Prefer shore boat diving?

[Nemrod]

I prefer to dive from my boat.

N

 

[H2ODog]

I'm lazy so diving from a live boat is the best. Unfortunately, I don't have a boat, nor is it in the plans so it's shore diving for the same reasons as others have stated (money, time, etc). If funds were not an issue, I'd only dive from a boat.

 

[Jrock1062]

I prefer boat diving in fact i almost never shore dive unless it more of an event and there will be a large group of people attending the dive with party to follow

 

[Tigerman]

I prefer to dive from my boat.

N

Having your own boat is of course the best.. then you can go wherever you want and dive from whichever shore or boat location you want..

I was thinking more of "not only me and my firends" kinda boat

 

[friscuba]

To the original poster... You're lucky to be where shore diving is good, and relatively easy. We're blessed here.

When I lived in Oregon, for shore diving it was either lakes or off to the jetties or bays. I chose the jetties and bays and my knees ached for two days after each dive... there's a lot of humping tanks involved, not to mention the extra weight on the belt for cold water diving. I relished the chances to dive off a boat, and they were rare.

When I moved out here at the start of February '99, I was diving the very next day, and averaged 6-8 shore dives a week through the end of the first year (before I started teaching like mad for one of the dive shops here). There's good shore diving here, although you're not as welcome in some spots these days as back a decade ago. Getting in the water here is easier than some places, but there's a lot of divers out there still who aren't necessarily up for the shore diving scene for a variety of reasons - Me, I've done one oil change on a car in my lifetime, and it's not brain surgery, but it's not my thing, I'll pay for it... diving's the same for some people.

Now that I own a boat, am older and definitely aware of the fun things that go along with middle age, and frankly like a little social scene along with my diving, I'm only doing the shore stuff every now and then, mostly to take photos as I try not to spend time taking pics when I'm on charters.

Shore diving and boat diving both have their rewards. We can get to spots relatively easily by boat, yet can still find some great spots by shore... when it all comes down to it, it's "to each his own".

I do know this, I rarely shore dive when I travel. I don't know if it's a familiarity thing or what, but I personally don't mind loosely following someone who already knows the sites. A good divemaster can be worth some money on occasion.... today our 2 (not 6-16) guests saw nudibranchs, a flatworm, a snowflake eel, a fire dart fish, a baby devil scorpion (OK , those were lucky finds, but it was the DM that spotted them), a frogfish and leather coral (DM knew exactly where they were), octopus (another DM find), and lots of good stuff stashed around various sites.

Both shore and boat diving can be great!!

 

[White Knight]

In the end, I bought my own boat! It answers all the "solitude" beach diving questions but gets me to the best spots. I can spear fish if and when I want without a fellow charter diver or beach goer freaking out because I am "destroying the face of God and all of humanity" when I bring up a halibut and I can go to where I want to go. It is incredibly easier to get in and out of the water and I don't run the risk of losing gear in the surf or filling my reg, gauges and dry suit valves with sand as I exit the surf zone "and" I don't have that long walk back to the truck. That all said, I still do beach and charter diving--just not nearly as much an more.

 

[TSandM]

We own a boat, but diving off it means hauling the boat to the launch site, putting it in the water, loading it, running the boat to the dive site, anchoring or mooring, diving, running the boat back to the ramp, unloading all the gear and carrying it up to the truck, getting the boat on the trailer, hauling it home, and then spending a couple of hours not only cleaning dive gear, but cleaning the boat.

I love the boat, and I love diving off it, but shore diving is so dangblasted EASY . . .

 

[NudeDiver]

Hi folks, I've notched about 40 dives, just completed AOW. About a third have been from a boat, the balance from shore.
I'm curious what others think about the pros and cons of each kind of recreational diving.

If the boat is a liveaboard, or extraordinarily cheap (say, under $40 for 2 dives), I prefer the boat. Otherwise, shore is nice.

Also, the dive boats go to the same spots, day in and day out. This puts pressure on the environments in those spots, and many of them are far from prestine.

Not really sure how this is different than a popular shore diving location. However, liveaboards can solve this problem to some degree. They can get out further than the "day boats" can, so, presumably, there is less evidence of divers in these locations, since they get visited less by divers. That's mostly speculation though.

Finally, all of these boat dives are a bit 'canned', and expect you to go along with their program or tour.

That can be a real problem. I don't really like forced guided tours either. If you shop around though, you can find boats that will let you do your own thing.

When I shore dive, the only divers present usually are myself and my buddy. It is much more relaxing and uncrowded. We can plan and execute the dive WE want.

Where I go, it's a popular spot. There will often be other divers there. Sometimes people you know, sometimes people you don't know. Often there will be a class going on. But you're free to do what you want. OTHER places we can go, which we have only been a few times, we're the only ones around.

Finally, when I decide to go dive from a shore spot, there is a slow, thoughtful progression; a continuity, if you will, from the land into the water. I value this gradual immersion into the ocean; it gives me time to relax, to prepare, to appreciate the journey I'm about to embark on, if only for an hour or so. What do you think?

There is something to that - a bit of "mental preparation" if you will. It's harder to do on a boat full of people who feel the need to make idle chit chat with you until you get to the drop zone - and then it's "ok, everybody in the water!" so I can see where you're coming from here.

To some degree, I think the issues you raise can be solved by using liveaboards and better boat services.

As for me - shore dives are not exactly a piece of cake. The "usual spot" to go is about an hour drive from here. Granted, it's probably the most beautiful and scene hour drive in America - but it's still an hour. It also involves dealing with timing trips to coincide with the vehicle opening of a one way tunnel (which doubles as a railroad tunnel), paying the tunnel fee, paying for parking, etc. Just driving to the dive site and back (without diving) runs about $50 worth of expenses. If you own all the gear but tanks, then add in $10/tank for diving, plus food/snacks/etc. and you're starting to get up there for a day trip.

Diving out of a vehicle has its advantages too - you can carry lots of stuff, but it also tends to be somewhat disorganized, esp. if you've got a couple of people. Soooooooo, I designed and I am now building myself a "scuba support trailer" - which I hope will solve these issues to some degree - and make me more inclined to go diving. The idea is that I can (more or less) leave the trailer set up and ready to go with ancillary equipment (chairs, cooking gear, certain dive gear, etc.). What isn't pre-positioned can easily be loaded to the trailer through the use of large plastic tubs, etc. etc. I'm really looking forward to it. Unfortunately, this project started in freakin' APRIL! At the rate I'm going, it might be next April before I get to use it.

FWIW - this "scuba support trailer" (AKA adventure trailer, AKA off-road trailer) is going to be pulled by a Jeep. I discovered last summer while camping that, with a soft top (or no top) vehicle, item security is a real problem. So, I'm building plenty of security into this trailer hence the high quality steel (and high dollar cost) 48x18x18" boxes (3 of them) for the most valuable stuff. It's also extremely heavy duty, and designed to go anywhere the Jeep will go. It has a number of "scuba specific" features - such as welded-on shackles inside, for ratcheting tie-downs to hold tanks, such as welded-on shackles on the rear bumper to give a place to bungie rig setups in place (to keep them from falling over), the ability to sit at the rear door (not seen in photos) and put your gear on - without smacking your head (well, at least without me smacking my head - if you're taller than me, you may be out of luck), etc.

Trailer has a long way to go - but I'm anxious to get it done and see how it improves my shore/local diving experience.

Today's picture's attached (the exposed sides you see will be covered by sheet metal and in the framed out spots you see, there will be access doors). Sorry they suck, but it's in my garage and not easy to take photos at the moment

 

[NudeDiver]

I do about two-thirds of my dives as shore dives. I like both and am pretty much equally happy with either. I do more shore dives because I will dive in any weather and there is always a spot that is ok to shore dive when the weather is bad, but boats cannot go out in all types of weather. Also shore dives allow me to dive at my own pace as well as the fact I do midweek night dives when there are no boats running.

Sas - I've read a great number of your posts. You sound like someone who would be good to dive with. I wish you lived a bit closer

On that note - was supposed to go diving 2 days after Christmas - but my dive buddy canceled on me (holiday issues) - so now it's no diving until at least January ):

 

[MaxBottomtime]

I've been to Kona three times. The first time I was still a fairly new diver. I made ten boat dives. Most of the dives were less than 30 minutes from the harbor and the moorings were close to shore due to the steep dropoff of the Kona Coast. After the trip I couldn't believe I spent $50 each for basically beach dives. The next two times I went I rented tanks and dived from shore. I saw the same animals and saved a lot of money.
Here at home we have hundreds of great wrecks within ten miles of Los Angeles Harbor. When I get my next boat I will be back to wreck diving. In the meantime, I'm loving every beach dive I make. I've made over 800 beach dives in SoCal and loved nearly all of them. I'm lucky to have beautiful, life-filled reefs close to shore. I'll take a beach dive in Palos Verdes over boat dives at Catalina any day.