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We have been to SD but decided to move to San Pedro. We wanted to be close to the water so we could have a boat in the Marina but did not want to be in a tourist spot. We both are self employed with steady clients so deciding to live was all about personal choice over were we could find work.

Make the move and do it when you are able to make the change. I left Chicago with a client base that most people would die for. I needed to leave for my own sanity but if I waited another 5 or more years, I would have never left.
 
Isn't the gulf right there on the panhandle? Is there not good diving in the gulf in the panhandle?
I've been diving around Panama City, FL. and it was pretty nice, right off shore. We drove from there to Vortex and Morrison Springs, both within a 90 minute drive, if I recall correctly.

When I first moved to Singapore it was not for the diving, but I went from an indifferent diver to an avid one while living there. Seven years after moving back to the States, part of the appeal of HK was the chance to be near the great Southeast Asian diving again. Lower taxes didn't hurt. :wink:
 
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Isn't the gulf right there on the panhandle? Is there not good diving in the gulf in the panhandle? Believe me, I'm good at looking at pet rocks, that's all I can look at after I make my 4 hour drive to the lake. Well there are a few fish, bass, blue gill and stuff like that. *yawn* good thing I like blowing bubbles!
I have dove all over Florida. I guess I'm just spoiled down here in Key Largo. The West Palm area would be my second choice, Venice Beach area my third, High Springs fourth, Tampa/Orlando a distant fifth and then I would look at Jacksonville or the Panhandle with equal reticence. Why settle for the pan handle when the pan is just so much better? Why take the turkey neck when there's a thigh right in front of you? I guess compared to Georgia or Alabama, it's still paradise. Still, I wish I had made the move down here a long, long time ago.

Geesh, I bet I get a lot of hate mail for this post! :D :D :D
 
Here is another vote for the panhandle. Just take a look at my thread I started the other day. Nine miles offshore in the Gulf, intact wreck, 2 sharks, insane amount of sea life, 80+ feet vis, and bottom temp of 72, and keep in mind this is in December.

I could go on and on about the panhandle and it's spectacular diving. Shore diving, boat diving, spring diving, cave diving, and some of the best spearfishing in the world.
 
I have dove all over Florida. I guess I'm just spoiled down here in Key Largo. The West Palm area would be my second choice, Venice Beach area my third, High Springs fourth, Tampa/Orlando a distant fifth and then I would look at Jacksonville or the Panhandle with equal reticence. Why settle for the pan handle when the pan is just so much better? Why take the turkey neck when there's a thigh right in front of you? I guess compared to Georgia or Alabama, it's still paradise. Still, I wish I had made the move down here a long, long time ago.

Geesh, I bet I get a lot of hate mail for this post! :D :D :D

Well I hope you don't get any! Thanks for listing your preferences :)
 
Not yet but we are getting closer to selling everything and moving to Roatan :)
 
I've never lived more than 1/2 from the coast (except for a few years during grad school when I lived in Santiago and hated it), and coastal access is a consideration every time I move. I'm now looking to relocate again, and access to the ocean is a key factor for me.
 
I have dove all over Florida. I guess I'm just spoiled down here in Key Largo. The West Palm area would be my second choice, Venice Beach area my third, High Springs fourth, Tampa/Orlando a distant fifth and then I would look at Jacksonville or the Panhandle with equal reticence. Why settle for the pan handle when the pan is just so much better? Why take the turkey neck when there's a thigh right in front of you? I guess compared to Georgia or Alabama, it's still paradise. Still, I wish I had made the move down here a long, long time ago.

Geesh, I bet I get a lot of hate mail for this post! :D :D :D

As an Alabamian who travels to Florida to dive....I'll take whichever part of it I can get! >laugh< The Keys provided some of the most beautiful sea life....but the majority of the big stuff I've seen has been in the Gulf. Panama City and Orange Beach seem to have some amazing wrecks and artificial reefs that are just teeming with life. Huge amberjack.....snapper....those thumping goliath grouper and southern stingrays....wow.

I'd love to live closer to the keys....but that's not going to happen this month.
 
I have dove all over Florida. I guess I'm just spoiled down here in Key Largo. The West Palm area would be my second choice, Venice Beach area my third, High Springs fourth, Tampa/Orlando a distant fifth and then I would look at Jacksonville or the Panhandle with equal reticence. Why settle for the pan handle when the pan is just so much better? Why take the turkey neck when there's a thigh right in front of you? I guess compared to Georgia or Alabama, it's still paradise. Still, I wish I had made the move down here a long, long time ago.

Geesh, I bet I get a lot of hate mail for this post! :D :D :D

If the money situation improves a lot we hope to snowbird in the Pan. For now, it's still the Handle. Drop in after Jan. 1 if you're in good old Destin (the "Luckiest Fishing Village in the World"-- whoop de do).
 
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