Daytona Beach to Jacksonville?

[MNDiverDan]

Hello,

I am a newly certified diver from Minnesota and will be traveling to Florida on business later this month. I will be in Daytona and Jacksonville and was wondering what type of dives I would be able to find there. As I an very new to the sport, I am looking for something farily easy and shallow (40' or so).

Please let me know who you think I should book a trip with and where I should be going.

Thanks for your input.

MNDiverDan

 

[H2Andy]

hi... you will have to do boat dives, as there is no shore diving in this area.

the dives will most likely be in 60-80 feet of water. you will get a combination of
wrecks (no penetration) and natural bottoms (mostly limestone ledges with soft corals and gorgonians, etc.) there are just a few tropical fish, but you will get
very large jacks, groupers, spadefish, etc.

visibility can be up to 100 feet, but 30-50 is about average. it can be well below that
at times. you are looking at at least an hour boat ride each way, in seas around 2-4
feet, so if succeptible to sea sickness (i am), best to take a dramamine the night before and one about an hour before getting on the boat.

check out my site below for Jax-area
charters. also, i have used Sea Dogs in Daytona, and would
recommend them: http://www.seadogdiver.com

another alternative is in St. Augustine (halfway between
Jax and Daytona). i've been with them, and like them
a lot, but their air and nitrox prices are outrageous:

http://www.scuba-charters.com/

if you can drive about three hours south from Daytona,
do some diving in Boynton Beach, West Palm, Ft. Lauderdale, or Hollywood. Excellent diving there, both shore and boat.

 

[cra2]

Looking for an easy dive in that area? Don't want an hour ride (both ways) on a boat?
Go to Marineland and dive in their saltwater aquarium.
17' deep, for an hour.
See turtles, nurse sharks, rays and HUGE fish, so used to divers that they'll come right up to you. I did it yesterday. Never been bumped by a 6' nurse shark before.
Nor stared down by a huge turtle. lol.

 

[H2Andy]

Looking for an easy dive in that area? Don't want an hour ride (both ways) on a boat?
Go to Marineland and dive in their saltwater aquarium.

oh yes... it's a fun little dive.

now a days, you can't just show up, though. you have
to arrange with a qualified charter. last i checked,
Spruce Creek Scuba was doing Marineland trips.

 

[cra2]

We did it yesterday.
I think it was through Oceanic or Oceanus (sp?).