Diving in Palm Beach

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Laurel - 23 Jan 2004 07:19 GMT

I'll be there with my better half in Feb. and he's going to go diving while
I do some snorkelling (I won't have taken my PADI course yet). Do you guys
have an opinion on a particular location/charter that would suit a
dive/snorkel outing?

Thanks in advance.

L.

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Lee Bell - 23 Jan 2004 13:05 GMT

Call or e-mail Jim Abernethy, http://www.scuba-adventures.com/ and ask him.
He may run such trips or, failing that, will probably have an idea who, if
anybody does. Fell free to tell I'm I referred you. I don't often get up
to Palm Beach, but when I do, I usually dive with Jim. He's one of the more
experienced and skilled dive operators in S. Florida and a heck of a nice
guy to boot. My dives with Jim are all too deep for what you want, but that
does not mean he doesn't do shallower ones. He has more than one boat.

If you can't find anything in Palm Beach, then you may want to drive a bit
south. Sea Mist Marina, in Boynton Beach, has a bunch of operators, some of
whom may do dives that you'd like. I have two contacts there, Lynn Simmons
http://www.splashdowndivers.com/home.html and Leo Sand
http://www.deeper-dci.com/. Either may be able to help or tell you who can.

The only place I know for sure has the kind of diving you're looking for is
the Keys, but that's a bit of a ride from Palm Beach. Heck, it's a bit of a
ride from Ft. Lauderdale. Biscayne National Park has some nice dives.
They're between Miami and the Upper Keys. I've not used them, but I've dove
on most of the sites they frequent. If the weather's good, you'll like
them. You can reach them at http://www.nps.gov/bisc/ . In the upper Keys,
I suggest contacting Pennekamp State Park in Key Largo (pretty sure thing).
I don't have a specific contact in Key Largo, but you can contact the park
at http://www.pennekamp.com/ . In the middle Keys, try Banny Thorn
http://www.thefloridakeys.com/captbanny/. In the lower Keys, Jim Wyatt's
the man http://reef-divers.com/. Banny or Jim may not be able to help, but,
if they can't, they'll know who can.

Have fun. Better yet, go get your certification and have even more fun.

Lee

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Laurel - 23 Jan 2004 13:24 GMT

> Call or e-mail Jim Abernethy, http://www.scuba-adventures.com/ and ask him.
> He may run such trips or, failing that, will probably have an idea who, if
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
> http://www.splashdowndivers.com/home.html and Leo Sand
> http://www.deeper-dci.com/. Either may be able to help or tell you who can.

[big snip]

Thanks for all of that info. I know about Biscayne Nat'l park and the
wonders of the Keys (I lived in Miami for several years) but I don't know
much of the landscape/seascape above Ft. Lauderdale, hence the question.
(The wedding we're attending is on the evening of the morning we're planning
to do the SCUBA/snorkel combo, and there seem to be many areas suitable for
diving, so it's best we stick to the area.

In the end, if the areas are too deep for me to snorkel then I'll just swim
about for a few hours. There is no way I'm getting PADI trained in four
weeks - especially not if I want to get any sleep. I'm sticking with my plan
to do the training in April/May.

I had found Jim's site already and I think my SO has already contacted him
regarding making a single booking, and it's apparently cool. It's always
nice to get a recommendation from a local or someone with more experience in
the area. Thanks again!

Regards,
Laurel

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Greg Mossman - 23 Jan 2004 22:44 GMT

> In the end, if the areas are too deep for me to snorkel then I'll just swim
> about for a few hours. There is no way I'm getting PADI trained in four
> weeks - especially not if I want to get any sleep. I'm sticking with my plan
> to do the training in April/May.

You can be PADI trained (or, preferably, trained by another agency) in only
3 days. Four weeks is plenty. The training consists of reading a book with
lots of pictures and watching a video and/or CD-ROM (which you can usually
do in the privacy of your own home at your own pace), review of the
materials with an instructor, and some pool time. If you live in the right
area, you can schedule this for 1-2 nights a week, or a few weekend days,
and then you can arrange for your open water certification dives to be done
with an instructor in Florida. Trust me, it's worth it even if you have to
lose some sleep. You can rest and recuperate on your vacation.

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Laurel - 24 Jan 2004 09:46 GMT

> > In the end, if the areas are too deep for me to snorkel then I'll just
> swim
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> and then you can arrange for your open water certification dives to be done
> with an instructor in Florida.

I have thought of this - but there are a number of factors at work. One of
which that there is only time for one dive while we're down there.

Trust me, it's worth it even if you have to

> lose some sleep. You can rest and recuperate on your vacation.

There will be very little rest - it is a vacation of sorts, but three days
out of five are dedicated to dinners/wedding/brunches...

L.

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Greg Mossman - 24 Jan 2004 16:32 GMT

> I have thought of this - but there are a number of factors at work. One of
> which that there is only time for one dive while we're down there.

There's always time for more than one dive. It's just a matter of getting
your priorities straight.

> There will be very little rest - it is a vacation of sorts, but three days
> out of five are dedicated to dinners/wedding/brunches...

So that's the problem? Ridiculous. You've seen one wedding, you've seen
them all. And the dinners and brunches will just make you fat. Go diving
instead, you won't regret it. Send the bride and groom a nice card and tell
them you came down with the flu. That's what I would do.

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Laurel - 25 Jan 2004 09:17 GMT

> > I have thought of this - but there are a number of factors at work. One of
> > which that there is only time for one dive while we're down there.
>
> There's always time for more than one dive. It's just a matter of getting
> your priorities straight.

Hmmmm. Well the part I hadn't mentioned thus far is that this is the first
time since November 18th of last year that I'm going to see the SO. We've
got five nights together before we fly off to cities 3000 or more miles
apart. Next scheduled meeting, unless one of us wins the lottery, July.

If I survive that long, we'll be deciding if we're going to do something
about
closing the gap. But the point here is is that I've caught the SCUBA bug,
but it hasn't gone full-blown yet, and every moment of spare time I have
with him is *not* gonna be spent in wetsuits.

The two dives will happen so he can get his fix...

> > There will be very little rest - it is a vacation of sorts, but three days
> > out of five are dedicated to dinners/wedding/brunches...
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> instead, you won't regret it. Send the bride and groom a nice card and tell
> them you came down with the flu. That's what I would do.

Oh, you're lovely. But they're two of my best friends (I've known the groom
for 16 years and the bride for 10 and I was part of the group of friends who
introduced them). And the wedding was the reason for the trip. If they
weren't worth it, I wouldn't be doing the 12 hour journey each way...

Slow and steady wins the race... I'll stick to my plan. Thanks for all the
advice everyone. You'll hear about my first real dive when it happens :-)

L.

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Lee Bell - 24 Jan 2004 15:15 GMT

> In the end, if the areas are too deep for me to snorkel then I'll just swim
> about for a few hours.

Probably not. Something I didn't mention is the current. North of Ft.
Lauderdale, the current tends to be a lot stronger. Most diving up that way
is drift diving. I'm not sure many, if any of the operators, would be
comfortable with a swimmer in the water when the boat is drifting. Don't
give up, but do check around to see what's available.

Lee

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Joe English - 23 Jan 2004 13:07 GMT

> I'll be there with my better half in Feb. and he's going to go diving while
> I do some snorkelling (I won't have taken my PADI course yet). Do you guys
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
>
> L.

It has been tool long since I last dove there - so any dive operator is
probably kaput. However I do remember that the diving was pretty good.
It is drift, someone carries the ball to mark your position. Lots of
turtles(big) and a lot of rays. In fact at one point we had some many
rays around the boat with their wing tips out of the water I thought it
was a school of sharks!

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Jim Manson - 25 Jan 2004 01:32 GMT

>I'll be there with my better half in Feb. and he's going to go diving while
>I do some snorkelling (I won't have taken my PADI course yet). Do you guys
>have an opinion on a particular location/charter that would suit a
>dive/snorkel outing?
>
>Thanks in advance.

I've had good luck with Coral Island Charters. Of course I'm still
fairly new to the sport so as in anything YMMV.

www.coralislandcharters.com

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