Apologies for resurrecting this thread from the grave - but wanted to say a belated thanks to each of you who chimed in! Covid interfered with a few plans (understatement of the year!), but these were great tips and I've loved getting out to explore, esp our local dives. Can't believe I live within an hour of so many cool places - I literally popped down to Williston last week for a morning dip before work; still blows my mind I can do that!
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