Being Evacuated Need Texas Diving Info QUICK

[got4boyz]

We are being asked to evacuate here in SE Texas and the boyz don't have school on Monday so we have a 6 day vacation coming up.

We're planning to go to Florida this weekend to dive, but Lili is cancelling those plans!

I would like opinions on the best places to dive in Texas that we could go to. Preferably something with lots of stuff to see since our newly certified son wants to see something fun.

Any info would be appreciated.

How is Clear Springs, Possum Kingdom, any other places you recommend?

Thanks!

 

[Rick Murchison]

Only place I'm familiar with inland in your area is Lake Travis. It isn't the clearest, but it's certainly good enough for diving and there are some excellent sites - probably even more than there were the last time I was there 12 years ago.
Rick

 

[redacted]

Balmorhea springs in west texas, just east of intersection of I10 & I20. I have never been there but it is supposed to be clear water pool, easy dive, hungry catfish and other critters. Should be appropriate for new divers. Alternative in the Austin area (besides travis) is San Marcos river. Clear, shallow, lots of life. Large group may stir it up too much if any problems with bouyancy. You need to be overweighted to deal with the current but carefull not to stir up things. A long screwdriver or other stake is very usefull to anchor to bottom to hold position. I would suggest the deeper holes (8-10 ft) between the RR bridges.

 

[got4boyz]

Lake Travis is definitely a possibility. Balmorhea Springs sounds great especially for my son, but it's 12 hours away! We're considering it though!

San Marcos River is way too advanced for my 12 year old.

 

[SueJ]

Balmorhea would be a great place for the kids, it about 30' deep, crystal clear and about a constant 72 degrees. It's a state park, so there is camping and cabin rentals. Keep in mind though that it is considered an altitude dive.
Good luck!

 

[TwoBitTxn]

Or Clear Springs scuba park... Just East of Terrel TX. Rapidly developing nice park. Huge sunken shark to dive. Wicked thermalcline at 30'. It gets cold in a hurry (Mid 60's or so). Nice vis. Lots of fish to see.

Athens Scuba Park... Down Town Athens Texas Lots of sunken stuff to see. Max depth 30ft Avg depth about 20. No fish. Beware if you bleach your hair. Warm and shallow.

Possum Kingdom... There are better people around here to tell you about this place than me.

TwoBit

 

[ScubaTexan]

Clear Springs is really nice...in fact, I'm seriously considering going out there Saturday. It's about 40 miles east of Dallas, just off Highway 80 in Terrell. It's about 55 feet at its maximum depth, but it's spring-fed, so there are two thermoclines, one at about 25 feet and the other at about 35 feet. Temps drop pretty sharply, but it's not too bad if you stay in and around 30 feet.

http://www.geocities.com/clearspringsscubapark/

Athens Scuba Park isn't quite as nice as Clear Springs (no fish, little vegetation), but it has quite a few sunken objects that are interesting to look at. It's not bad for a place just to get wet.

http://www.athensscubapark.com

Hope that helps. Good luck with the evacuation...

 

[ScubaTexan]

oops....looks like someone beat me to it....oh well

 

[carlislere]

Lake Travis has numerous places for beach diving. Camping is available at several parks if that is what you are doing. There is also a new Holiday Inn on Hwy 620 on the northbound side, about 1/2 to 3/4 mile south of the Hwy 183 intersection. Lake temp is 81 on the surface and 79 at 60 feet.

Good luck. Hope ya'll come out all right with the storm.

 

[Deadeye]

I've been there several times since I used to live in Midland.

The deepest part I could find is only 20 ft. Very clear, more like a swimming pool than a spring or lake.

One end has diving boards, etc for swimmers. Lots of tiny fish, few large ones. Two large softshell turtles.

No shade in camping area, but it does have cabins available. Since it's so shallow you'll get very long dives in and possibly get bored.

There's a dive shop just outside the state park where you can get tank refills.

It's a nice been-there-done-that place to dive. Lots of west Texas dive shops certify OW students there.

Balmorrhea is a very small town, close to Saragossa which has been nailed by large tornadoes a time or two. It has a couple of nice restaurants and a grocery store if you need camping food.