Florida in May

[guyharrisonphoto]

You are coming in late May, so manatees are very iffy as they have dispersed from the springs by then. There might be a few around. When you get to Orlando, call Birds Underwater in Crystal River, about a hour or so from Orlando. They will give you a very honest report of whether the manatees are around. If they are, it is a "don't miss" experience, one of the greatest big animal encounters you can have. The Springs are OK and a different experience, but, for divers not cavern certified, they are just not so scenic as the reefs farther south, at least to me.

I would say the odds are that you will be heading south. That time of year, after spring break and before Memorial Day, should bring very reasonable prices and good deals on accomodations as it is really off-season. Any travel site should turn up reasonable hotels. You can also visit the online site South Florida Dive Journal which has really good hotel package deals for divers.

The closest, best diving to Orlando is the Jupiter/West Palm area. However, the only shore dive there is BHB. If you want more shore dives, you need to head down to Broward County, where there are quite a few really nice reefs just off the beach. Call Gold Coast Scuba in Ft. Lauderdale, they are the shore diving kings and often have muiltiple meet-up groups for shore dives on any given day. You can drive there from West Palm for one or two day trips if you do not want to change accomodations but want to get a few shore dives in.

Charters in Jupoter/Palm Beach are definitely worth the cost. I like Jim Abernethy and he just got a new 48 foot Newton that is incredible and capable of handling any chop. Another great boat for rougher conditions is Narcosis Dive Boat. Both Jim and Narcosis operate out of West Palm.

From Jupiter, two top ops are Jupiter Dive Center, and Cap't Sl8er, mentioned above.

By late May, there should be turtles out on the reefs of West Palm and Jupiter.

The only "if" factor is the weather. It can sometimes be windy and quite rough in May, making for a difficult and uncomfortable trip. If you are just visiting then you might want to go for it, but on one of the bigger boats like Abernethy or Narcosis. The chop also eliminates shore diving EXCEPT for BHB which is diveable pretty much any time. I would discuss this with any op you book with, to see what their cancellation policy is if they decide to run but you decide it is too rough for you. If you hit a calm spell, then no worries. The weather is, usually, reliably good that time of year.

 

[Splitlip]

jupiter dive center
Jupiter Dive Center,daily dive charters, scuba classes, equipment.Jupiter Dive Center

Boats and shop are on the water. Just few minutes from the inlet.
While there are plenty of accommodations, check jupiter best western and juno beach holiday inn express. Google them. Their rates can be quite reasonable off season which May is.
The best western is on Jupiter's Riverwalk. Lots of shops food and the dive bar. The holiday inn is steps from Jupiter, the beach, the pier and five fun restaurants that I can think of.
there are cheaper places out by the interstate, but you're gonna be on vacation.

 

[SteveBF]

pepper park near vero beach is a great shore dive


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[Splitlip]

Oops. How did I forget this?
http://www.jupiterreefclubresort.com/main/home
It's a time share, but check it out.

 

[Scuba_Jenny]

g, I'm not much help, but I can advise that costs of accomodations vary widely in FL, depending on how far South you are and time of year. Maybe a dive op can help you with that. Shore diving, so I read, is generally better on the gulf side (I assume you're talking Orlando latitude or S. of there) than on the Atlantic, but there are a few good Atlantic spots. What is the BHB?

jimw already answered this.. beach diving is better on the east coast.

Uhh, you may have your coasts mixed up--diving from Vero Beach south to Key West can be great, especially Palm Beach and Broward counties on the east coast with very good shore diving including BHB and Lauderdale By The Sea. On the west coast of FL, diving for shark teeth can be a lot of fun around the Venice area and can be done from shore, viz though will be very short.........We dive Blue Heron Bridge often and it is a world class muck dive, lots of macro critters and stuff one never sees on the reefs offshore. At the same time Manatees are possible in the winter, lots of rays most of the year. I've seen more Eagle Rays at BHB than anyplace else and big schools of fish now and then. Good viz is 15ft or better, it can get to 60ft sometimes. LBTS is weather dependent, so be aware especially of winds. East winds make the entry difficult, west winds make it easier. Gold Coast scuba nearby can advise and runs shoredives at the site.

jimw already answered this.. beach diving is better on the east coast.
the rest of his post is pretty spot on too.. go south for beach diving. BHB is awesome..

 

[Boca Kris]

BHB is a great site, definitely go with someone who knows the terrain. The spot is tide dependent for sure, due to it's proximity with the inlet. Give World of Scuba a call, they know all the best spots in the area, super friendly...they'll be able to advise you on what's best. 561-368-2155

Have fun!!

 

[gcarter]

Today I had the time off from work confirmed. Now I just need to make a decision on where to go

I do appreciate the responses.

 

[scubastingray]

I actually have no pre-determined preference on where. The BHB = Blue Heron Bridge, near Palm Beach. Hear a lot about it, thinking it should be worth a day. Florida isn't that big, so I would even be OK to move around a bit.

Florida is a pretty big state. It's quite a drive down the coast.

 

[gcarter]

Florida is a pretty big state. It's quite a drive down the coast.

It is all relative I guess, and depends on what you are used to. From Orlando it's just a tad over 4 hours to Key Largo. West Palm Beach is only 2 1/2 hours.

By way of contrast, I regularly drive 1 to 1 1/2 hours to dive different sites on the St. Lawrence. Ottawa to Tobermory is around an 8 hour trek I have made a couple of times. Last summer I drove Ottawa - Cape Ann to dive, that was 7 hours.

I can see going from Orlando to WPB, at the very least doing BHB, perhaps stay in that area, perhaps head down to Key Largo. When I want to head back up the coast I can easily see doing a morning trip, driving the afternoon, and diving WPB the next morning.

I know some people don't like long drives, but I really only consider these medium distances, less if diving along the way.

********

I see sharks seem to be common in the WPB area, what about Key Largo?

I do want to see sharks, and I do want to see goliath groupers.

 

[kelemvor]

Blue Heron Bridge is a fantastic dive. It's also free. Make sure you check with a local op about tides. It's only divable during slack tide.

I've been diving with Narcosis. They're a typical "big boat" op. If you like the larger boats, they would be a good choice.

For sharks, you want Jupiter beach. I've never dove Jupiter so I can't personally recommend any ops there.


Don't bother coming to the west coast. East coast diving is FAR better. I live on the east coast, unfortunately.

The spring dives are nice, but with 100 logged dives I bet you will be bored to tears. Without a cave card, spring dives are fairly shallow and tame. I wouldn't do the springs on your trip with the Atlantic ocean so close.