In Chehalis, Washington for 6 wks -- Questions about NW diving and this area

[Ready4Launch]

I'm going to be in Chehalis, WA starting the last week of April. I should be there for about 6 weeks. During that time I should be able to find a day (hopefully more) to go diving.

1) Do I need a dry suit to dive in the Washington coast area during this time of year? Will a 7mm wetsuit be okay?

2) Are there any dive boats / outfits that dive out of South Bend or Aberdeen since those are the two nearest to Chehalis on the coast?

3) If not either of those places, then where would be the next best place to go (keeping in mind that I need to do wetsuit only dives)?

 

[dwashbur]

You can use a 7mm but a dry suit would be better. I dove wet here for about 3 years and have a buddy who still does.

I don't know about the charters. I would check Bandito Charters; they have more than one boat and go out of more than one place, but other than Tacoma I don't know their locations.

You can find loads of buddies and info about local sites at Northwest Dive Club They're a local group of divers that love to show visitors around. That's the best place to start.

 

[TSandM]

The vast majority of the diving in Washington is done in Puget Sound, not off the Pacific Coast. From Chehalis, you could head up toward Tacoma, or over to Hood Canal (which would probably be my choice). Both places have good charter boats, the Bandito operation in Tacoma, and Pac Adventures in Hood Canal, but in neither place do you NEED to go out on a boat to go diving.

People do dive wet here, but a 7 mil suit on its own is not going to be enough insulation for most. Typical wetsuit diving here is a 7 mil suit with a 7 mil core warmer, and those can be rented from almost any shop, because that's what most students certify in.

I'm not sure what the closest dive shop to you would be, but talking to a shop about doing a "Discover Local Diving" (i.e. hiring a DM for a day for a guide) might be a good option. You could also post on the nwdiveclub.com forum looking for a buddy. There are a lot of active south end divers there. Most of us love showing off Puget Sound diving to visitors.

 

[Bat-Fish]

+1 for Lynne's comments.
And I've used this site as well to get an idea of what's available in the region: Puget Sound Dive Sites
You are a good 60 to 90 minute drive to some amazing dive sites in the Puget Sound.

 

[Peter Guy]

My guess is that the two closest dive shops to you would be in the Olympia area:

Hoodsport 'N Dive (Olympia) -- Home

and

Underwater Sports (Olympia) -- https://www.underwatersports.com/?page_id=3171

I'm sure that both can provide you with the gear/fills/information you need to serve your diving needs.

Now I have to ask -- what would send anyone to Chehalis for 6 weeks?

 

[Ready4Launch]

Now I have to ask -- what would send anyone to Chehalis for 6 weeks?

A power plant.