Rosdale - Charleston, SC

[Swamp Rat]

Did ya see it, did ya, did ya?
I got my Rosdale mag. Friday and they had local diving Artical. And look Charleston SC made it in the Mag. Had a write up on the offshore sights and the river diving. I think they made the river diving sound to harsh. But then again it does have its moments.
Only thing about diving Charleston is predicting the weather, but I suppose that goes for any off shore diving. But if the weather is bad Charleston is a touristy place anyway. So there is lots to see and do.
Just thought it was pretty neet seeing the home town in Rosdales.

 

[hawgfish]

Discovery Diving, Beaufort, NC is the dive op, the Atlas, Proteus, and U 352 are the sites in mid June. Depth, difficulty, water temp. , what to expect, what not to expect? Any info would be useful. Thanks.

 

[herman]

Hi Hawgfish from NC.

Be prepaired for long boat rides- 2 to 3 hrs are common, deep water - 100+ is the norm, long SI's and the possibility of rough water- 4-8 ft seas. A 50/50 chance of diving is not uncommon for our coaste at times. I have no idea what your diving experience is but NC diving for the most part is not the best place for novices. Some operators require at least an AOW, esp on the deeper dives. Discovery and Olympis both opertate out of Morehead City and are first class ops. Now that I have told you the worst, we do have days that the seas are glass smooth and the vis can get to 100+. These days are what make up for the long boat rides. The wrecks are great and there are fish all around them, tropical fish like angle fish and spanish hogfish are common and if you are lucky, there have been confirmed sighting of lion fish- they are not susposed to be in the Atlantic but they have been photographed off our coaste. Tiger sharks are common on some of the wrecks and will get quite close to divers at times....no one has been eaten yet..hehehe. Water temp should be in the lower 80's by then. Bring a surf rod and a cooler just in case the day turns rough, fishing on the beach and watching the world go by is not the worst thing I can think of to do.

 

[hawgfish]

Thanks, experience not a problem, rescue cert. Also have deep wreck experience. What surprises me is that the water is that warm, even at depth? My sea legs are pretty good, sounds like a great trip. thanks for the advice. Are you sure the water is really that warm? My last wreck dive at depth the temp was 42 degrees.

 

[herman]

Yep, the water temp BELOW Cape Hatteras only gets to about 50-55 all winter, if you get into the Gulf stream it can be in the 70's in winter. The gulf stream is an open ocean current that comes up from the Bahamas and turns east at Cape Hatteras. Above Hatteras, the current comes from the north and is always a lot colder, even in the summer. There is usually a little difference in the temp of water coulmn but not much, 4 -5 deg is usually about all. Check out this link http://weatherimages.org/data/imag388.html

 

[hawgfish]

Really appreciate the info, was at the dive shop tonight picking up a few items, and confirmed my spot for the trip. Going to Bonaire in a about 10 days, can't wait. My wife and son cert AOW, but not up for a trip like this, as for myself I love wrecks and really looking foward to it. Thanks again.