Bonneville Sea Base

[Jewls]

Hello RMO’s,

I have been researching information about the Bonneville Sea Base in Grantsville, UT (Just outside of SLC). I was wondering if anyone has been there to dive and/or snorkel? My BF and I have been considering a quick trip to UT so he could try out snorkeling and I could get a dive or two in while we’re there. I have been looking at pricing for flight, hotel and car and it is ranging from $265 - $400 each for a 4 day weekend. Do you think the price is right and trip is worth it? Are the conditions good for snorkeling? My BF would only be snorkeling, so I’m wondering if he’ll be able to see anything and have fun. We would like to do a short, fun and of course AFFORDABLE snorkel trip close to home, but I’m just not sure if the price is really worth it. What’s your opinion?

Thanks~
Jewls

 

[goonsquad]

Nope. I would be pissed if I paid to snorkel there. If you go on a thursday morning and no one else is there maybe it would be a good experience. The company is good but the conditions are craptacular. Vis on the weekends is really poor because of so many OW cert dives. When I went my G-F and I swam into someone, didn't realize he was there until he was at about arms length away.
The fish are cool, they have some sharks and from what I understand they now have some rays, they also have some jacks and some other assorted fish.
If you really want to dive there I would wait until fall or early winter and try for diving on a thursday morning. (they are closed mon-wed.)
I thought Blue Lake (outside of Wendover) was much better. Plus after your dive you can have some fun at the casino's.

 

[knotical]

Well, you already know the value of opinions, but here's mine:

Stopping at SeaBase while in the area was worthwhile, but I would not make a special trip just for that. So we combined it with other things. The day we were at SeaBase, the algae were in bloom, so vis was not good. On the other hand, they let us feed the fish some lettuce and that brought them close enough for some fun. I was surprised at how little surface area there is.

If you combine it with other attractions, as we did, it can make for a nice trip. There are the normal attractions in Salt Lake City itself that might appeal to you, plus a few other things to consider:
- Swim in the Great Salt Lake. It was neat to hang vertically in the water with my whole head and shoulders above the surface, down to my axilla!
- Watch the bison herd on Antelope Island. (Which is also where we swam.)
- Dive Homestead Crater. No critters to see, but imagine diving or snorkeling in a huge hot tub. ( see: Utah Resorts - Homestead Resort - The Crater )

 

[Dragon Down]

Seabase is interesting.

The surface experience is good you can pet a couple nurse sharks from the shore, the facilities are nice and the water isn't cold.

Most of the diving is fairly shallow, kind of a small area and very poor vis, I could see my fins every now and then but just as a vague outline.

The vis was bad enough that 1/2 our group called the dive after dropping to the platform. This is also considering that we had a large enough group that they opened the site just for us so there had not been any divers in for a couple days (the staff very accommodating and friendly.)

Overall, if you don't mind the low vis it is an interesting place to go and it was fun for the kids. But I wouldn't make a special trip just for there.

I would recommend coming to town, take a day up at the homestead crater then take a day or two trip west stopping at seabase then on to Blue Lake. The vis isnt much better at blue lake, 10 to 15 feet on a good day but it is a lot larger and deeper, I've found 67' but mostly in the 50s. This time of year you will want to take spray for the swarms of horse flys, Repel seems to work great on them. The water is warm in all three places, hot in the crater.

 

[Jewls]

Thanks everyone for a quick response. I’m just not too sure about making a “special” trip out there now, just to go snorkeling in murky water. (I could probably do that here in one of our lakes, minus the cool fish and sharks:cool2 From the sounds of it, we won’t see much and that’s what were looking for, an adventure, not a disappointment. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s pretty awesome that the owners came up with the idea to convert the area into a salt water habitat, I just wish the visibility was a bit more clear. After seeing the Nurse Shark picture Dragon Down sent, I can definitely see the how murky and green the water is. Probably not ideal for a new snorkeler and don’t want him to get the wrong impression. I guess this will be place to visit while enjoying other activities Utah has to offer. I hope to dive Homestead Crater one of these days, I think that would be awesome! Is Sea Base close to the crater? What’s the drive time? Might be a good road ‘venture

 

[Dragon Down]

They are in opposite directions but it's mostly freeway driving.

 

[goonsquad]

They are in opposite directions, but if you flew into slc and stayed downtown, you'd be equal distance to both. Probably 45 mins. to either. If you do come into town and do the Crater make sure you call a few days in advance, they are usually sold out as they limit the number of divers per session.

 

[RonFrank]

-OR- for about the same amount of money (assuming you fly), you could just go and dive the FL Keys! However I am somewhat partial to the Pacific Coast as of late, but I am Jones'ng for some warm water.

You are also welcome to join us a Blue Hole on Aug 27th~29th, should be fun, and the vis is never too bad.

 

[parkerco]

Given the replies, Jewls, have you considered a snorkeling trip to the Downtown Aquarium? If you want "a short, fun and of course AFFORDABLE snorkel trip close to home" that would be hard to beat ...

Swim with the Fish at the Downtown Aquarium with A-1 Scuba Colorado

 

[Jewls]

Ron Frank - Unfortunately this weekend doesn't look so good for me to plan for last minute diving. I would definitely love to join you on another upcoming trip to the Blue Hole or even the Crater. Maybe we can get fellow RMO's together and plan a weekend of it or something. I wonder if these places offer group discounts for diving / hotel? Might be something to think about.

Anyhow, we priced the crater and sea base and it's a pretty pricey road trip and even flying there is about the same cost as a quick trip to FL. We have considered snorkeling at the Downtown Aquarium and I think the aquarium might be the best place for a first timer. I was reading the FAQ's and unfortunately you can't dive down for a closer look at the fish, but it would be a great way to introduce him to the underwater world. Since FL and the Crater / Sea Base trip are about the same cost, we might try to plan a quick trip to FL after Hurricane Season. Possibly in mid-December. Hopefully this is a good time to visit and the water is still warm. I still have lots of research to do on this too.