Diving off of Miami?

[sharkbite13]

Hi All,
My friends and I are looking into a February dive trip and someone mentioned Miami as a possibility.
I have about 12 days off and a few friends and I were looking into dive possibilities in/around the Caribbean, looking for big sharks.
We're divemasters and I am studying Marine Conservation but out of the many shark species we've seen we have yet to come across great hammerheads or tiger sharks.

My main questions are: a) Is the diving off of Miami good? I have this preconception that it is not wonderful in comparison to nearby areas but I am unsure b) How much has the diving been effected by Irma?

Additionally if you have any other recommendations for areas in the Caribbean to have great shark encounters it would be extremely appreciated!

 

[cbm369]

I'll let others chime in about possibilities, but the Jupiter area is good for sharks. Also, check out Tiger Beach in the Bahamas.

 

[OceanEyes]

For some details about the current state of diving in Miami, see the thread “Dade and Broward County Wrecks Post Irma”. Miami is in Dade County. That thread is still on the first page of the Florida forums.

There are some splendid reefs near Miami, though the major appeal of Miami diving to me is the wrecks, those both accidentally and intentionally sunk as artificial reefs. A substantial drawback to visitors to the area is the scarcity of commercial dive boat operations and their infrequent visits to many of my favorite sites.

The variety of diving, and overall perceived ‘quality” is much broader by going either south of Miami to the Keys, or north to Ft. Lauderdale, Pompano, Boynton Beach, West Palm Beach, and Jupiter. There are dozens of commercial operations that offer a wide array of diving opportunities. There are even a few operators who offer baited shark dives: Emerald, Calypso, and the like. A brief search on the forums and the web should give you an idea of the breadth of opportunities available.

In my experience I’ve found the sites in Jupiter to be the most “sharky,” but I’ve seen many species all along the East Coast of Florida. You expressed particular interest in seeing Tiger and Great Hammerhead sharks. These species are occasionally found here-about, tend to be seasonal, and are most likely to be encountered by operations that bait for them specifically.

For the most reliable chance to see either of these species though, I’d advise you to do a bit of research on Tiger Beach for Tiger Sharks, and Bimini for Great Hammerheads. These too are variable depending on the season, and you may have a bit of a challenge in obtaining space with any of the operators offering such excursions as you are planning your venture with limited advance notice.

 

[HalcyonDaze]

When people ask me about diving in Miami I tell them to skip it - OceanEyes' writeup is more nuanced and probably more up to date (I haven't done a recreational dive in Miami-Dade County in over 10 years), but to my knowledge we still have only two dive charters in the county and the sites aren't anything to go out of the way for. Broward has more options; the Keys and Palm Beach are better choices in my opinion. It depends on what you're out for.

If you're intent on going for sharks, specifically tigers and great hammerheads, your best picks are the Bahamas or Jupiter. The Bahamas are likely the pricier option, but the water clarity will probably be better, you'll run across bigger sharks, and the dive conditions will be shallower and less challenging. That said, I'm not sure how much ground you'd have to cover to get both species - Tiger Beach is obviously the hotspot for tigers, and Bimini is where your best bet is for finding big hammers. There is some crossover between the two - my last time at Tiger Beach we had two great hammerheads and six tigers - but I don't know what your chances are of getting both in one place.

Also, personally I would refuse to give anything associated with Resorts World Bimini a cent and would have an impulse to burn the place down - that establishment is a case study in how irresponsible development can wreck an island. I think you can do the great hammerheads in Bimini without getting involved with RWB, but I'll offer that word of caution. I was at the Shark Lab for a field course 12 years ago and loved Bimini; I'm torn between going back to see it again and keeping it in my mind it as it was.

Jupiter I know more about - the dives will be considerably deeper (65-100+ versus 30-40 for the Bahamas; nitrox is a must-have) and it's drift diving in a 1-4 knot current. I've had days when I've had to brace myself in the sand to keep from being blown arse over teakettle right into the chow line. There are two SCUBA charters targeting sharks with bait, Emerald and Calypso, plus a couple of surface-snorkel outfits. Both cater to more independent divers - there's not a strict "buddy rule" and you can't count on the DM to bail you out when he's coated in sharks. All that said, February is a pretty good time to go looking for tigers and great hammerheads up there; they're just starting to get spotted here and there and later in the winter the chances of spotting both on the same day will go up. You also have a chance of seeing them on a non-baited dive in Palm Beach County, but that will take some luck (or an operator who drops you in right where the baited charters have just been).

 

[OceanEyes]

When people ask me about diving in Miami I tell them to skip it - OceanEyes' writeup is more nuanced and probably more up to date (I haven't done a recreational dive in Miami-Dade County in over 10 years), but to my knowledge we still have only two dive charters in the county and the sites aren't anything to go out of the way for. Broward has more options; the Keys and Palm Beach are better choices in my opinion. It depends on what you're out for.

Also, personally I would refuse to give anything associated with Resorts World Bimini a cent
.

While I agree that Miami is not a “serious” dive destination and believe that the OP will be much happier elsewhere, I feel a bit bad for you HalcyonDaze. According to your byline, you live in Miami. Your hesitancy to dive some of the local sites means that you’ve got to endure the dreaded I95 corridor if you want to get wet. On a good day, there are several local wreck sites that can provide some pretty spectacular diving. All that you need is a friend with a boat, some seamanship skills, and proper mooring gear & technique. Lat./Long numbers are readily available. I’ve not been aboard the commercial boat out of Key Biscayne, (Diver’s Paradise?), for decades, but Deco Divers, (R.J.’s old operation), sailing out of Miami Beach Marina occasionally runs to some very nice spots, maybe twice a month, usually on Saturday mornings. They are affiliated with several of the local shops, and believe that their trip schedule is posted on the Tarpoon Lagoon website.

I concur with Mr./Ms. Daze’s assessment of Resorts World. All of my visits to Bimini have been on either friends’ private boats, or aboard the Shear Water live-aboard.

 

[HalcyonDaze]

Yeah, back when I was an undergrad I dove RJ's a number of times. The problem is that I seem to have the same issue a number of my fellow working divers get - I need a mission or I get bored underwater. I have good memories of Tenneco Towers and some of the other wrecks (I never did the Patton tanks, which might be fun); I just got into Palm Beach diving around 2006 and after that the ~1.5-2 hour drive each way was worth it for the much bigger payoff when it came to targeting "charismatic megafauna."

It's kind of hard for me to spend a dive weekend in my backyard when up the road lemon shark, turtle, and goliath grouper sightings are so commonplace they're almost blah, sightings of tigers, bulls, great hammerheads, silkys, and sandbars are frequent in the proper seasons, and there's the outside-but-not-impossible chance of running across a leatherback, manta, great white, whale shark, or whale.

 

[Sea_Bass]

The diving off Miami is good, water is usually clear and current not too bad. The visibility has recovered from Irma. The deeper wrecks off Miami can have sharks. El Almirante wreck usually holds large Bull Sharks. But I'll shadow what the others have said, your best bet is Bahamas for guaranteed sharks.

 

[mjsylver]

You need to contact Capt. Ani at Deco Divers and give them a run. There are plenty of neat wrecks and reefs, natural and otherwise in the area. The crews are well versed and professional.