Beiji
Contributor
Warning: Many mentions of seasickness!
Arrived MIA and took the Super Shuttle to the condo (Miami Beach). Had about a half hour wait and then about an hour until drop off. I was the last one to get dropped off. The next day I picked up the car at Budget, very close to the condo, and I got a better class car for less money than an airport pick up. I was supposed to get a Ford Escape, but ended up with a Ford Edge. Nice SUV with lots of bells and whistles. Unfortunately the Bluetooth connection to my iPhone stopped working after a couple days.
Several weeks ago I connected with DennisW to dive BHB on the 9th, but we canceled due to high bacteria. Instead of diving BHB I made arrangements to dive in the Keys. On Tuesday the dive op called to ask if I could change my Thursday morning Spiegel Grove dive to Wednesday afternoon. I declined because I really wanted to do a shallow reef dive to make sure my weight was okay and just get used to diving salt water again. A couple hours later they called back to say they were canceling Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning dives because of weather, but I could go out Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. It wasn't until after I got off the phone that I started wondering if they had canceled for some other reason than weather, like not enough people going. I called Conch Republic Divers and asked if they had any boats going out at those times, and they did, so I booked with them.
I'm glad I switched to CRD. The owners are very friendly, and the crew was really helpful when I got seasick. Wednesday afternoon we dove the wreck of the Eagle. I dove with an instructor who had a student doing a refresher, and a DM candidate. The trip out to the site was rough, but I was okay even though I'm very prone to motion sickness. We saw a big grouper and did a couple swim throughs, and during the deep stop we saw a buddy-less remora. During the ascent we were bouncing around on the line, and when I pulled myself to the boat on the tag line I got sick. I've thrown up through my reg before, so I know I can do it, but it's not fun. I continued puking as I was climbing the ladder and had to be helped aboard. I wish there were some way of not getting sick. Besides feeling terrible physically, I feel bad that I require so much help, and it's probably fairly unpleasant to be around. It turned out that two of the other divers weren't feeling well either, so we called it a day after the one dive.
Thursday the seas were much calmer, but I took two Dramamines instead of the single one I took on Wednesday. I did better, but I threw up again right before the second dive. The first site was Pickles, and it was easy shallow reef diving. For the second dive we went to Snappers. On these two dives we saw lots of trumpetfish, a nurse shark, a scorpion fish, parrotfish, angel fish, trunk fish. We pretty much just stayed in one area and watched the sea life which is my favorite thing to do. I hope it was my buddy's favorite thing too because I hardly budged from the spot.
While diving in the Keys, I stayed at the Super 8 in Florida City. It's relatively cheap; that's all I can say about it. I had a good dinner at Toro Taco in Homestead.
On Saturday I met up with a new dive buddy I had met through a mutual friend on Facebook. We met at the Miami Beach Marina to go out on RJ Diving Ventures' boat. Saturday's first dive was a treasure hunt on the Ophelia Brian, sunk in 2009 by the Miami Reef Guard organization. You can read about our dive on this thread.
Trish didn't feel like going on the second dive; her head still hurt. So I went in with Tyler, who was joking that he wasn't certified. We had a very nice, relaxing dive, which was just what I needed after the excitement of the first. There was quite a bit of surge which was kind of fun to ride, but conditions on top had caused me to be sick again right before going in. I was subjected to good-natured kidding, tolerance of which is essential to surviving regular bouts of motion sickness!
On Sunday I met up with Trish again to do two shallow dives with RJ. We went to the Neptune Memorial Reef and the Belzona Barge wreck. Both of these dives were a lot of fun, and you can be sure that I was checking with Trish quite often on her pressure. I was getting back on the boat with a lot of air, but I wanted to play it super safe. At the Neptune reef there are a lot of crevices in the structure where we saw many arrow crabs (I think). I'm still not great at sea life identification. There was also a red anemone type creature in many crevices. The current was quite strong, and I was holding on a lot of the time. Belzona was very beautiful and full of life. At times I would just sink down to the sand and watch the life around me. A couple times Trish looked over at me worried because I hadn't moved in a long time. I really enjoy watching what the fish or other creatures do.
I took off on Monday and Tuesday and was back with RJ on Wednesday to meet up with my buddy Chris from Syracuse. We went to Emerald Reef for both dives and had a nice, relaxing time. It felt really good to dive with someone I knew and had been diving with before. We saw a good sized barracuda.
Overall I was happy with RJ. They worked hard to make my experience as good as possible and helped me out on the ladder and with my gear when I was sick. On the Sunday dives they placed a line in a way that made it easier for me. I have almost nothing but good to say about Mike and Mercedes.
I don't know why diving in Miami gets such a bad rap. There is a lot of life to see, and I thoroughly enjoyed the reefs.
On Thursday I headed to Boynton Beach to meet up with Rich and his son. I had met and dove with Rich in Cozumel in 2009. He and his family were going to a family reunion, so we decided to dive together again. We reserved through Underwater Explorers, but because of a mix-up, Kevin put us on Loggerhead's boat on Thursday. There were two other people on the boat, apparently regulars, and one acted as our guide and the other as DM.
I spent the night at another Super 8. There was a sketchy guy hanging out in the parking lot, and I had a problem with my room door. I'm not sure the savings are worth it.
On Friday we were given the choice of going out with Wihelmina from UE on their boat but without a guide or going out with Starfish with Wilhelmina in the water as our guide. Rich mentioned that it might not be a good idea to go out on the UE boat with only one person acting as driver and crew, so we opted to go with Starfish. We saw a huge ray and a big old turtle. Some of the other divers saw a hammerhead, but we missed it.
I love the diving in Boynton. The reefs are beautiful and lush, teeming with life, just like everyone on SB says. Unfortunately I broke my streak of not getting sick and was I'll again. I was so desperate to kick this motion sickness in the butt that I even went to an urgent care facility and got a prescription for Scopace. I was taking almost the maximum dosage. I guess it's just hopeless for me.
I really enjoyed my diving in South Florida, but next time I'll have to try some shore dives if only to minimize my time on boats.
Arrived MIA and took the Super Shuttle to the condo (Miami Beach). Had about a half hour wait and then about an hour until drop off. I was the last one to get dropped off. The next day I picked up the car at Budget, very close to the condo, and I got a better class car for less money than an airport pick up. I was supposed to get a Ford Escape, but ended up with a Ford Edge. Nice SUV with lots of bells and whistles. Unfortunately the Bluetooth connection to my iPhone stopped working after a couple days.
Several weeks ago I connected with DennisW to dive BHB on the 9th, but we canceled due to high bacteria. Instead of diving BHB I made arrangements to dive in the Keys. On Tuesday the dive op called to ask if I could change my Thursday morning Spiegel Grove dive to Wednesday afternoon. I declined because I really wanted to do a shallow reef dive to make sure my weight was okay and just get used to diving salt water again. A couple hours later they called back to say they were canceling Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning dives because of weather, but I could go out Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. It wasn't until after I got off the phone that I started wondering if they had canceled for some other reason than weather, like not enough people going. I called Conch Republic Divers and asked if they had any boats going out at those times, and they did, so I booked with them.
I'm glad I switched to CRD. The owners are very friendly, and the crew was really helpful when I got seasick. Wednesday afternoon we dove the wreck of the Eagle. I dove with an instructor who had a student doing a refresher, and a DM candidate. The trip out to the site was rough, but I was okay even though I'm very prone to motion sickness. We saw a big grouper and did a couple swim throughs, and during the deep stop we saw a buddy-less remora. During the ascent we were bouncing around on the line, and when I pulled myself to the boat on the tag line I got sick. I've thrown up through my reg before, so I know I can do it, but it's not fun. I continued puking as I was climbing the ladder and had to be helped aboard. I wish there were some way of not getting sick. Besides feeling terrible physically, I feel bad that I require so much help, and it's probably fairly unpleasant to be around. It turned out that two of the other divers weren't feeling well either, so we called it a day after the one dive.
Thursday the seas were much calmer, but I took two Dramamines instead of the single one I took on Wednesday. I did better, but I threw up again right before the second dive. The first site was Pickles, and it was easy shallow reef diving. For the second dive we went to Snappers. On these two dives we saw lots of trumpetfish, a nurse shark, a scorpion fish, parrotfish, angel fish, trunk fish. We pretty much just stayed in one area and watched the sea life which is my favorite thing to do. I hope it was my buddy's favorite thing too because I hardly budged from the spot.
While diving in the Keys, I stayed at the Super 8 in Florida City. It's relatively cheap; that's all I can say about it. I had a good dinner at Toro Taco in Homestead.
On Saturday I met up with a new dive buddy I had met through a mutual friend on Facebook. We met at the Miami Beach Marina to go out on RJ Diving Ventures' boat. Saturday's first dive was a treasure hunt on the Ophelia Brian, sunk in 2009 by the Miami Reef Guard organization. You can read about our dive on this thread.
Trish didn't feel like going on the second dive; her head still hurt. So I went in with Tyler, who was joking that he wasn't certified. We had a very nice, relaxing dive, which was just what I needed after the excitement of the first. There was quite a bit of surge which was kind of fun to ride, but conditions on top had caused me to be sick again right before going in. I was subjected to good-natured kidding, tolerance of which is essential to surviving regular bouts of motion sickness!
On Sunday I met up with Trish again to do two shallow dives with RJ. We went to the Neptune Memorial Reef and the Belzona Barge wreck. Both of these dives were a lot of fun, and you can be sure that I was checking with Trish quite often on her pressure. I was getting back on the boat with a lot of air, but I wanted to play it super safe. At the Neptune reef there are a lot of crevices in the structure where we saw many arrow crabs (I think). I'm still not great at sea life identification. There was also a red anemone type creature in many crevices. The current was quite strong, and I was holding on a lot of the time. Belzona was very beautiful and full of life. At times I would just sink down to the sand and watch the life around me. A couple times Trish looked over at me worried because I hadn't moved in a long time. I really enjoy watching what the fish or other creatures do.
I took off on Monday and Tuesday and was back with RJ on Wednesday to meet up with my buddy Chris from Syracuse. We went to Emerald Reef for both dives and had a nice, relaxing time. It felt really good to dive with someone I knew and had been diving with before. We saw a good sized barracuda.
Overall I was happy with RJ. They worked hard to make my experience as good as possible and helped me out on the ladder and with my gear when I was sick. On the Sunday dives they placed a line in a way that made it easier for me. I have almost nothing but good to say about Mike and Mercedes.
I don't know why diving in Miami gets such a bad rap. There is a lot of life to see, and I thoroughly enjoyed the reefs.
On Thursday I headed to Boynton Beach to meet up with Rich and his son. I had met and dove with Rich in Cozumel in 2009. He and his family were going to a family reunion, so we decided to dive together again. We reserved through Underwater Explorers, but because of a mix-up, Kevin put us on Loggerhead's boat on Thursday. There were two other people on the boat, apparently regulars, and one acted as our guide and the other as DM.
I spent the night at another Super 8. There was a sketchy guy hanging out in the parking lot, and I had a problem with my room door. I'm not sure the savings are worth it.
On Friday we were given the choice of going out with Wihelmina from UE on their boat but without a guide or going out with Starfish with Wilhelmina in the water as our guide. Rich mentioned that it might not be a good idea to go out on the UE boat with only one person acting as driver and crew, so we opted to go with Starfish. We saw a huge ray and a big old turtle. Some of the other divers saw a hammerhead, but we missed it.
I love the diving in Boynton. The reefs are beautiful and lush, teeming with life, just like everyone on SB says. Unfortunately I broke my streak of not getting sick and was I'll again. I was so desperate to kick this motion sickness in the butt that I even went to an urgent care facility and got a prescription for Scopace. I was taking almost the maximum dosage. I guess it's just hopeless for me.
I really enjoyed my diving in South Florida, but next time I'll have to try some shore dives if only to minimize my time on boats.