Diving Ginnie

[vr24]

I was curious, I live in South Florida, are the springs worth driving all the way up for a long weekend? Is there much to see for an hour in the water, and is it worth going for a second tank?

 

[haneym]

if youve never dove the springs then its cool. ive done it about 5 times and its fun anytime youre breathing underwater but i wouldnt make a long trip for it. i just went this past weekend, but we do 2 dives in the morning and then everyone else shows up and we cook out and tube in the afternoon.

the cavern is cool the first time and its always nice and peaceful down there. the water is crystal clear and nice and cool on a hot day. i also like to drift dive the river, its only about 10' at the deepest but you see some fish and find a bunch of things that tubers lose. its important to do this early before the river gets stirred up by the thousands of tubers throughout the day.

to be honest, i would much rather dive offshore and not know what im gonna see, shoot some fish, etc. the springs are cool for a once a year or every couple years trip though. if youre not a cave diver (which i have NO interest in) there isnt a whole lot to see.

 

[vr24]

I'm just trying to figure out if it's worth driving up and diving on a saturday morning or something.

Never done a freshwater dive, so sounds interesting enough. I may skip the idea though as it may be completely boring.

 

[haneym]

just realize what it is and what to expect. youre not gonna see any cool fish or coral formations. it is neat to see the different layers of limestone and how all the rock slabs sit on top of each other but still leave little cracks and crevices. its cool to watch your bubbles hit the top of the cavern and find their way to the surface, then when you surface out of the cavern, theres about 3' of water top of the cavern and you can see the little bubble trails coming out of the holes and cracks.

to be honest though, especially with the price of gas these days, i wouldnt drive up just to do it. wait until youre in the area for something else (if ever) and then do it.

 

[pdoege]

Blue Spring in Orange City is probably about 2 hours closer to you.

All the people that I've taken to the various springs have gone through 2 tanks.

Peter

 

[scubafire]

I love the springs....very relaxing but true there isn't much to see. I was wondering...can a regular open water diver go into the cavern? I heard that you can because you can still see a light source that it isn't considered cave diving. But I also hear that you cannot. So what is the deal? Any ideas?


(Oh yeah, I am referring to Ginnie btw)

 

[scubafool]

An OW cert is all that is required to dive the cavern at the main Ginnie Springs.

But keep in mind that a cavern is a cave is a cave. There be rock over top of dat dere watuh. People have died diving that very cavern.

 

[OCDinNC]

Yes, OW divers can dive the ballroom at Ginnie and take lights. They cannot take lights into Devils Eye or Ear. That keeps them from getting into a major problem. The ballroom is is very fun dive, and fascinating if you've never done a cavern type dive before. And yes, it gets full of LOTS of OW divers with horrible buoyancy skills, etc. Sometimes it's a zoo; earlier dives are better than late ones. But still very cool.It is not, as many think, impossible to silt up. But it's very hard, and rare for it to happen. And it's so wide and round that it's pretty safe for people who don't know squat about overhead environments.

IMO, worth going to.

 

[DennisW]

Diving Ginnie or one of the other springs is something you should do at least once. I've done it a few times, but I probably won't do it again unless it is a group trip and I am there for the fellowship. There really isn't much to see. It is a great place to practice skills.

 

[vr24]

I think I'll do it... Like you said, worth doing at least once. Maybe sometime mid-august or something I'll plan a 2 day trip up there.