From Tampa, to manatee spring diving?

[Torontonian]

My wife and I are flying to Tampa on Fri. Aug. 25 2pm, 2 days before getting on a W. Carribean cruise Sun. Aug. 27. I could go diving (and wife go snorkeling if appropriate) either in the afternoon of Fri. Aug. 25, or during the day on Sat. Aug. 26.

I read about manatee diving/snorkeling at Crystal Springs. Most the ops there start the snorkeling trip early at 6:30am or 7am. Some of them also have scuba diving, but they all indicate they don't have manatee diving because manatees are scared off by the bubbles?!

When I contacted Capt. John of ScubaTampa, he indicated he DOES run manatee diving trips by renting a boat there. He also indicated that manatees are not scared off by bubbles from divers, but rather are scared off by sudden motions from divers or snorkelers. He also indicated those dive ops say that because it is easier to run snorkel trips than diving trips. Too bad he's booked up at that time, so he cannot lead a separate manatee diving trip.

I'd be interested in going on a manatee diving trip, with wife on manatee snorkeling trip. It'd mean we'll need to rent a car to drive up and stay there the night before.

Is it true as Capt. described that it's fine to dive to see (I know, don't chase, don't bother them, etc.) manatees as long as you don't have sudden motions? Is it worth the trip (2hrs drive north) from Tampa, and stay the night before? At that time of the year, would we have good chance for manatee encounter, or is it a low probability affair?

Thanks.

 

[H2Andy]

it's definetely worth it. i drive about the same, from Jacksonville, and spend the
night before almost every year.

i snorkel, not dive. it is my experience that scuba bubbles will keep many manatees
(not all) away from you. i've had much better luck snorkeling than diving... just
my personal experience.

i recommend Bird's Underwater. they are on the pricey side, but get you out
early (key to seeing the most manatees) and have good staff.

you can't chase manatees or follow them. also, dont' wake them up if they
are asleep on the bottom. don't mess with a cow with a calf... you can
stress the calf or get him separated from the mother.

let them come to you, and you can rub them and tickle them.

if you scratch them right behind their front fin, they might turn over so you can
scartch their tummy.

they're a blast

 

[del_mo]

I'm no expert on when to see the manatees, but going in August is not the time to see them. They like warm water and head to Crystal River when the gulf is too cold.

I both dove and snorkeled with manatees. It is my opinion that diving with the manatees is not the way to enjoy their company. When a manatee wants a tummy rub or literally trys to hug you with a flipper, scuba gear only gets in the way.

Check with Bird's to see if your odds of catching some manatees are worth the effort to get there. If it is, playing with manatees is a truly wonderful experience.

 

[pickens_46929]

Ok, so I'll weigh in on this. Done the snorkel with American Pro about 5 times.

There are some issues with "diving" with the manatees especially if you are in / near a sanctuary... within designated areas "diving" is illegal and rangers will ticket you and if they are feelin' ornery that day confiscate your gear too.

Outside the sanctuary you can dive with them but unless you have good bouyancy control and good breath control you can scare them away.

As was said above, in August you'll be hard pressed to see any. I'd call American Pro and Birds to see if there are any around before making the drive.

Alternatively, there are some nice springs in that area including King Spring, Manatee Spring and Rainbow River (nice gentle drift dive -- excellent for picture taking).

You could also head South to near Venice and do some shark toothing. Pull up some 2 inch or larger megladon teeth.

 

[H2Andy]

doh...i totally missed the August date

well... the time to see the manatees is winter, when they come in seeking warmer
waters. December to February is best.

 

[Torontonian]

Hmm. So if the chance to see manatees is a lot lowere, is it still worth driving the 2 hr, and stay there the night before?

After the manatee snorkeling, what kind of diving would be good around that area before heading back to Tampa for that evening?

 

[BSea]

It's been about 5 years since I was at crystal river, but you can just rent a boat & try your luck. We went in early April, and saw several. I think August would not be your best bet. However, crystal river has an island with a hole nearby that's about 50' deep. the water is clear, and it's a nice easy dive. But you need a boat.

I'm not sure how far some of the other commercial springs are, but you might try to do that also. I dove Devil's Den with my son when he 1st started (different trip). It has the feel of cavern diving without any thing overhead. It is semi underground, but the water surface is unobstructed .

 

[del_mo]

Alternatively, there are some nice springs in that area including King Spring, Manatee Spring and Rainbow River (nice gentle drift dive -- excellent for picture taking).

You could also head South to near Venice and do some shark toothing. Pull up some 2 inch or larger megladon teeth.

Took the words right off my finger tips! Understand that the Venice tooth dive the water tends to be low viz (under 10 feet) and the springs and Rainbow River (a nice hour long dive) tends to have great viz.

If the tooth dive interests you, you need to book early, especially for weekends.
http://floridawestscuba.com/

 

[Torontonian]

I just got back from a family vacation to Myrtle Beach. I went to a diving trip and it was awful. After >2hr boat ride out to the ocean we reached the Bill Perry wreck, I got sick (first time). It was 5' viz, very sandy.


I called Bird's but the toll free number doesn't work, probably because I'm calling from Canada. Called another shop who does manatee snorkel tours for $15/pp. He suggested renting a boat to do my own diving in the bay which is only one sq mile.

Well, I will do more searches for manatee snorkeling and diving options. I guess we'll drive down the night before. In the morning go for some manatee snorkeling/diving tour, and maybe add other diving/snorkeling tours in the afternoon. Then drive to Tampa Sat. night.

 

[KiP1865]

If you are going to Crystal River to do a snorkel tour, I suggest going to King Spring right afterwards to do the dive there. It is the spring right in the river that was mentioned by BSea. American Pro Divers will do the snorkel tour and then take you to the spring for the dive. Your wife can snorkel above you. There is a little cave there that you can do without having to be cave certified. The viz is usually very good down in the spring. In the afternoon, the Rainbow River (KP Hole) drift dive is very nice and it does have excellent viz and lots of fish. We saw some turtles and a gar fish too. If you don't mind the ride (about an hour away), we went to Devil's Den that was also mentioned and liked it just a little more than Rainbow River. It is basically a big sinkhole. You have to go down two sets of stairs to reach the water and the view of the vines coming in the hole and the sunlight striking the crystal clear water is fantastic. There are fossils and large catfish to see during the dive. You need a light for the dive but you don't have to be cave certified.