What are some of your favorite dive sites in our area?

[seaangel]

In the Georgia/SC bordertown of Augusta, we dive 2 sites.
1) Lake Thurmond (or once known as Clark's Hill)
2) The Savannah River

Of the two I prefer drift diving the river. But, I have had some really great dives at the lake as well. Vis in both is variable. Can be 10 to 20 feet. OR just increments of one foot at a time.

We just did a group drift dive on the Savannah this past Sunday.
I logged 1 hour and 38 minutes of time, max depth was 21 feet. Vis was variable, depending on where we were at the time. Mostly was 4ft to 10 ft. We started at a Railroad bridge at a wreck under it, drifted on down first on the Georgia side. I saw alot of fish this time, some good size gar, perch, brim and even a small striped bass. There were alot of mussels from really small to large as the palm of my hand. They were cool to watch open and close with their little bubbles coming up. No artifacts found, but some bottles, a metal bowl, and someone found a dive light that still was in working order. We explored the remanants of an old bridge and dock that was on both sides of the river. Water temp logged on my AI 500 computer was 71 degrees, my Oceanic Veo had 69 degrees on it. I was toasty though in my 7mm and hood.

So, that is one of my most favorite dive sites here. Just don't seem to go often though. Earlier this summer the river was moving too fast, water was really high too, and brown.

The lake has been very turbulent with the rain, but from what I hear is looking pretty good right now. Water temp will start to drop there soon though.

I much prefer ocean diving, but that is not as near by. It is not but a 2 1/2 hour drive to the Atlantic and 5 hours to Ginnie which I dive also.

Sea Jay, I must sometime see that water change at the 5mi mark, cause from the shore in Savannah or even Hilton Head I would never believe it.

 

[Aquatic Eagle]

Good story SeaJay! That's an encouraging story definitely. Did he get all of those teeth on one dive? I think one thing that could get your heart really beating is the feeling you get when you're down in that black water and see your first megalodon tooth. Just thinking that a shark that size dropped that tooth near where you're diving is enough to give you a thrill. Man...I can't wait to do it.

 

[Aquatic Eagle]

Look at this everyone. This is what I found on a search on eBay for Megalodon. This guys auctions that are bid on (as of this post) total so far to: $3059.49. He lives in Beaufort so he must get them from Cooper River. Hmm....I'm taking some buckets with me next month. Nice little side income there. I'm sure he goes to his own spot but damn. Here's the link:

Megalodon Teeth

 

[SeaJay]

seaangel once bubbled...

Sea Jay, I must sometime see that water change at the 5mi mark, cause from the shore in Savannah or even Hilton Head I would never believe it.

I know exactly how you feel.

The pictures of the Keys that you see in postcards are typically taken from the beach... So there's white sand and 10' of depth, with the net result being turquoise water.

At the five mile point offshore, depths range from 50' to 100' or so, and so the water's not turquoise... It's blue. But it's not cobalt blue... It's like offshore Keys or Belize or Cancun blue. I mean, it's really, really blue.

As a diver I can tell you that it's common to look up from the bottom and see the boat. People on the boat can pretty much watch the divers nearly all the way to the bottom. Yes, it really is that clear... And warm, too... Remember that the Gulf Stream - who's last sight of land was, in fact, the Florida Keys - is right there.

So yes, it's really that clear. Check my site... Go to "Look" and then "Videos" and see videos from our local dive sites. That'll show you what it's like.

...The fact that people stand on the shoreline and look at the water and think, "It just doesn't LOOK like it did in Mexico"... Well... That alone keeps people from diving our area like they would if they had any clue as to what was out there. A half hour boat ride gets you all sorts of awesome stuff.

...So I can't help but to snicker to myself when I hear people say, "We're going to Florida to go diving." Duh. Sure, Florida's great, but why travel five hours when you can get to some of the best, most virgin diving in the world in 45 minutes? I just don't get it.

What's even more amazing is that even after I've told people and given them maps and taken pictures and even set up the charters, they still go do Ft. Lauderdale and walk into the water on a public beach. No, no, no... Wait... They pay MONEY to drive to Ft. Lauderdale and walk into the water on a public beach.

Naturediver, I know of about half a dozen megladon tooth hunters who do not have a full-time job... Their sole means of income is shark tooth hunting, and yes, they're in Beaufort. And yes, they do surprisingly well.

...And yes, they have their own spots... None of them dive the Cooper or Ashley - they have their own private, local, favorite spot right here in the local rivers (the Cooper and the Ashley are 1.5 hours north).