paulwall
Contributor
June 25 dawned hot and clear with a stiff southerly breeze blowing into Pensacola. I arrived at the Boca Chica marina before the 7:30 due time to find Capt. Tim and his deckhand Matt greeting the 4 other divers. We quickly boarded the biodiesel fueled dive boat 'Viking' and headed out for an inshore trip. The seas were flat, maybe 1' with a swell out of the south. The wind kept the forward progress down going out.
First stop was the San Pablo. I've dived this site many times, and am always impressed by the size and variety of fish present. Besides HUGE leopard toadfish, I saw large grouper, schools of spades, butterfly fish, Large Angels, and several types of snapper. I hunted around for slipper lobster, not too optimistic and just worked on skills in 80' of water. I did roll up about 100' of anchor rope and pulled an anchor out of a bind and laid the two together in the sand.
Bottom temp was 74o and the surface was about 80o. Dive time was about 40mins. I didn't have a buddy, but Capt. Tim and Matt were both in the water and gave me their blessing to solo. Vis was at least 40', with occasional 50' and 30' sections. We did see the Nihui dive boat with a load of spearfishermen anchored further to the bow, where we were tied into the boilers. Several H&L fishermen were about, as well.
After about 40 mins, I joined the rest of the divers on the boat, and we headed into the 3 Coal barges site, which has been enhanced with some excellent bridge rubble. The site is fantastic again. I dove this site back in the 90's when all 3 barges were on top of the sand, and a resident turtle was frequently cited and curious. The last time I dove the site, most of the barges had fallen apart and been buried in the sand. I was able to enter one portion near the anchor line, again futilely looking for shovelnose lobster, and then swam among the various new (and sporting life) HUGE pieces of bridge rubble which have recently been added to the site. Very interesting and a nice second dive. Max depth was 45' and I swam around for about an hour on this site. Bottom temps were again 74o, and vis was down to about 30'. The Down Under tied up after we did, and disgorged about 15 divers on the same piece of wreck we were tied into. It got a little crowded down there. I guess they're serious about not diving the Orange Beach inshore sites anymore.
I have to say I'm glad I gave Viking another shot. The first time, I had an equipment issue that caused me a little anxiety that inadvertently kept me from calling them again, although it was none of their doing. They will take divers to less-visited and hunting sites (like the Brass Wreck, and Timberholes) that other charters might not. It's a big six-pack, with max 8 well-acquainted divers (but they'll go with 4, and 6 is the norm). The crew is very conscientious and attentive, and the boat entry and exit are super-easy (back roll-off, aluminum ladder with lots of handholds to re-enter, with an inboard diesel).
However, if you are at all prone to seasickness, you may want to look elsewhere. The Viking is a narrow-beam, high center-of-gravity monohull boat that tends to rock, a lot. Divers moving around the deck will cause the boat to lean quite a bit, so pick a spot and stay there.
The charters are a little pricier than other six-packs (Charters), but the crew is top-notch, the boat is fully O2 equipped, and they use a descent line off the stern to get you out of the surface current quickly (there was none on the 25th, but it would have been nice on my last charter). I will use them again after Aug 6 Lobster Season starts in Florida and we may hit some hard bottom sites, or the Brass Wreck again.
First stop was the San Pablo. I've dived this site many times, and am always impressed by the size and variety of fish present. Besides HUGE leopard toadfish, I saw large grouper, schools of spades, butterfly fish, Large Angels, and several types of snapper. I hunted around for slipper lobster, not too optimistic and just worked on skills in 80' of water. I did roll up about 100' of anchor rope and pulled an anchor out of a bind and laid the two together in the sand.
Bottom temp was 74o and the surface was about 80o. Dive time was about 40mins. I didn't have a buddy, but Capt. Tim and Matt were both in the water and gave me their blessing to solo. Vis was at least 40', with occasional 50' and 30' sections. We did see the Nihui dive boat with a load of spearfishermen anchored further to the bow, where we were tied into the boilers. Several H&L fishermen were about, as well.
After about 40 mins, I joined the rest of the divers on the boat, and we headed into the 3 Coal barges site, which has been enhanced with some excellent bridge rubble. The site is fantastic again. I dove this site back in the 90's when all 3 barges were on top of the sand, and a resident turtle was frequently cited and curious. The last time I dove the site, most of the barges had fallen apart and been buried in the sand. I was able to enter one portion near the anchor line, again futilely looking for shovelnose lobster, and then swam among the various new (and sporting life) HUGE pieces of bridge rubble which have recently been added to the site. Very interesting and a nice second dive. Max depth was 45' and I swam around for about an hour on this site. Bottom temps were again 74o, and vis was down to about 30'. The Down Under tied up after we did, and disgorged about 15 divers on the same piece of wreck we were tied into. It got a little crowded down there. I guess they're serious about not diving the Orange Beach inshore sites anymore.
I have to say I'm glad I gave Viking another shot. The first time, I had an equipment issue that caused me a little anxiety that inadvertently kept me from calling them again, although it was none of their doing. They will take divers to less-visited and hunting sites (like the Brass Wreck, and Timberholes) that other charters might not. It's a big six-pack, with max 8 well-acquainted divers (but they'll go with 4, and 6 is the norm). The crew is very conscientious and attentive, and the boat entry and exit are super-easy (back roll-off, aluminum ladder with lots of handholds to re-enter, with an inboard diesel).
However, if you are at all prone to seasickness, you may want to look elsewhere. The Viking is a narrow-beam, high center-of-gravity monohull boat that tends to rock, a lot. Divers moving around the deck will cause the boat to lean quite a bit, so pick a spot and stay there.
The charters are a little pricier than other six-packs (Charters), but the crew is top-notch, the boat is fully O2 equipped, and they use a descent line off the stern to get you out of the surface current quickly (there was none on the 25th, but it would have been nice on my last charter). I will use them again after Aug 6 Lobster Season starts in Florida and we may hit some hard bottom sites, or the Brass Wreck again.
