Hillsboro inlet dive

[MantaRey]

Went off around the hillsboro inlet area (secret location heh) saw lot's of cool stuff. Saw the biggest puffer I've ever seen in quite some time. It had to be about a meter long, absolutely huge. Tons of lobster, slipper lobsters, had to beat them off with a stick. Some gigantic stone crab looking thing which I'm not sure the exact species. It attacked the heck out of my camera though. Tons of fish, a few grouper. Just so much in one dive to list.

Poor vis (less than 20) but it was super flat on the surface. Calm and eerie. Ended the dive with a near miss by a speeding boat (I'm getting really tired of this) and tons of jellies hanging out with the sargassum to bid me farewell. My legs are ON FIRE!

Saturday went off of Port Everglades. Absolutely horrible, saw nothing. But I did get some more jellyfish stings. Super!

 

[wstein]

sounds super....well except the jellyfish part.

 

[MantaRey]

It was, except I just found out some friends saw a black brotula off palm beach the same day. I'm jealous!

 

[HowardE]

The Large Puffer was probably a porcupine fish. Seen regularly in S FL. I'd show you a picture in the gallery to confirm that... but the gallery is down.

 

[wstein]

Can't have everything. Did you grab up some of those slipper lobsters? (there isn't any season on them right?)

 

[500 PSI]

So boaters in FLA don't know what a dive flag means or do they just try to aim for divers?? Thats nuts!

 

[HowardE]

So boaters in FLA don't know what a dive flag means or do they just try to aim for divers?? Thats nuts!

I shore dive at least 2-4 days a week, when I'm at my FL home, which is on the beach, and I've yet to have any boats buzz me. There IS a lot of boat traffic... I can hear them, but I've yet to see prop wash.

 

[MantaRey]

Boats have passed over me a couple times. But definitely not on shore dives. It does get pretty bad, it was memorial day too so most likely drinking was involved. Which is worrisome in so many ways; they could've plowed through me or my buddy, or hit and sank my boat which was anchored very close to where he passed.

It was a porcupine, it was just massive, I don't think I've seen one as big as that one. I'll get some screenshots soon of the stuff. I didn't take slipper lobsters, I'm a conservationist, I don't eat wild animals. heh.

Anyone have an idea on what kind of crab I saw? It wasn't a stone crab as it had long legs, and it's claws were small without the black striping. Plus it was too big; carapace was probably about 6-8" wide.